Republican Takes On Josh Elliott

Kathy Hoyt talks to home buyers and homeowners in New Haven County every day, and after hearing over and over that people can’t afford to live in Connecticut, she aims to change that — by trying to unseat State Rep. Josh Elliott.

Hoyt, a realtor with William Raveis, announced Thursday evening at a meeting of the Hamden Republican Town Committee that she is seeking the party’s nomination for the 88th House District seat.

Elliott, a Democrat, currently holds the seat. He won an upset primary in 2016 and then the general election, and has since been one of the legislature’s most progressive voices.

“As I go to work every day, I have my finger on the pulse of Hamden,” Hoyt told the crowd Thursday. ​“People are struggling. Property values have dropped. Taxes continue to skyrocket. There’s many people in Hamden that can’t afford their homes.”

Hoyt frequently sells houses in Hamden. She said she often hears that people can’t afford their homes because Connecticut, and especially Hamden, are too expensive.

“I made the decision to run because I’m frustrated, I’m disappointed, and I’ve had enough,” she said. ​“Enough of the constant spending, enough of the constant tax raises, and enough of personal agendas by career politicians. Somewhere along the line, Hamden’s dream has been lost.”

She said she thinks there is a lot of wasteful spending in the state that needs to be reined in because people cannot afford the increasing cost of living. ​“I don’t run my family like that,” she said of the way the state has been run. When funds get tight at home, she said, ​“we tighten the purse strings” and stop spending.

She said she would need time to research where exactly she thinks the state should cut.

Hoyt filed paperwork to run on Tuesday, said Matt Schwartz, her campaign manager. Schwartz, 25, is one of the young political operatives helping with her campaign. He has enlisted Quinnipiac students, including campaign Secretary Hudson Molinari.

“Fair Share”

Elliott has also filed paperwork to run for the seat. He said he is proud of the progressive power he has helped consolidate in the legislature, and is proud of the progressive legislation he has helped pass. He named last year’s $15 minimum wage and paid family medical leave bills as two major accomplishments for his caucus, as well as numerous pieces of legislation that have given Connecticut some of the strongest gun laws in the country.

While Republicans frequently criticize Democrats for spending too much and digging the state into a deeper and deeper financial mess, Elliott said Democrats have been working to get the state back on a good financial footing. He pointed to the state’s $2.5 billion rainy day fund, and concessions the state has negotiated with its unions.

“To think that over the last few years we haven’t made any corrective actions is completely inaccurate,” he said.

He named a long list of priorities for the next legislative session, and the one following, should he be reelected. This session, he said, he would like to pass a bill that would make telephone calls free for prison inmates. He said he would also like to pass a number of voting reform measures, including ensuring the right to vote for people on probation and parole, rank choice voting, and introducing early voting and improving same-day registration, among other reforms. Legalizing cannabis is also on his wish list.

Another major priority area, he said, is ​“fighting for tax equity as a longer-term sustainable way to keep Connecticut fair.” Hamden’s mill rate (near 50) is as high as it is because it has to rely on property taxes for much of its education funding, he said. ​“The problem is eroded when you [put] money into the education system by fairly asking the wealthy to pay their fair share,” he said.

He said he would like to increase the top marginal tax rate for millionaires, increase the capital gains tax rate, and eliminate the carried-interest loophole.

Hoyt, too, said Hamden needs to get more education funding from the state. ​“I think Hamden should get its fair share,” she said.

Another of Elliott’s priorities this session will be eliminating the religious exemption that allows families to not vaccinate their children, and mandating the HPV vaccine. Hoyt said she does not agree with those policies. ​“I think parents should decide,” she said. ​“I think it’s not a good idea that the state gets involved with parental choices.”

She said she would be willing to look at a bill to legalize the recreational use of cannabis, but she said she would need to be very careful to scrutinize what its effects would be, for instance, on youth.

Logan Offers Advice

After Hoyt had made her speech, and had gotten the endorsement of Hamden Republican Town Committee Chair Frank LaDore, the meeting continued with regular business. State Sen. George Logan (pictured above with Hoyt), fresh off a meeting with constituents in Naugatuck, came in from the rain and sat down. George Logan now also has a challenger.

After the meeting, he stood talking to Hoyt.

“You’ll notice that once you’re in office, people will come to you with two, three, four different opinions,” he said. Don’t rush to make up your mind, he said, but rather listen to all of the opinions, do your research, and then take a stance.

Hoyt said she would need to think about her positions on tax reform and on minimum wage and paid family medical leave before answering questions on those issues.