Sen. Andrew Maynard Is New Target of Greenwich Billionaire Thomas Peterffy

Greenwich billionaire Thomas Peterffy has a new Democratic target – state Sen. Andrew Maynard.

Peterffy burst into the Connecticut political world Thursday when it was revealed that he was funding cable television commercials against Democrat Steve Cassano in a state Senate district covering Manchester and Glastonbury.

Now, Peterffy is spending more than $25,000 on two similar TV commercials against Maynard, a Stonington Democrat who also represents  surrounding towns in southeastern Connecticut.

“Connecticut has big problems, and state Senator Andy Maynard made things worse,” one of the 30-second ads says. “He voted for the largest tax increase in state history. Now, you have less money in your pocket. Maynard voted for higher taxes and red tape on businesses. The result? Nine percent unemployment. Maynard voted to let violent criminals get early release from prison that resulted in a murder in Meriden. Andy Maynard. The wrong choice for eastern Connecticut.”

Peterffy’s money has been contributed to a previously unknown group called Voters For Good Government, Inc., which is incorporated in Delaware and maintains a post office box in Fairfield. The managing director is Liz Kurantowicz, the former chief of staff and finance director for the Connecticut Republican Party and a former state employee in Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell’s office.

But Kurantowicz told Capitol Watch on Friday that Peterffy is not the organization’s largest donor. He is one of five publicly-known donors, along with little-known groups such as Americans For Job Security, The American Justice Partnership, Republican State Leadership Committee, and the Roger Sherman Liberty Center. Those groups are listed at the bottom of the ad against Maynard, and Kurantowicz says at the end of the commercial that she approved the message.

Kurantowicz declined to provide any details on the contributors, saying that they can speak for themselves.

On Peterffy, she said, “He’s our first donor, certainly not our largest by any stretch of the imagination. … We’re constantly raising money. We won’t turn anybody down.”

Peterffy’s presence in the Connecticut races was publicly revealed Thursday when Cassano and Senate President Pro Tem Donald Williams held a press conference outside the state Capitol in Hartford that decried the use of the Super PAC ads. They blasted the move by a Greenwich billionaire to become involved in the local state Senate races, saying they opposed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the Citizens United case that allowed the creation of Super PACs and unlimited spending on political campaigns.

Maynard, whose telephone number is not listed in the official Connecticut Legislative Guide that has home and business numbers for all legislators, could not be reached for comment Friday night.

Kurantowicz declined to reveal any details Thursday about the number of commercials that will be broadcast against Cassano, their precise content or how much money will be spent by Election Day.

“We’re going to be highlighting decisions that Senator Cassano made that were not necessarily in the interests of his district,’’ Kurantowicz said in a telephone interview.

She said her organization is still in the process of raising money, and she declined to say how much that Peterffy will spend.

“Senator Cassano will not be the only race that we are interested in. As we make additional expenditures, those will be made public,” she said Thursday. “There certainly will be additional expenditures made in multiple districts. I can say that with 100 percent certainty.’’

Peterffy is little known to the general public, but he has contributed to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, U.S. Senate candidate Linda McMahon, Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts, and the Republican National Committee. Various published estimates have pegged his net worth at $4 billion to $7.6 billion.

“I grew up in a socialist country, and I have seen what that does to people,’’ Peterffy says in a video that is currently available on the Internet. “There is no hope, no freedom, no pride in achievement. The nation became poorer and poorer. And that’s what I see happening here.”

Although he could not speak English when he arrived in the United States in 1965, Peterffy eventually created Interactive Brokers, a giant discount brokerage firm based in Greenwich that has employees in at least 11 countries.

Kurantowicz declined to comment on the reaction of Cassano, saying she was not at the press conference in Hartford and did not hear remarks by Democrats criticizing the controversial decision by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2010 that allowed the creation of Super PACs in political campaigns.

“I don’t think I need to be in a position where I’m defending Citizens United,’’ she said. “We are doing what the law says we’re allowed to do. This is a bipartisan thing. This is not a party-specific system. Both Democrats and Republicans have utilized’’ Super PACs.

A graduate of Northwest Catholic High School in 2000 and Fordham University in 2004, Kurantowicz has held a series of political jobs, including federal affairs liaison in Rell’s office and deputy finance director for Rell’s re-election campaign in 2006.