SHIFTING DISTRICTS
What the new state Senate map means for the Danbury area
Stamford’s growing population is the main reason some residents in the Danbury area may become part of a different state Senate district in 2023.
State Sen. Julie Kushner, D-Danbury, said Stamford’s growth had a “domino effect” on the rest of western Connecticut, requiring changes to Senate district boundaries not only in the Stamford area, but elsewhere in the state — including the Danbury area.
When Connecticut’s new voting district maps go into effect in 2023, her 24th Senate District will no longer include Sherman and part of Bethel. Although she’s sad about that, Kushner said she’s “very excited” that Ridgefield will join the district.
“I live very close to the Ridgefield town line and have developed friendships and a certain basic knowledge about Ridgefield over the many years I’ve lived here,” said Kushner, who has represented the 24th District since 2018.
The changes are the result of the recent remapping of Connecticut’s voting districts. A bipartisan group of state legislators used 2020 U.S. Census data to conduct the once-in-a-decade task of remapping the Senate and House districts.
The district currently covers Danbury, New Fairfield and Sherman, as well as part of Bethel. Following the 2022 legislative election and Kushner’s current term, the district will cover all of Danbury, as well as part of Ridgefield and New Fairfield.
Parts of Bethel and Ridgefield will no longer be represented by the 26th District, which will include parts of Stamford and Darien, instead.
“Of course I’m sad to leave some friends behind in Bethel and no longer represent Ridgefield,” State Sen. Will Haskell, D-Westport, who represents the 26th District. “But I think gaining Stamford and Darien will be an exciting opportunity to learn about issues that matter to the communities and also continue the work of trying to modernize transportation infrastructure — especially the commuter rail line.”
The changes are the result of the recent remapping of Connecticut’s voting districts. A bipartisan group of state legislators used 2020 U.S. Census data to conduct the once-in-adecade task of remapping the Senate and House districts.
The new district boundaries will go into effect in 2023, with 2022 legislative election candidates running to represent the constituents within them.
Kushner has not announced whether she’ll run for reelection, but said she has long appreciated many things about the Ridgefield community, such as its investment in public services and schools.
“There’s much to admire about Ridgefield, and I’d be pleased to take the community’s issues and concerns to Hartford,” she said.
But Kushner said, giving up Bethel and Sherman will be hard.
“You don’t want to lose any of the districts you’ve represented,” she said. “The relationships I’ve developed in Sherman and Bethel over the last three years have been amazing.”
Sherman, as well as a large part of New Fairfield, will join the 30th District whose current state senator is Republican Craig Miner; while Bethel will go from being part of the 24th and 26th Senate District to 28th and 32nd District territory.
‘You want to represent the people well’
Kushner acknowledges the importance of redistricting, given the area’s population growth.
“There’s been a great deal of shift in population in Connecticut and that’s impacted the district,” she said. “Reflecting the population changes is important — you want to represent people well.”
Right now, most of Stamford belongs to the 36th District while the rest is 27th territory. As a result of the recent remapping, the city will soon have a third Senate district: the 26th.
As the fastest-growing city in Connecticut, it only makes sense that Stamford representation in the state capitol grows too, Haskell said.
In addition to parts of Stamford and Darien, the new 26th District will cover all of Redding, Wilton, Westport and Weston, as well as southern Ridgefield and part of New Canaan. Right now, the district includes all of Redding, Ridgefield and Wilton, plus parts of Bethel, New Canaan, Westport and Weston.
According to Haskell, the 26th will absorb roughly 14,000 voters from the 27th District, whose current state senator is Democrat Patricia Billie Miller.
Although he has not officially announced plans to run for reelection next November, Haskell said his strategy as a legislator would be to knock on doors and meet the 26th District’s newest constituents to figure out the best way to represent them in the state Senate.
“With that said, I do know that these communities are going to be laserfocused on their transportation issues,” he said. “I think every voter in Fairfield County is dying to see infrastructure improvement in terms of public transportation and our aging roads and bridges, and I anticipate continuing to work on those issues as chair of the Transportation Commission.”