School board member to challenge Garrett in mayoral primary

HAMDEN — One of the last conversations Walter L. Morton IV ever had with his mother took place in 2008, when Barack Obama was running for president.

Morton was attending Hamden High School at the time, and his mother was battling cancer. The two spent one of her final moments talking about what it meant for her to see a Black man achieve that level of success, Morton recalled.

“I helped my mom fill out her absentee ballot, you know, and get her vote in,” he said.

With all Morton’s mother was going through, “she still found the time and the importance … to make sure her voice was heard,” Morton said. “That really just left an impression on me about how important it is to be involved in your community and engaged in voting.”

That’s the memory that came to mind when Morton was asked what inspired him to get involved in politics.

The 31-year-old Hamden native has been politically active for years, both as a Board of Education

member and as the town’s former legislative liaison. Now he is eyeing a different role: he has filed papers to run for mayor.

That means the town could be in line for yet another contentious primary season, as he will be challenging incumbent mayor and fellow Democrat Lauren Garrett, who announced last month she would seek a second term.

“I respect the primary process,” Garrett said when asked for comment.

Morton currently sits on the Board of Education, appointed to a vacant seat last March after returning from his military deployment in Africa.

A member of the Army National Guard, Morton spent about four additional years on the board before he went overseas. He also spent more than three years working as the legislative liaison under then-Mayor Curt Balzano Leng.

Currently, Morton works for the Connecticut Energy Marketers Association, representing it on legislative issues that affect small businesses in the fuel industry, he said.

Asked why he wants to run for mayor, Morton said he aims to help Hamden “continue to be this great town that my family raised me in.”

“It’s a great place, and I love my experience here,” Morton said. “That’s why I wanted to get on the Board of Education initially and, you know, give back a bit to my community … and try to be the change that I want to see.”

If elected, Morton named three priority issues: public safety, education and the grand list.

“The first thing we need to do as a municipality is we need to figure out how we can grow our grand list,” Morton said, adding that he would like to explore changes to zoning regulations and other changes that could help the town attract new businesses.

When it comes to public safety, Morton would provide resources for the Police Department and community policing initiatives while also increasing opportunities for local youth “so we can encourage our young folks to be involved and be involved positively,” he said.

As for education, Morton described the public school system as a “huge asset” to Hamden, especially when it comes to drawing people to town.

For a long time, Morton said, Hamden was known for its education system.

“We still have a quality education system, but it is tough to provide the resources and the staffing levels” to make the district competitive, he said. He attributed the difficulty to decades of financial mismanagement but said it is still crucial to find ways to support the schools.

Morton IV