Two Staffers Leave Bernier’s Campaign Two Weeks Before Primary

Two key staff members are no longer working for Republican Justin Bernier’s congressional campaign.

Jonathan Scott, Bernier’s campaign spokesman, and campaign manager Jonathan Hanen said in a press release issued late Tuesday that they will no longer work for Bernier’s campaign in any capacity.

Bernier

Bernier, 36, of Plainville, is running for the 5th Congressional District seat that will be vacated by U.S. Rep. Christopher Murphy, who is running for U.S. Senate.

“I wish Justin luck,” Scott said in a prepared statement. “We’ve had some creative differences but he’s a good guy and Connecticut Republicans would be well served if he were their nominee on Aug. 14.”

Hanen made a similar statement.

“I’m originally from the fifth district,” Hanen said. “It’s a great place and I was happy to spend some time here, but Justin is an experienced campaign staffer and I’m sure that he’ll be able to move forward without us.”

When asked about the departure of Scott and Hanen, Bernier said the transition “had been in the works for weeks.”

“This is not a contentious transition,” he said, explaining that he still has the resources and the staff to get elected.

In addition to serving as the media liaison for the campaign, Scott was also general counsel. As campaign manager, Hanen was focused on targeting voters, and he was supposed to lead the campaign’s 72-hour effort to votes in the days leading up to the primary.

Both Scott and Hanen began working for the campaign in June. Scott is employed by Liftline Group, a Massachusetts-based public relations and government affairs consulting company. Hanen is employed by the Churchill Group based in Washington, D.C.

Bernier will face Mark Greenberg, Andrew Roraback and Lisa Wilson-Foley in the Republican 5th District primary Aug. 14.