Dan Gaita of Bethel, Connecticut, has filed paperwork with the Connecticut Secretary of State to use the ballot label “Connecticut Tea Party” for his group. Connecticut has “name protection” for unqualified parties. When a new party organizes in Connecticut, it is free to register its name with the Secretary of State. Then, only candidates associated with that organization can use that label on their petitions and on the November ballot.

No one has yet completed any petitions with “Connecticut Tea Party” as the party label, but presumably some candidates associated with Gaita will now begin petitioning. See this story. Thanks to Bill Van Allen for the link.