Bermúdez’s friend Iris Rodriguez with a sign touting one of the state rep candidate’s priorities. Bermúdez’s daughter Aveline (right) sang happy birthday to Hartford City Council member and Hartford Hot Several band leader Josh Michtom before they all crossed the bridge. Hill Alder E velyn Rodriguez held up a handmade sign reading “Mitigate the effects of climate change,” as she and about 50 others paraded across the Grand Avenue Bridge. Others flashed signs with messages like “Strengthen parent teacher organizations” and “Invest in public transportation,” and another, in bright yellow: “Bermúdez for State Rep.”  That was the scene on Saturday afternoon as Wildaliz Bermúdez, a Fair Haven resident and the executive director of the city’s Fair Rent Commission, officially launched her campaign to represent the 97th General Assembly District, which covers parts of Fair Haven, Quinnipiac Meadows, Fair Haven Heights, and Morris Cove. Saturday’s rally took place after Bermúdez successfully petitioned for a place on the Aug. 11 Democratic primary ballot in her challenge to party-endorsed candidate Leland Moore, a first-term Morris Cove alder and assistant state attorney general. Both are looking to fill a seat that has been held for the past decade by State Rep. Al Paolillo Jr., who is now running for state Senate. Bermúdez needed signatures from 5 percent of registered Democrats in the district, or 301 in total, in order to make the primary ballot. She wound up garnering 492. On Saturday, after Bermúdez and city Health Director Maritza Bond made announcements on the Fair Haven Heights side of the bridge, Bermúdez’s friend Josh Michtom led the marching band Hartford Hot Several across the Grand Avenue Bridge, playing the trumpet himself. Michtom said Bermúdez — who spent six years on the Hartford City Council before moving to New Haven — convinced him to run for the local legislature in Hartford. He now serves on the Hartford City Council as a member of the Working Families Party, which Bermúdez also belonged to when she was a Hartford City Council member.  Even though Alder Evelyn Rodriguez does not live in the 97th District, she said she marched for Bermúdez on Saturday because she wants more diversity in the state House of Representatives. She also thinks Bermúdez’s campaign can have an impact well outside of Fair Haven, Fair Haven Heights, and Morris Cove. Many other attendees on Saturday were from around Hartford. Rodriguez and other attendees said they see Bermúdez’s experience elsewhere in the state as an advantage. People underestimate the importance of state representatives, especially when it comes to securing funding from the state for their cities, Rodriguez said.  Bermúdez’s campaign treasurer, Shannon Raider, agreed with Rodriguez. Like many others who marched, Raider said she has known Bermúdez for years, and has become part of what she called an advocacy and “activist circle” in and around New Haven. Raider said she is  “energized” by Bermúdez’s campaign and by her experience in both Hartford and New Haven. “The things that people want in one neighborhood are actually the same in the state,” she said.  Bermúdez said that having a Hartford contingent at Saturday’s New Haven rally “speaks to her connections” across the state, adding that as state representative, she wants to “build off existing relationships” she has. She said that, when she served on the Hartford City Council, one of her constituents in the capital city was Speaker of the House Matt Ritter. After the march, Bond asked people in the crowd to read their signs aloud and explain what they meant. Yisenia Martinez held a sign that read, “Work to reduce energy and utility costs.” She said, “I think she has the power to make some change in New Haven. I wish she was still in Hartford, but I think New Haven needs her more.”  Kat Calhoun said Bermúdez had helped her with a landlord dispute in her capacity as the director of the city’s Fair Rent Commission. “I think she will be an excellent follow on from the community involvement Al Paolillo has given us,” Calhoun said.  After participants in the parade spoke, Bermúdez addressed her supporters in Quinnipiac River Park. Among those in attendance were her parents Carmen and Pedro Bermúdez, former Hartford State Rep. Edwin Vargas, Fair Haven Community Management Team Chair Lee Cruz, and several more friends from Hartford. Bermúdez’s mother, Carmen, lives in Hartford and said with a chuckle that people there still ask when she is coming back. “I know New Haven can’t flourish without my daughter,” she said.  During her remarks, Bermúdez discussed campaign priorities, especially funding for public schools. Surrounded by friends and family, she mostly wanted to thank everyone there during her speech, and set the tone for the next two months before the primary election on Aug. 11. “It is you. It is me. It is us,” she said of the campaign.  Raider, her campaign treasurer, said that they chose the location of the rally because of the symbolism of the Grand Avenue Bridge, which was closed for repairs during the Covid-19 pandemic and reopened in 2022. “The bridge is so iconic in this district,” Raider said — adding that Bermúdez wants the campaign to be about “connecting people” and cities.  After the event, Bermúdez was beaming. Of the kickoff she said: “It was great. I loved it, and you know, it’s about coming together and celebrating one another.” Former Board of Ed member Carlos Torre (right), is a professor of education at Southern Connecticut State University, held the microphone for Bermúdez during her speech. Kat Calhoun spoke to Bermúdez’s ability to communicate well, especially with a “difficult landlord.” The Hartford Hot Several performed for the parade. Bermúdez: Running a campaign means “we have to come and learn who our neighbors are. It means we have to come and make calls. Come and make calls with me.” The post Bermúdez’s Campaign Kickoff Bridges Fair Haven, Heights, Hartford appeared first on New Haven Independent. ...read more read less