Wooden overcomes challengers for treasurer

HARTFORD — In two rounds of voting, Shawn Wooden, a law partner who represents public pension funds, topped three challengers to seize the Democratic endorsement for state treasurer Saturday.

“The odds of a kid from the north end of Hartford ending up in a casket are far greater than the odds of that kid ending up on a stage like this on a night like this,” Wooden told Democrats, thanking them for their support.

Strong support for Greenwich’s Dita Bhargava, a former hedge fund manager, and Hartford’s Arunan Arulampalam, an attorney at Updike, Kelly and Spellacy, also qualified them for a spot on the August primary ballot.

“I am so proud of the diverse candidates that have been up here,” Bhargava said. “I believe I have been working my whole life for that position of treasurer.”

Wooden was considered a front-runner heading into the state Democratic Convention in Hartford. He attended Trinity College on a four-year scholarship, sneaking into the school’s cafeteria because he could afford the cost of meals there, he said.

The former president of the Hartford City Council, Wooden’s team raised over $60,000 for his campaign, according to an April filing. He was backed by union leaders, who declared him the working people’s candidate.

“He knows how to balance budgets and cut waste,” said former state Rep. Susan Barrett, of Fairfield.

Arulampalam collected 32 percent of delegate support in the first vote and Bhargava collected 22 percent.