Markeshia Ricks Photo
Teresa Hines (at left) is challenging …
Paul Bass Photo
Clyburn (above) in Newhallville.
Democrats in eight of the city’s 30 wards can exercise the most local of all votes Wednesday, in primaries for seats on the Board of Alders.
As usual, neighborhood issues dominate these races — airport expansion in Morris Cove, for instance; traffic-calming in Quinnipiac Meadows.
Yale’s Eidelson (left) faces a spirited challenge from Stark.
In a number of races — in Fair Haven’s Ward 14, Beaver Hills’ Ward 28, Fair Haven Heights’ Ward 11 — the role of labor has also surfaced as an issue. Candidates backed by Yale’s UNITE HERE Locals 34 and 35 are running against challengers who have decried union influence in those races. UNITE HERE has backed candidates in three other wards as well, and in Yale’s Ward 1, though it didn’t make an official endorsement, one of its staffers, incumbent Sarah Eidelson, is struggling to hold onto a seat. Her opponent, Fish Stark, is the son of former U.S. Rep. Pete Stark of California. Stark has raised $3,642.50 as of his most recent campaign filing, much of it from California, compared to $370 reported by Eidelson; he has also received endorsements by members of the Board of Alders unaligned with UNITE HERE. (A Republican Ward 1 candidate, Ugonna Eze, reported raising $1,161.70, for the Nov. 3 general election.)
Toni Harp has endorsed all incumbents; in some cases the Democratic Town Committee endorsed a challenger or (in Wards 1 Fair Haven’s Ward 14) did not make an endorsement. Two former east side alders — Gerald Antunes and Robert Lee — are running to try to win back their old seats.
Polls open at 6 a.m. and close at 8 p.m. Visit us Wednesday night for election results and coverage. The following chart lists the polling places; call the Registrar of Voters at 203 – 946-8305 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. if you’re not sure what ward you’re in.
Following is a list of who’s running in which wards (with incumbents listed first), with links to stories about their races:
Ward 1 (Yale): Sarah Eidelson vs. Fish Stark
Ward 11 (Fair Haven Heights): Barbara Constantinople vs. Robert Lee
Ward 12 (Bishop Woods/Quinnipiac Meadows): Richard Spears vs. Gerald Antunes
Ward 14 (Fair Haven): Santiago Berrios-Bones vs. Thomas Burwell
Ward 18 (Morris Cove): Sal DeCola vs. Bob Proto
Ward 20 (Newhallville): Delphine Clyburn vs. Teresa Hines
Ward 28 (Beaver Hills): Claudette Robinson-Thorpe vs. Jill Marks
Ward 30 (West Hills, West Rock): Carlton Staggers vs. Robert Anderson*
*note: Both candidates in this race were unavailable for interviews, and Staggers was not present at the most recent Board of Alders meetings.
Previous coverage of the Sept. 16 Democratic alder primaries:
• Candidates Split On Airport Runway
• Former 34/35-Backed Alder Swings Back
• A Yale Alder? Or An Alder From Yale?
• Primary Issue: Showing Up
• Lee Throws Down An Anti-Union Gauntlet
• Hines To Ward 20: Your Voice Matters
• Marks Promises New Leadership
• Local 34 Endorses 6 For Alder
• Berrios-Bones: Stay The Course
• Burwell Confronts Language Barrier
• Robinson-Thorpe Ready For Primary Fight
• 8 Primaries On Tap
• Newhallville Gets A Primary
• Clyburn: “A Voice At The Table”