The state AFL-CIO bucked the Democratic Party establishment and endorsed Maritza Bond’s candidacy for secretary of the state.
The statewide labor federation made that endorsement after interviewing candidates Friday at a convention in Ledyard.
It voted to back Bond’s bid to win the party nomination in an Aug. 9 primary. Bond faces Stephanie Thomas, who won the endorsement for the position at a May nominating convention. The secretary of the state is Connecticut’s top elections official, and oversees the commercial registry.
“I am humbled and energized by this pivotal endorsement,” Bond stated in a release from her campaign. “Hard-working women and men are the backbone of Connecticut, that’s who our state’s economic growth and vibrancy depends on. This major endorsement is a vote of confidence not only in my track record as a leader who gets things done, but in the priorities I’ve set for the Secretary of the State’s office. Those priorities include protecting the right to vote, expanding access to voting and increasing civic knowledge and participation, restoring fiscal autonomy in the Secretary of the State’s office, and making it easier for small, minority and women-owned businesses to launch, expand and thrive, all across Connecticut.”
The other “pro-worker” candidates endorsed by the AFL-CIO for statewide and U.S. Congressional office have received the state party’s endorsement as well. The group did not make an endorsement in the state treasurer’s race, in which three candidates (Erick Russell, Karen DuBois-Walton, and Dita Bhargava) are squaring off on Aug. 9.
Dominic Rapini and Brock Weber are facing each other in a Republican primary for secretary of the state.
Click on the video to watch Maritza Bond discuss her campaign on WNHH FM's "Dateline New Haven" program.