Red, white & you
Norwalk Hour Voters Guide
INSIDE AND ONLINE: It's been an election year for the ages. With Nov. 3 approaching, the coronavirus pandemic has resulted in record numbers of voters seeking absentee ballots, a situation that will test the voting process in Connecticut and across the country. A record number of state residents are also registered to vote, a sign of the higher-than-normal interest in this year's election. In today's paper, as well as online at TheHour.com, readers will find a comprehensive look at their Congressional and General Assembly candidates as well as the candidates for president.
Name: Jim Himes
Party: Democrat
Race: U.S. House 4th District
Greenwich residents have known Jim Himes for years first as a resident and neighbor and now as a congressman. In his hometown of Greenwich Himes served as a chair of the Housing Authority’s Board of Commissioners, as a member of the Board of Estimate and Taxation and as chair of the Democratic Town Committee in Greenwich.
He was elected to the House in 2008, defeating longtime Republican incumbent Christopher Shays.
Himes is a father of two girls, speaks fluent Spanish and had a career in investment banking.
A six-term incumbent, Himes serves on the House Financial Services Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, where he is the ranking member of the NSA and Cybersecurity Subcommittee.
Name: Jonathan Riddle Party: Republican
Race: U.S. House 4th District
The Republican challenger, Jonathan Riddle is looking to make a big splash and pull off an upset against a well-established Democrat, six-term incumbent Jim Himes.
A Norwalk resident, Riddle has never held office.
Riddle calls for improving the transportation infrastructure in Connecticut, reducing taxes and taking more action to end the opioid crisis. He has called for a temporary halt on immigrant work visas “until every American who lost their job (due to the coronavirus) is back at their professional or finds work elsewhere.”
Riddle has called for term limits of eight years in the House.
He has worked in Greenwich in the financial services industry. Riddle began his career with BNY Mellon, working with high-income families. He has experience in banking and wealth management and currently is a director for Altium in Purchase, N.Y.
Name: Brian Merlen
Party: Independent
Race: U.S. House 4th District
Brian Merlen is facing long odds in his run for Congress as an independent, but his campaign is focused more on putting the spotlight on the issues that he is passionate about.
A Stamford resident, Merlen is looking to draw attention to the role Stamford-based Purdue Pharma has played in creating the opioid crisis.
A video producer and activist, Merlen was among the group that placed a large spoon to symbolize heroin and drug abuse outside Purdue’s Stamford headquarters in protest.
He has been a member of the Green Party but is running as an independent.
Merlen initially sought to challenge Himes in a Democratic primary. Merlen withdrew his candidacy in the primary.
Merlen said he grew up in Stamford with disabled parents, and survived a bout with testicular cancer after graduating from Southern Connecticut State University. Working as a freelancer, he’s seen his jobs slashed by coronavirus and is devoting time to local volunteering.
Name: Bob Duff
Party: Democrat
Race: Senator of the 25th District
Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff is running for an eighth two-year term serving the 25th District. Duff was first elected to office in 2001 to serve the 137th District in the Connecticut House of Representatives. In 2004, he was elected to State Senate and currently serves as the Senate Majority Leader. Duff said his top three legislative priorities are getting Connecticut through the pandemic, improve racial justice in our communities and fight for economic justice. In addition to serving in the Senate, Duff has been a real estate professional with William Pitt Sotheby’s International Realty for 24 years. He’s a fifth generation Norwalk resident and lives in the city with his wife, Tracey, their two children and a rescue dog.
The 25th District includes all of Norwalk and part of Darien. A historically Republican district, it shifted in 2004 with Duff’s election. Duff has served the district for the last 16 years and is being challenged this year by first-time Republican candidate Ellie Kousidis.
Name: Ellie Kousidis
Party: Republican
Race: Senator of the 25th District
Ellie Kousidis has been an educator for the last 15 years, now working as a technology integration support specialist for Stamford Public Schools. On top of this, she’s done work as a parental rights activist. Now she’s trying her hands at politics and challenging incumbent Democrat Bob Duff for his Senate seat.
“I'm a first-time candidate and believe that our community will benefit greatly from a fresh perspective,” Kousidis said. “Career politicians put party over people, and I pledge to take a citizen-first approach to decision making.”
