Thomas Breen photo
Mayor Elicker (center) and Bond.
Three New Haven mayors have thrown their support behind Karen DuBois-Walton’s bid for state treasurer — and the current occupant of the city’s highest elected office has also officially backed Maritza Bond for secretary of the state.
Treasurer hopeful Erick Russell, meanwhile, announced he too has won mayoral support — from chief executives of other Connecticut cities including Bridgeport’s and Hartford’s.
Those are the latest local endorsements of New Haveners seeking the Democratic nominations for two contested statewide offices.
They came as the state party prepares to gather this weekend for a nominating convention.
On Thursday at noon on the Green, Mayor Justin Elicker endorsed Bond’s campaign for secretary of the state. Bond is currently the city’s health director.
Thursday’s presser came several days before Elicker and his mayoral predecessors, John DeStefano Jr. and Toni Harp, signed and published a letter announcing their endorsement of DuBois-Walton’s campaign for state treasurer. DuBois-Walton is currently the director of the city’s public housing authority.
Also on Thursday, fellow Democratic treasurer hopeful Russell — who is a New Haven resident, an attorney, and a former vice-chair of the state Democratic Party — sent out an email press release touting how his campaign has won the endorsements of 50 politicians and “community leaders” from across Connecticut.
Bond, DuBois-Walton, Russell, and a host of other candidates for statewide office are slated to join hundreds of party insiders in Hartford on Friday and Saturday for the state Democratic Party convention. That’s where candidates will seek their party’s official endorsement or the votes of at least 15 percent of delegates in order to secure a spot on the Democratic primary ballot in August.
Other Democratic candidates for secretary of the state include State Reps. Hilda Santiago and Joshua Elliott and State Sen. Matt Lesser. Click here to read a letter recently sent to the governor by a group of statewide Latino community leaders, including former New Haven mayoral chief of staff Tomas Reyes, endorsing Santiago for secretary of state.
Greenwich’s Dita Bhargava is also running for the Democratic nod for treasurer. The Democratic incumbents in those positions are retiring.
On the Republican side, Dominic Rapini, Brock Weber and Terrie Wood have formed candidate committees to seek the office of secretary of state. Cynthia Jennings is seeking the Independent Party nomination for that post. And Harry Arora is running for the Republican nomination for state treasurer.
Elicker Backs Bond
On the Green on Thursday.
During Thursday’s press conference on the Green, Elicker joined a half dozen campaign-sign-waving Bond supporters to express his support for the city health director’s bid for higher office.
“It’s a little bittersweet because it would be sad to see her go as health director of the city,” Elicker said. “But I am never one to get in the way of a woman’s ambition to make a bigger difference. And New Haven potentially losing Director Bond will be Connecticut’s gain.”
The mayor praised Bond’s leadership of the health department during the Covid-19 pandemic. He also lauded her role for helping reform how the city handles child lead poisoning investigations and lead abatement enforcement.
She has characteristics that all great public servants must have, Elicker said. Someone “who will work their off, but do it with,” and with “compassion” and “integrity.”
Bond thanked Elicker for his support, and predicted his endorsement “will give me a big boost heading into the convention this weekend.”
Besides overseeing elections, the secretary of the state is in charge of business filings and maintaining the commercial registry. The secretary of the state also proposes and lobbies for new election laws while promoting voting and participation in elections — serving as the state’s top“civics” official.
Three New Haven Mayors Back DuBois-Walton
Paul Bass Photo
Mind meld: DeStefano, Harp and Elicker last October at the dedication of an SCSU mayoral archive.
Meanwhile, on Monday, DuBois-Walton shared on Facebook a letter written by Elicker, Harp, and DeStefano in support of her campaign for the Democratic nomination for state treasurer.
That three-mayor letter is dated May 1, and is addressed to “delegates” at the Democratic State Convention.
“Dear Friends,” that letter reads, “We write to you as progressive policy advocates; as partners in so many efforts on behalf of the residents of your communities and our own City; and, in keen awareness that the talents and character of those whom we elected to public office is critical to the well-being of all of Connecticut’s families.
“It is for that reason we urge you and your fellow delegates to support Karen DuBois-Walton, for our Democratic Party’s endorsement for State Treasurer at the 2022 Party Convention.”
The three mayors note that they have all worked with DuBois-Walton in her various positions in city public life, including as chief administrative officer and chief of staff for DeStefano, and as president of Elm City Communities/Housing Authority of New Haven for the past 15 years.
They praised her for having run “large, complex organizations;” for having managed hundreds of staff members; for having formulated and overseen “budgets, debt financings and assets in the hundreds of millions of dollars;” for being a “strong policy advocate for issues such as housing, public schools, equitable opportunity and fiscal accountability;” and for her “sheer persistence, unwavering integrity, leadership by example and by a strict commitment to the ethics of the best of public service.”
“Now in truth, this is the first letter that the three of us have ever written together,” the latter concludes. “But that’s what Karen does. Her leadership brings people together around the right values, a sense of hope and opportunity — and the sheer hard work to get the job done. We know. We know Karen. And we know that it matters, it really matters, who our next State Treasurer is.
The treasurer is responsible for managing the state’s pension funds, managing state banking relationships and short-term investments, and issuing and managing state debt, and handling property like uncashed checks and proceeds form stocks and bonds and mutual funds) whose owners can’t be located.
Lots Of Other Mayors Endorse Russell
Also on Thursday, Russell sent out an email press release about all of the endorsements his campaign for treasurer has racked up in the runup to the convention. The press release states that “50 elected officials and community leaders” from across Connecticut have endorsed his bid.
Those Russell supporters include:
Mayor Joe Ganim, Bridgeport
Mayor Luke Bronin, Hartford
Mayor Neil O’Leary, Waterbury
Mayor Mike Walsh, East Hartford
Mayor Ben Blake, Milford
Mayor Ben Florsheim, Middletown
Mayor Danielle Wong, Bloomfield
First Selectman Matt Hoey, Guilford
Mayor Pete Hess, Naugatuck
First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons, Madison
First Selectman Jason Bowsza, East Windsor