Joan McDonald, who rose to become an important player in the administration of Republican Gov. M. Jodi Rell, is leaving to return to New York State.
She was tapped Friday by New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo to be the next commissioner of the state Department of Transportation.
There had been much speculation in Connecticut about McDonald's possible role in the new administration of Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, but now she is headed back to New York State. She served in the final years of the Rell administration as the commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development, having been named in May 2007.
Malloy was quoted in a news release from Cuomo's office about McDonald's nomination.
"Commissioner McDonald is a talented and hardworking individual, dedicated to helping create new jobs and engaging Connecticut's business community,'' Malloy said in the statement. "I've enjoyed my working relationship with her, and we're sorry to see her go, but I know that her work ethic, her experience, and her dedication to the job will be of great service to the people of New York State."
McDonald had generated speculation in Connecticut after she started showing up at important budget meetings at the state Capitol during the Rell years with budget director Robert Genuario. Some Capitol insiders assumed that she would become Rell's next budget chief, but that was strongly denied at the time by a key Rell official and it never came to pass.