When voters go to the polls this November, they may see a new name on the ballot. As of April 6, Democrat John-Michael Parker has announced his candidacy for the 101st House District, serving Madison and part of Durham. Republican Noreen Kokoruda, who is seeking re-election this fall, currently holds the seat.

Parker is new to local politics, but not new to Madison. He graduated from Daniel Hand High School in 2006 and then went on to Yale University where he graduated in 2010 with a degree in neurobiology. After college he went on to New York City where he worked as a middle school science teacher at The Dalton School.

While in teaching, he joined the founding team of a non-profit called The Future Project, an organization focused on empowering students to “build the future, one dream at a time.” There he worked as a “dream director” and was later promoted to vice president of development.

“After about eight years of serving my community in NYC and really thinking about how I can use the privileges and opportunities I have had in my life to make the biggest impact, I started to think, ‘What does that look like in my hometown?’” said Parker. “What does that look like in the community that raised me and how can I most effectively serve people and make a difference? I believe that this opportunity to serve as state representative would just be an incredible privilege and honor.”

Parker moved back to Madison early this year and said while he doesn’t have a lot of direct experience in politics, he hopes to bring new ideas and new energy to the position.

“I think what I am going to bring to this position if I have the honor of serving is new energy and new ideas, a real commitment to work hard for the folks of Madison and make sure that our best interests are represented in Hartford,” he said. “And that some of the best ideas that are coming out of Madison and Durham can actually be part of the conversation at the state level where things are really challenging.”

According to a press release announcing Parker’s candidacy, Selectman Al Goldberg (D) said Parker is suited to the role of state representative.

“John-Michael has already demonstrated that he can be effective by providing new energy and new ideas. I see in him a man with integrity, intelligence, and genuine empathy who wants to make this community better, and I believe he would be an excellent representative and a strong partner for Madison and Durham in the legislature.”

For now Parker said he is looking forward to knocking on doors and speaking to residents as he works toward reaching the public financing goal.

“I come into this with my own set of ideas and experiences and a lot of that is influenced by the work I have done in schools and in the education space,” he said. “Those experiences will certainly inform what I am bringing into this, but what I am most excited about is to learn and find out what is important to people and what those issues are that folks feel like maybe aren’t serving them yet and where change needs to happen.”

Republican Noreen Kokoruda filed paperwork on Jan. 26 to seek a fifth term as the 101st General Assembly District state representative this November.

A Madison resident for more than 30 years, Kokoruda is a former selectman who held leading roles on numerous other committees and commissions. As a representative, Kokoruda serves on the General Assembly’s committees on Children, Appropriations, and Education and is the Minority Caucus chair.

“I’m looking forward to meeting John-Michael Parker and learning about his professional and community service experience and ideas,” Kokoruda said. “It’s always important to give families, seniors, parents, small businesses, and taxpayers of the 101st House District a choice in each election. This is certainly a critical time in Connecticut’s future.”