He launched his campaign inspired by Barack Obama — and became New Haven’s newest elected official on the same night that his role model headed for the White House.
Gary Holder-Winfield declared his victory Tuesday evening after four of the six wards reported in the 94th General Assembly District.
“Welcome to Hartford,” said New Haven State Rep. Toni Walker, giving the candidate a hug.
The unofficial returns showed the Democratic candidate clobbering independent challenger Willie Greene in what was seen as the only remotely contested race for the state legislature in New Haven this year. Holder-Winfield and Greene were competing to replace retiring State Rep. Bill Dyson in a district that spans the Newhallville, Dixwell, East Rock and downtown neighborhoods.
Holder-Winfield declared victory at 9 p.m. with four of six of the wards in the 94th district reporting. He was winning 3,628 to 755 at that point.
Results on the machine were:
Ward 19: Holder-Winfield 1,096; Greene 78
Ward 20: Holder-Winfield 1,030; Greene 399
Ward 21: Holder-Winfield 660; Greene 211
Ward 22: Holder-Winfield 842; Greene 67
Holder-Winfield paused for an interview before entering the downtown Playwright bar, where, under an arc of patriotic balloons, Democrats cheered at each small victory for presidential nominee Barack Obama.
The two campaigns’ messages were intertwined from the start.
Holder-Winfield, an early organizer for Obama’s campaign in Connecticut, said he certainly got a lift by being on the same party line as Obama. The bigger lift, he said, was the shared message of hope and an Obama-inspired movement getting disenfranchised people engaged in politics.
“The messages of the campaign coincided; that was really good for my campaign,” he said.
“Beyond hope there is belief,” state Holder-Winfield’s flyers. “Our mission is to conduct our politics so that people have reason to believe again.”
That message resonated more strongly, he said, when Holder-Winfield upset the machine’s candidate in the primary race.
“I never thought you could beat the machine,” people told him after he won, Holder-Winfield said. His campaign inspired teens like Larry Stovall and Paul Hudson to get involved with politics. “You had people really inspired. There’s nothing like actually helping people to inspire them to do something.”
To see inspiration “is great” in a neighborhood like Newhallville “that needs this whole hope and inspiration thing going on,” he said.
“I feel great about my race,” he said. “I feel great about Barack’s race: I think I’ll call that, too.”
No Intention Of Leaving
Earlier in the day at the polls, Willie Greene accompanied his 87-year-old mother, at left, so she could vote at the 21st Ward polling place on Dixwell Avenue.
Greene conceded defeat soon after the polls closed. He said he believes “Gary will be a good state representative.” He advised Holder-Winfield to “build an agenda from the ground up, not the state down.”
“The district has spoken,” Greene said. “There’s nothing else to be said.”
Greene ran as an independent even though he is the co-chairman of the Democratic 21st Ward Committee. That led Party Chairman Susie Voigt to call for Greene to drop out of the race or else resign his post. He did neither.
“I have no intention of leaving” the party. “I just don’t intend to be one of the many that wants to follow Sue Voigt blindly. I’m not going to do that.”
Leonard Honeyman and Paul Bass contributed to this story.