Elicker Launches Reelection Campaign

With his wife Natalie standing beside him — and no one else — Mayor Justin Elicker Thursday announced he has filed papers to seek a second two-year term, citing ​“so much work” he still wants to tackle on the pandemic, schools, housing, and town-gown relations.

Elicker made the announcement at a noon press conference held outside the government office building at 200 Orange St.

“We have been through an incredible year. Throughout this past year it has become ever more clear to me just how glad I am to be part of this city and to be in an opportunity to lead this city. But also how important it is to work together,” Elicker said.

“There is so much work to be done.”

No challenger has yet emerged, though serious conversations have been taking place around town about a possible candidacy by the executive director of the housing authority. (See more below.)

Like other public officials worldwide, Elicker found himself consumed this past year with addressing the Covid-19 pandemic, the greatest public-health crisis in a century.

Elicker did not surround himself with any prominent individuals or representatives of constituencies in town at his announcement to signal community support. He did the same in January 2019 — well before the pandemic — when he announced his ultimately successful mayoral campaign in the City Clerk’s office with no supporters present beyond his wife, his two young daughters, and two campaign staff.

At the press conference Elicker, who’s 45, repeated themes he articulated in an interview the day before with the Independent: He’s proudest of the work New Haven as a community has done together to tackle the Covid-19 pandemic.

“We have approached things by ensuring that we base our decisions on science and data. We’ve approached things reacting quickly and decisively as a community,” Elicker said. He cited New Haven’s early establishment of testing sites around town, including walk-up clinics in poorer neighborhoods historically underserved by health care institutions; the distributions of tens of thousands of meals to hungry families; the distribution of Chromebooks and internet access to all public-school families; the prompt housing of homeless individuals in hotel rooms, and then finding long-term housing for more than 350 people.

“We did all this together,” he said.

He also argued that his administration was able to pursue other goals while simultaneously tackling Covid-19. For instance: It hired more lead inspectors, upgraded lead-inspection policy, drafted a soon-to-launch ​“crisis team” alternative to police handling nonviolent emergency calls, and struck a deal with the state on the future of Union Station that had eluded the city for decades.

He touched lightly on public education and Yale during his remarks, and then responded in greater detail to questions posed by reporters about those two issues, which were central to the 2019 campaign.

He said he remains critical about Yale’s level of support for the city, but believes the university does recognize it needs to ​“step up and do more.” He cited ongoing talks between his administration and Yale about what form that could take.

“As far as town-gown relations, I think it’s pretty safe to say they’re pretty rocky right now,” Elicker said. In private conversations between the city and the university, he said, the central question discussed between city and university leadership is: ​“How much are you willing to do to help your city that is your home, and by helping the city it can help you too.”

He also said he’s happy elementary schools have reopened for hybrid learning and hopes an expanded summer school program this year will enable more kids to catch up.

“It’s clear that in-person learning is vital to our students’ success,” he said.

And when asked for his top pandemic-related priority this year and in his reelection campaign, Elicker stressed the importance of getting as many people vaccinated as possible. ​“The way that we’re going to address this issue once and for all is ensuring that people get vaccines, and in particular people who may have historically been resistant or concerned … We’re focused on ensuring that people who are struggling in this community are kept safe.”

Elicker also repeated that ​“of course” he will participate again in the Democracy Fund, which offers public financing in return for eschewing contributions from political committees and limiting the size of individual donations.

Pressed On Race

At the end of the conference, Newhallville/Dixwell community activist and contractor Rodney Williams pressed the mayor on what he described as a disconnect between the Elicker Administration and the grassroots.

“I think that we need to have a better plan to deal with the Black and brown communities,” he said.

Elicker responded by citing the city’s work in getting walk-up Covid testing clinics set up in Black and brown neighborhoods, and his advocacy of reopening some form of in-person education for young children.

“I think that particularly impacts the Black and brown community, who often times are more working class and on the front lines right now, and need the in-person learning, both because it’s good for the children” and for adults who need to go to work but can’t leave kids home alone.

A former East Rock/Cedar Hill alder, Elicker first ran for mayor in 2013 in a crowded field that opened up after 10-term incumbent John DeStefano decided to retire. Elicker came in second that year behind former State Sen. Toni Harp, and then went on to lead the New Haven Land Trust during Harp’s three terms in office. Elicker then mounted a successful challenge to Harp, defeating her in 2019’s Democratic Party primary and then again as the endorsed Democrat in the 2019 general election.

Anyone Else Out There?

New Haven has traditionally given mayors second terms. The last one-term mayor, Thomas Tully, was elected in 1929; he wasn’t on the ballot in 1931. The one-term mayor before him, Samuel Campner, did lose a reelection bid in 1917. But Campner (New Haven’s first and only Jewish mayor) was actually a half-term mayor: As president of the Board of Aldermen (as it was then named), he ascended to the mayoralty in 1917 when the previous mayor died, and he served out the term.

“The history suggests that everyone gets four years,” said New Haven Democratic Town Chair Vin Mauro Jr. He added that the pandemic makes a challenge even tougher to mount: ​“It’s hard to build a real movement when you can’t get large groups of people together.”

Board of Alders President Tyisha Walker-Myers confirmed she has decided not to run for mayor this year. Another person rumored approached to consider a challenge, Kica Matos, is expected to sit out this cycle, as well.

Attention has focused on housing authority Executive Director Karen DuBois-Walton, who has been urged by numerous people in recent weeks to run for mayor this year. Besides heading the housing authority, DuBois-Walton has served as mayoral chief of staff and city chief administrative officer, overseeing line departments like police, fire, parks, and public works. She serves on the state Board of Education. In the past four years she has organized community-wide forums about how to respond to Trump administration; and, with her husband, she has organized Storytellers New Haven, events at which a diverse people active in the community have shared personal life stories. DuBois-Walton and five fellow Black women in September launched a political action committee called Ella’s Fund aimed at translating this summer’s grassroots uprisings for racial justice into lasting state and local political power.

DuBois-Walton has not made any announcement as yet about her plans. She acknowledged Thursday that ​“lots of people have called” and said she’s ​“honored to be someone considered capable and qualified.”