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Race Heats Up for Branford's 102nd State Rep Seat

The number of Branford residents seeking party nominations for the November 2018 race for Branford's open 102nd State Representative seat increased to three last week.

On Wednesday, May 9, Democrat Robin Comey, an independent business owner and active community organizer serving her first term with Branford's Representative Town Meeting (RTM), officially announced she would seek the Democratic nomination.

Comey, who also serves as Executive Director of non-profit Branford Early Childhood Collaborative, is the second Democrat to declare a run for the 102nd seat, following Democrat Adrian Bonenberger. Bonenberger, a Branford native, journalist/essayist, twice-deployed combat veteran and Yale Office of Communications publication editor (Yale Medicine), committed to seeking the Democratic nomination for the 102nd seat in February.

Branford Republican Robert Imperato announced his intent to run for the seat in early April. Imperato's professional experience includes over 40 years in finance, banking and default management. Imperato was elected to three RTM terms, and was serving with that body in 2017 when he was appointed by the Board of Selectmen to instead serve on the Board of Finance; filling term to expire in 2019.

On April 23, current 102nd State Rep. Lonnie Reed announced she would not run for a sixth term in the election, which takes place Nov. 6, 2018. In a letter shared with Zip06/The Sound announcing her decision, Reed stated, in part,  "It has been an incomparable honor to serve the people of Branford in the Connecticut General Assembly for what will be ten years. I am proud of the all work we have done together to protect and enhance our extraordinary community."

Bonenberger, Comey and Imperato each have filed with the State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC) Citizens Election Program (CEP). CEP is a voluntary public campaign financing program which encourages citizen participation by providing full public financing to qualified candidates who agree to abide by guidelines including contribution and expenditure limits and disclosure requirements.