Working Families Party Comes To Town

In the age of Trump, a statewide left-leaning party is looking to build a base in New Haven for minimum-wage hikes and pro-labor economic policy.

The Working Families Party brought that agenda to an organizing meeting this past Thursday on Howe Street.

Over 30 people crammed into the New Haven People’s Center for an informational meeting about left-leaning party, which frequently cross-endorses candidates (usually Democrats) in general elections. The WFP post-election meeting, one of several the party is hosting across Connecticut, looked to gauge interest in creating a more formal local chapter, said Connecticut WFP Political Director Dhrupad Nag.

While the WFP has been active in Hartford and Bridgeport, the party has had no established presence in New Haven.

As New Haven organizer Sarah Ganong asked everyone in the room to introduce themselves and their reasons for attending the meeting, many said they were galvanized to join forces in light of the election of Donald Trump to the presidency.

That anxious energy needs to be translated into sustainable action, whether in the form of making phone calls or working on campaigns, organizers said. One main goal in the coming months is laying down the groundwork for more progressive candidates to challenge both Republicans and establishment Democrats in municipal and state-level elections.

“Not just nationally, but at the state level, we got killed,” Nag (pictured) told the group, pointing to a Connecticut State Senate that is now tied 18 – 18 in the week of a statewide Republican legislative campaign funded in party by conservative donors like the Koch Brothers.

Over these next couple of years, the WFP aims to train and elect candidates for local and state seats, from boards of education to the General Assembly.

WFP looks to push candidates in the field further left, Nag said, deploying on-the-ground efforts to pass legislation that dovetails with the party’s philosophy of economic, social and racial justice. The results of this year’s election points to muddled messaging from the Democratic Party on its economic platform, Nag said. So WFP will up the ante on its call for a $15 hourly minimum wage and expanded paid family and medical leave, policies that can cut across party lines, Nag said. The party also supports expanded ​“ban the box” hiring policies for ex-offenders, immigration reform, tuition-free community college, progressive tax rates, and endng ​“corporatization” of education and health care.

The room broke out into three groups: one to discuss broader topics on politics and the WFP, one to discuss how to best push forward issues the WFP stands for and one for budding candidates and those interested in running campaigns.

In the back of the room, a handful of attendees clustered around incoming State Rep. Josh Elliott of Hamden: a self described WFP ​“showhorse” from this election cycle whose campaign was fueled by local volunteers from Bernie Sanders’ Democratic presidential quest. Elliott, who toppled establishment candidate James Pascarella in the Democratic primary and then bested Republican Councilwoman Marjorie Bonadies in November for the seat vacated by House Speaker Brendan Sharkey, warned against Democrats who ingratiate themselves with Democratic Town Committees and other establishment bodies.

“If we don’t have a battlefield of ideas for Democrats, we’re going to stagnate,” Elliott said.

Christine Bartlett-Josie of New Haven emphasized the need for interested candidates to ​“understand what the lay of the land is” by going to local meetings, both to figure out who the political players are and how the political process works.

And Elliott himself stressed the importance of grassroots fundraising and making connections.

“Start asking now if your friends are willing to get involved,” Elliott said.

For Dan Verner, the election hasn’t given him pause, but rather heightened what he calls his moral obligation to help the poor. Verner, who said he has no background in politics, now feels driven to perhaps enter a state race down the line in his hometown of Waterbury.

“I’m essentially looking at getting into the great game of politics,” he said.