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State Rep Candidates to Debate Oct. 27

Just 12 days before voters head to the polls, the three candidates vying for State Representative in District 5 will meet for a debate at Andrews Memorial Town Hall, 54 E. Main Street, Clinton, on Thursday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m.

The 35th House District represents Clinton, Killingworth, and northern Westbrook. On Tuesday, Nov. 8, voters will cast ballots for one of three candidates: incumbent Democratic nominee Christine Goupil, Republican candidate Chris Aniskovich, and Green Party candidate Hugh Birdsall.

The debated is hosted by the Clinton Chamber of Commerce, and at press time, Chamber Executive Director Paul Orsini said the event’s format is still being finalized.

Orsini said the debate will be moderated by Marty Hausberger, a news director with experience covering state legislature issues, and questions are being created by the 14-member Clinton Chamber of Commerce board. In addition to the Chamber board, Orsini said he plans to reach out to the Killingworth and Westbrook members of the Middlesex Chamber of Commerce so representatives from other district town will have the opportunity to generate questions.

With 16 people helping generate questions, Orsini said he expects a group that large will serve as a check and balance on any possible biases the question writers have.

“The candidates will be given a list of general topics two weeks before the event that the questions will be from,” said Orsini.

For those who can’t make the debate, Orsini said he plans to talk with Valley Shore Community Television in Westbrook to see if recording the debate is possible.

Whoever is elected will represent all three towns in the district, but this year’s race will have a decidedly Clinton flavor. Not only is the Clinton chamber coming up with the questions and the debate taking place in Clinton, but all three candidates are also Clinton residents.

Since 2020, the district has been represented by Goupil. At the state level, Goupil has been the vice chair of the Planning and Development Committee and served on the Transportation and Human Services committees since she began her term.

In Clinton, Goupil served as Clinton’s first selectman for a term of two years. A charter change supported by Goupil, however, led to a change in government structure, eliminating the first selectman position in town in favor of a town manager/town council form. Goupil is a current member of the Town Council and has also served on the town’s Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) in the past.

Meanwhile Aniskovich is the chairman of the Clinton Town Council. Besides Town Council, Aniskovich has served on PZC and Board of Assessment Appeals. Outside of politics, Aniskovich works as a mortgage broker at Security Financial Mortgage Group in Clinton, which he also owns. He has also served as the president of Clinton Youth Football, been a board member and coach for Little League, and been a volunteer basketball coach in the Park and Recreation basketball league.

Birdsall is a part-time musician and works part time as the education coordinator for a Mystic based nonprofit called Reforest the Tropics, which works to fight climate change. Birdsall is also a member of the Clinton Sustainability Committee and the Clinton Tree Committee.

The Harbor News will continue to report on the candidates and issues for the Tuesday, Nov. 8 as Election Day approaches.