Kousidis has lived in Norwalk for 20 years with her husband, Jim, a small business owner and their two children: nineyear-old Yanni and six-year-old Aspasia. If elected, Kousidis said her top priorities would be to stop regionalization of schools and communities, establish economic polices that’ll bring jobs back to our states and focus on supporting local police departments.
The 25th District includes all of Norwalk and part of Darien. A historically Republican district, it shifted in 2004 with Duff’s election. Duff has served the district for the last 15 years. If elected, Kousidis will be both the first new Senator and first Republican to serve the district since Duff’s election.
Name: Will Haskell
Party: Democrat
Race: 26th state Senate District
As a 22-year-old candidate, Will Haskell defeated longtime incumbent Toni Boucher in 2018 to become the youngest member of the General Assembly, representing the 26th state Senate district. Despite his age, the Georgetown University graduate was not a political newcomer, having worked on numerous campaigns including those of U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy and U.S. Representative Jim Himes, both Democrats.
While in office, Haskell has worked to improve transportation and to encourage students to remain in Connecticut after college. In 2019 he co-sponsored three bills to curb gun deaths, including a ban on ghost guns and new regulations for the safe storage of firearms. Most recently, he voted to expand access to absentee ballots during the COVID-19 pandemic and cap out-of-pocket costs for insulin. He also voted for the police accountability act.
Before Haskell was elected, the 26th district was in Republican hands from 1973 until he took office in January 2019. He is being challenged by Kim Healy, a Republican from Wilton. The 26th district encompasses Redding, Ridgefield, Wilton and portions of Bethel, New Canaan, Weston, and Westport.
Name: Kim Healy
Party: Republican
Race: 26th state Senate district
Kim Healy is a political newcomer and has set her sights on representing the 26th district in the state Senate. She describes herself as “a wife, a mother, a former auditor, and an engaged, proud member of the Wilton community.”
She has been treasurer of many organizations since leaving her professional career and is currently on the board of the Wilton Library Association as treasurer. She is also a volunteer tax preparer for retired and low-income individuals.
Healy was endorsed at the Republican convention earlier this year and won a primary in August. If elected, her priorities are: local planning and zoning control, the state’s pension liabilities and reinvigorating the business community.
Healy has also been endorsed by the Independent Party of Connecticut and as such, her name will appear on both the Republican and Independent party ballot lines in the Nov. 3 election.
Healy is hoping to unseat freshman incumbent Will Haskell, a Democrat from Westport, who upset longtime Republican state
Sen. Toni Boucher of Wilton in 2018. The 26th district encompasses Redding, Ridgefield, Wilton and portions of Bethel, New Canaan, Weston, and Westport.
Name: Anne Hughes Party: Democrat Race: 135 District
Anne Hughes has served as state representative for the 135th district since being elected in 2018. She lives in Easton with her husband Tim.
She served as a member on the Aging, Human Services, and Insurance and Real Estate Committees in the 2019 legislative session. Hughes has also worked as a licensed master social worker for Jewish Senior Services’ Institute on Aging and as coordinator for the Center for Elder Abuse Prevention.
In her first term, Hughes supported the Paid Family Medical Leave program and various environmental bills. She said her top legislative priorities are affordable healthcare, a COVID response, power company accountability by ending surprise rate hikes, and continuing economic recovery while creating high-paying jobs.
The 135th district covers covers Easton, Redding and Weston. Incumbent Anne Hughes, a Democrat, is running for her second term and is being challenged by John Shaban, a Republican. Historically this district has elected Republicans with Hughes being the first Democrat elected in 30 years.
Name: John Shaban Party: Republican Race: 135 District
John Shaban is a former state representative for the 135th district and previously held the seat from 2011 to 2017. He did not run for a fourth term in 2016, opting instead to run for US Congress against Jim Himes.
During his tenure in the legislature he served on the Environment Committee as ranking house member, the Judiciary Committee, and the Finance Revenue and Bonding Committee.
According to his campaign site, if elected his focus will be on creating a stable tax and regulatory environment to boost job creation, business opportunities and home values; asserting local control of education and land use, and opposed regionalization of schools and services; and pursuing sensible solutions that help people.
He has lived in Redding for 18 years. The 135th district covers covers Easton, Redding and Weston. Incumbent Anne Hughes, a Democrat, is running for her second term and is being challenged by John Shaban, a Republican. Historically this district has elected Republicans with Hughes being the first Democrat elected in 30 years.