Thomas Breen photo
Tom Goldenberg, with Dave Agosta: "I believe that there is enough that holds together and that we share in common than what separates us."
Democratic mayoral challenger Tom Goldenberg will be listed on the Republican Party line on November’s general election ballot, now that he has accepted the local GOP’s endorsement for the city’s top elected office.
Goldenberg made that announcement on Wednesday morning during a press conference in Wooster Square Park.
Standing alongside disability rights advocate and Green Party mayoral candidate-turned-Republican endorsed alder hopeful Dave Agosta, Goldenberg said that he has accepted the local Republican Town Committee’s (RTC) endorsement in his run for mayor.
That means that, assuming that no one else seeks the Republican nomination for mayor, Goldenberg will be the party’s official nominee during the Nov. 7 general election.
An ex-McKinsey consultant who grew up in West Haven and now lives in East Rock, Goldenberg announced his Republican endorsement the morning after he won only 2 of 54 votes cast by ward co-chairs at the Democratic Town Committee (DTC) convention in the Hill.
The DTC overwhelmingly backed incumbent Mayor Justin Elicker in his bid for a third term in office, meaning that Elicker’s name will appear at the top of the ballot during the Sept. 12 Democratic party primary.
On Wednesday, Goldenberg said that he will still try to collect the roughly 1,700 signatures necessary from registered city Democrats by Aug. 9 in order to petition his way onto that same September Democratic Party primary ballot. Fellow Democratic mayoral challengers Shafiq Abdussabur and Liam Brennan are also seeking to petition their way onto that ballot.
But Goldenberg — a registered Democrat who for the entirety of his mayoral campaign so far has run only as a Democrat, even as he has won Republican support for his criticism of safe-use drug consumption sites and his promise to freeze property taxes — has now landed himself an all-but-guaranteed spot on November’s ballot. Albeit as a Republican.
Why did he decide to accept the RTC’s endorsement, which was handed down Tuesday night during the party’s convention at Armada Brewing on River Street?
“As a country as a whole, we’ve become extremely polarized. … Both parties have become further and further apart. … I accepted the endorsement because I believe that there is enough that holds together and that we share in common than what separates us,” he said. He lamented a missing “middle” in American, and New Haven, politics.
He said that, when he spoke at Tuesday night’s RTC convention, he found local Republican support for his campaign pitches to “bring the schools back on track,” investing in city programs that help youth most at risk of being involved in violence, “creating jobs,” and “reducing the tax burden, especially in our poor neighborhoods. I don’t think that these ideas belong to any political party.”
Goldenberg said he is still a registered Democrat, and differs with Republicans on some key issues, particularly in his being pro-choice. Asked about the national party’s domination in recent years by Donald Trump, he said, “I strongly disavow Donald Trump and I know that there are many Republicans, including Republicans in New Haven, that feel the same way.”
On the Democratic side, Goldenberg repeated his criticism of the DTC endorsement process as “not fair,” namely because DTC Chair Vinnie Mauro has supported Elicker from the start. “One of the ways that the party heads will try to intimidate candidates is to try to restrict them [from] ballot access.”
Goldenberg said he wishes that New Haven allowed for ranked-choice voting, which he said “would make the Democratic primary much more fair.” He promised to advocate for ranked-choice voting going forward “so that we do have democratic and fair elections.”
In a text message statement provided to the Independent for this article, RTC Chair (and 2021 Republican mayoral candidate) John Carlson said the party has endorsed Goldenberg “because of his plans for the city, his willingness to reach across the aisle and think of innovative ways to solve problems, his dedication to helping those in need, evidenced by his volunteer work both here and abroad, his vision of job creation, experience in the business field, his commitment to improve our schools and reduce violence in the city with a proactive, multi-tiered approach to preventing gang violence and preventing car thefts while stopping predatory drug dealing”
Calson added that the RTC believes “that unlike Mayor Elicker, [Goldenberg] will run a transparent city hall that follows the city charter and informs the public of city plans which make him the clear choice to become New Haven’s next mayor.”
According to the city’s Registrar of Voters, New Haven currently has 32,452 registered Democrats, 15,205 unaffiliated voters, 2,619 registered Republicans, and 508 third-party voters.
Goldenberg said he held Wednesday’s press conference in Wooster Square Park to support fellow Democrat-endorsed-by-Republicans Andrea Zola’s campaign for Wooster Square alder, even though Zola was not able to attend the presser in person.
"Democracy Isn't Dead Yet"
Agosta (right): The most liberal person in New Haven, now running as a Republican.
Goldenberg wasn’t the only non-Republican to be endorsed by the local Republican Party at Tuesday’s convention.
The party also backed Green Party member Dave Agosta in their run against Democratic incumbent Eli Sabin to be the next alder for Downtown/East Rock’s Ward 7. And it endorsed Democrat Andrea Zola in her bid to unseat Democratic incumbent Ellen Cupo to be the next alder for Wooster Square’s Ward 8. Both Sabin and Cupo won the DTC’s endorsement for their respective reelection runs Tuesday night.
On Wednseday, Agosta described themselves as perhaps the most liberal person in New Haven. “I’m a LGBTQ+ socialist” and disability rights advocate who uses they/them pronouns.
“No one hates Donald Trump more than me.”
They said they’re running for local office to put pressure on the city to prioritize fixing sidewalks to make sure they are accessible to people of all abilities, and to call on the mayor to step up making appointments to city commissions on aging, disabilities, and equal opportunities.
“New Haven Republicans are not like the Trumpian MAGA clan,” Agosta said. At Tuesday night’s RTC convention, they said, “I didn’t meet a single bigot.”
“There’s a need for an opposition” in New Haven, they said. You can’t have a functioning democracy without one.
In a text message comment provided to the Independent after Wednesday’s presser, Zola celebrated winning the GOP’s endorsement because she is a “blue dog Democrat.”
“I’m thankful that the Republican Party has become more open minded and is supporting conservative Democrat,” she continued. “This is a sign that we will have a bright future with everyone working together for a better community. I’m excited to have a secure spot on the ballot for September and November but I still plan on collecting my signatures from my democratic supporters. … Having votes from both sides makes me feel that we are on the right path to positive change.”
She asked this reporter to make sure to include one more message at the end of her quote: “Democracy isn’t dead yet.”