This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.

Candelora, Souney in Race for 86th State Rep. Seat

Republican-endorsed candidate and incumbent Vincent Candelora of North Branford and Green Party-endorsed candidate and Guilford resident Colin Souney are in the race to win the 86th District General Assembly seat in the November 2018 statewide election.

The 86th District represents North Branford and parts of North Guilford, Durham and Wallingford. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.

Candelora, an attorney who works in family-owned businesses, is currently Deputy House Republican leader and serving his sixth consecutive term as 86th District State Representative. In a press release on June 18, he formally announced his bid for reelection to the state House as the Republican Party’s endorsed candidate for the 86th General Assembly district (see full release here).

“I have watched Connecticut House Republicans grow from a small minority just a few years ago to a 72-member caucus that played a major role in developing last year’s bipartisan budget,” Candelora said. “The plan we passed in October, and this year’s budget adjustment, were huge steps forward for the state. We made voting on union labor contracts mandatory, funded the Retired Teachers’ Healthcare plan, restored funding to the Medicare Savings Program, and made other structural reforms that will help our economy recover. I am honored to have had the opportunity to contribute, and hope to continue serving my district next year.”

In Hartford, Candelora has served on the Legislative Management, Finance, Revenue & Bonding, Judiciary, Public Health, General Law, and Screening Committees. His leadership skills as Deputy House Republican Leader has inspired his colleagues to work in a bipartisan fashion to tackle some of Connecticut’s most challenging issues, namely the state’s fiscal crisis, according to the release.

Colin Souney, a Guilford resident with two decades in a variety of vocations including construction, welding/machining and operating his own business, is endorsed by the Green Party of Connecticut, which formally announced Souney’s candidacy for the 86th District seat on June 14 in a press release (see full release here).

“I will be a common-sense voice for the people, not an entrenched, ‘bought and sold’ politician,” Souney stated. “Here in Connecticut, we are plagued by endless bickering of entrenched politicians over insensible taxations and ideas that yield the ‘least worst’ decisions. Past policy has depleted the state’s budget and sent it into alarming debt,” said Souney.

According to the press release, to address Connecticut’s budget deficit, Souney advocates the legalization, regulation, and taxation of marijuana. In working to ensure health care for all, Souney calls for improvement of mental health systems and ensuring adequate funding for services to individuals and their families and communities. He also advocates an “efficient but gradual” minimum wage increase to $15 hour; and will work to ensure subsidies, tax breaks, and other incentives are available for small business.