Sure, it’s only July. But it’s not too early to get to know local candidates running for state office in November.
“06880” intern Dylan Robbin spoke with Weston First Selectwoman Sam Nestor, Westport Representative Town Meeting (RTM) member Alma Sarelli, and Westport Board of Education chair Lee Goldstein about their campaigns.
Sam Nestor (Democrat: State Senate, 26th District)
During her 3 terms as Weston’s first selectwoman and a decade in town government, Sam Nestor had not considered running for Connecticut’s 26th State Senate seat.
That changed when State Senator Ceci Maher announced her retirement.
After spending the weekend talking with her family and Maher, Nestor decided to enter the race.
“As a local leader, you know how what happens in Hartford impacts what happens at the local level,” she says. “I thought my local perspective could really be valuable in the halls in Hartford.”
Sam Nestor
Nestor calls Maher’s May endorsement “a really big deal.” The retiring senator is someone she turns to for advice, especially about issues like the proposed child tax credit and the expansion of access to child care.
Nestor notes that affordability is consistently the top concern she hears from voters. After knocking on nearly 1,000 doors, she says residents ask a simple question: “How can I afford to live in the place that I live?”
If elected, Nestor hopes to help pass a state child tax credit, secure school construction reimbursements for municipalities, strengthen the Child Care Endowment Fund, and continue positioning Connecticut as “a model for other states” through protecting residents while maintaining fiscal responsibility.
Alma Sarelli (Republican: State Senate, 26th District)
Though Republican Alma Sarelli is running in a district that is predominantly Democratic, she says that party affiliation is not a focus of her campaign.
“To me, it’s never been pretty much a party line,” Sarelli says. “I look at more the issues — listening to people, treating them with respect, and focusing more on solving the problem, instead of the party line.”
A member of the Westport RTM, Sarelli says serving in local government has reinforced her belief that affordability and local control are the district’s most pressing issues.
After an unsuccessful run for state representative 4 years ago, joining the RTM gave her “a great glimpse” into how local government operates, and strengthened her desire to seek higher office.
Alma Sarelli
Campaigning around the district, Sarelli says she hears the same concerns regardless of the town: the rising cost of living, taxes, and increasing state involvement in local decision-making.
She believes that affordability and local control “come hand in hand,” noting that residents are struggling with high property taxes, utility bills and housing costs. “People are really having a hard time remaining in the towns they’ve been living in for 30 years and 40 years,” she says.
If elected, Sarelli says her priorities would be protecting local decision-making, reducing government involvement, lowering taxes and helping both seniors remain in their homes and young families afford to stay in Connecticut.
Lee Goldstein (Democrat: State Representative, 136th District)
After serving on the Westport Board of Education since 2019 and as its chair since 2021, Lee Goldstein says the open seat created by longtime State Representative Jonathan Steinberg’s retirement presented the right opportunity to seek higher office in Hartford.
Her experience leading the school board has shown her that “good government matters,” and that difficult challenges can be solved when people “listen to one another, build relationships, and stay focused on solving problems.” She points to accomplishments including rebuilding schools, developing a long-term strategic plan and passing school budgets unanimously as examples of that approach.
Lee Goldstein
Rather than focusing on a single “Day 1” priority, Goldstein says a first-year legislator must also balance spending time learning the process and listening in Hartford. She says that the state’s budget and the recommendations of Connecticut’s education funding commission (particularly around special education funding) will be among the most important issues facing lawmakers next session.
Goldstein’s broader goal is to help ensure Connecticut remains “a place that supports outstanding public schools, and where people can afford to put down roots and build meaningful lives, from just starting out through retirement.”
She also plans to strengthen communities and public institutions while protecting reproductive freedom, public health and the environment, adding that she wants Connecticut to remain “a place where we defend every person’s right to live safely, freely, and with dignity.”
Goldstein said she hopes to build the relationships necessary to shape legislation before it reaches a final vote, believing that collaboration, rather than opposition, leads to better public policy.
(The Republican Party has not yet nominated a candidate for State Representative in the 136th District.)
(“06880” regularly covers politics — within town, and in Hartford as it impacts Westport. If you enjoy reporting like this, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)