Union Members Seeking Office Remind Us To Vote Our Union Values on Election Day, Nov. 2

Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021 is election day throughout Connecticut's cities and towns. It's a day that recalls the old saying that all politics is local.  

Doug Finger of AFSCME Local 1029 (Enfield Department of Public Works) and Jen Horner of AFSCME Local 2836 (State University Organization of Administrative Faculty) understand that maxim and acting on it. 

Finger is a crew leader at the DPW, where he has worked for 35 years. He also served as the local’s president for 22 years, stepping down from his union office earlier this year to focus on running for another: Enfield Town Council. 

“It’s the right time for me to do this,” he explained. “I want to make sure working families and unions are represented and treated fairly. I want to make sure Enfield taxpayers are heard.” 

Horner, who is the financial aid director at Eastern Connecticut State University, grew up in Killingly. She and her husband have four children, three of whom are in the Killingly system.

“You keep hearing about all the problems going on [in Killingly],” she reflected. “If I want to make a positive change, then I need to stop complaining and do something about it.”

Finger and Horner are one of 59 candidates endorsed for the upcoming election, a list that includes 11 Council 4 members or retirees running for city and town councils, boards of education and more. 

  • Click here (or scroll down) for the complete list of candidates endorsed by the Council 4 Delegate Assembly on Oct. 7. 

What’s at stake in the 2021 elections? A lot, if you listen carefully to Finger and Horner. 

“It’s important to protect our rights and keep our democracy healthy,” Finger observed. “If we don’t vote, we can lose our health benefits, our pensions, our right to arbitration.” 

In Killingly, Horner has been working hard to support Killingly school paraprofessionals,, members of AFSCME Local 3689, in their contract campaign.

“The fight for respect and fair pay is front and center in Killingly,” Horner noted. “Unions make sure we have fair pay, safe workplaces and good benefits. Unions give people a voice. And more voices like that [on our elected bodies] is a lot stronger than one.”

 That’s why Council 4 is politically engaged.  

Through our member-led Council 4 PEOPLE Committee, chaired by Steven Wierbicki of AFSCME Local 269, we interviewed and recommended for endorsement those candidates who share our union values and pledge to respect collective bargaining and workers' rights in their local communities.   

The Council Delegate Assembly debated and voted to approve the PEOPLE Committee’s recommendations on Oct. 7.  

Now it's on to election day, when we get the opportunity to support local candidates, like Finger and Horner, who support workers. 

As Finger said, “This is where it all starts. Make sure you vote.”  

Council 4 Municipal Endorsements for 2021

**Denotes the candidate is a Council 4 member or retiree

Congressional District 1

Berlin
Jack Fazzino (D) - Town Council
Mike Urrunaga (D) - Town Council
Melissa Urrunaga (D) - Police Commission**

Bristol
Greg Hahn (D) - City Council District 1
Brittany Barney (D) - City Council District 3
Mary Fortier (D) - City Council District 3

East Hartford
Mike Walsh (D) - Mayor
Angie Parkinson (D) - Town Council
Annabelle Diaz (D) - Board of Education
John Murphy (D) - Treasurer

Manchester
Jessee Muniz Poland (D) - Board of Directors
Tim Bergin (D) - Board of Directors
Sarah Jones (D) - Board of Directors
Jay Moran (D) - Board of Directors**
Dennis Schain (D) - Board of Directors
David Eisenthal, Board of Education
Pamela Floyd Cranford (D) - Board of Education**
Darryl Thames (D) - Clerk

Portland
Jim Tripp (D) - First Selectman

*Please note that Local 1303-057, Portland Public Works Union, does NOT support the Council's endorsement of Jim Tripp.

Southington
Caleb Cowles (D) - Planning and Zoning**

West Hartford
Carol Anderson Blanks (D) - Town Council
Ben Wenograd (D) - Town Council
Liam Sweeney (D) - Town Council
Leon Davidoff (D) - Town Council

Congressional District 2

Colchester
Mary Bylone, Selectman
Rosemary Coyle, Selectman
Denise Turner, Selectman
Amy Domeika, Board of Ed
Joanne Rose, Board of Education
Bernie Dennler, Board of Finance
Scott Chapman, Board of Finance

Coventry
Marty Milkovic, Council
Matthew Kyer, Council
Robyn Gallagher, Council
Jon Hand, Council

Enfield
Doug Finger, Council**
Matthew Despard, Council District 3
Robert Cressotti, Council
Cynthia Mangini, Council
Gina Cekala, Council
Nicholas Hopkins, Council District 4**

Killingly
Michael Hewko, Council
Joseph Zornado, Council
Jennifer Horner, Board of Education**
Lacey Luneau, Board of Education

Norwich
Mark Bettencourt, Mayor**
Derrell Wilson, Council
Joe Delucia, Council
Ella Myles, Council
Swarnjit Singh, Council
Kevin Saythany, Board of Ed

Vernon
Jim Tedford, Council**
Maryann Levesque, Council
Dennis Plevyak, Council
Kevin Brown, Board of Education

Waterford
Nick Gauthier, RTM District 1
Laurie Wolfley, Board of Education
Kristin Gonzalez, RTM District 2

Congressional District 3

Ansonia
Rohan Brown, Alderman District 4**

East Haven
Kim Glassman, Council District 1

West Haven
Rosa Richardson, Board of Education**
Nancy Rossi, Mayor

Congressional District 4

Norwalk
Harry Rilling, Mayor

Congressional District 5

Danbury
Roberto Alves, Mayor

Goshen
Audrey Blondin, Board of Assessment Appeals

Meriden
Yvette Cortez, Council District 1**
Steven O’Donnell, Board of Education

Plainville
Dayna Snell, Board of Education**
Benjamin Geddiman, Council

Torrington
Keri Hoehne, Council
Glenn McLeod, Public Safety Commissioner

Wolcott
Kaitlyn Styles, Council

** = COUNCIL 4 MEMBER OR RETIREE


If you are interested in being involved in Council 4's PEOPLE committee or would like more information, contact Council 4 political coordinators Brian Anderson 860-690-2597 & Zak Leavy 860-989-9116.