nothin New Haven Independent | Comey Promises a Passionate Voice for Branford

Comey Promises a Passionate Voice for Branford

Editor’s note: This is the second of a series of interviews with candidates for state representative and state senate. The interview with Republican state representative candidate Robert Imperato ran yesterday.

Photo by Diana Stricker

Robin Comey

Democratic candidate Robin Comey and Republican Robert Imperato are vying for the seat being vacated by Democratic State Rep. Lonnie Reed, who decided to retire after 10 years of service. The 102nd District includes six of the seven voting districts in Branford. State Rep. Sean Scanlon (D) is running unopposed to represent the 98th District, which covers a section of Branford, and most of Guilford.

Democratic candidate Robin Comey believes her passion and experience will win her the state representative seat in the 102nd District.

Comey is a member of the Representative Town Meeting (RTM) and has served many years with the Branford Early Childhood Collaborative, eventually becoming the executive director. She is a partner in Starprompt, a teleprompting services company she has operated with her husband for 25 years. She and her husband and two children live in Short Beach.

What convinced you to run for office?

I just love having a voice. I’m passionate about the work I’ve done advocating for policy change locally and in Hartford. And I know the importance of securing and protecting funding for Branford. I think as a state rep, those two roles are key.”

Comey has been a longtime advocate of early childhood education and health issues.

I find it thrilling to have a voice. It was exciting for me when I was in Hartford advocating on behalf of kids who have life-threatening illnesses, or on behalf of families who need affordable child care, or the vulnerable folks who are paying too much for their health care costs.

On the local scale, she was instrumental in convincing the Branford Board of Eduction to develop new policies regarding food allergies in the schools.

It took us three years, but when it succeeded, we realized that you just have to keep pushing until you make that change that you want to see. And because of the work we did, Branford became a leader in how food allergies are handled in schools.”

She said parents across the state were coming to Branford to find out how to enact food allergy policies in their districts.

We decided we would demand change collectively as a group of parents and advocate for a task force to be designated in Hartford to tackle the issue on a state-wide basis. It took a couple more years of work. … We were patient and we were persistent, and we got some state-wide policy passed this last spring.”

What are people’s top concerns when you go door-to-door?

The main concerns I hear from seniors are health care issues.” Seniors told her they worry they will not be able to stay in their homes and they won’t be able to afford long-term health care. 

The second issue is that they want their family members, their kids and grandkids to stay in Connecticut. They don’t want them to have to move because they can’t find jobs or they can’t afford the cost of living in the state.

The third concern people talk about is education, and she said this is something she can address because of her work in early education. I’m able to say I’ve worked on behalf of children, bringing funding for many programs, literacy programs, and teacher training to make sure our kids can start school on the best foot possible and have a great foundation for learning.”

What are your top goals if elected?

One of Comey’s goals is to advocate for the housing and health care needs of seniors and people with disabilities. She was the caregiver for her mother, who was disabled, until her death a few years ago.

Because of my experience with my mom and trying to navigate her complex health care needs and her housing needs and her long-term care needs, I saw how the system could improve. So I would really would like to be a part of insuring that folks in this town who are living in their homes, have the care that they need.”

Comey said it’s vital that services are coordinated so that seniors can stay in their homes and have the resources that they need, and that family members who are caregivers also have resources. She said people tell her that the system is too unwieldy. There are just too few choices out there for families, and we need to fix that.”

Educational funding is another goal. Education is something I’m hugely passionate about. We need to make sure that we continue to preserve funding for education programs at all levels.

It’s a cradle to career outlook – making sure that kids are getting care early and then making sure we give them the education and the higher education so that they have the skills they need to be successful in the jobs we have in Connecticut.”

Her third goal is the environment. There are things going on at the federal level that folks on the shoreline should be very concerned about. We need to put things in place at the state level that will protect our precious resources and make Connecticut a climate leader.

I want to continue fighting for the environment and making sure that we preserve open space, and encourage solar energy and other conservation measures, and protect the coastline and the ecology of the sound.”

How would you spur the economy in Branford?

File photo

Comey said her background in small business gives her a perspective about what’s needed.

I am a small business owner, and I’ve had some ups and downs with the economy, so I know what it’s like to experience great times and be able to expand our business and buy new equipment. But we’ve also had some times we had to tighten our belts.

We need to make it easier to do business in this state. For small businesses, we need to cut down on the red tape it takes to get started, and make sure that small business owners can have access to quality, affordable health care for their families.”

Comey believes that growing the economy in Branford is important to keep taxes down, but that it’s also a regional problem. We need to make sure our cities have the resources available to attract businesses so that we can thrive as a town and a region.”

How does the political atmosphere in Washington affect Branford?

When I go door to door, it’s pretty divisive. People are either for you or against you.” She said there seems to be no middle ground. I think that’s a pretty sad state of affairs.”

One woman told Comey she didn’t agree with her views. I told her it’s ok that we don’t agree on everything, that’s what’s great about living in a Democracy. So you can use your power of voice and you can say what you believe, and I will continue to work for what I believe in. We’re on this planet earth together, we’re in this town together.”

She said that talking about commonalities can help bridge the gap.

How can infrastructure improvements be funded? Do you support highway tolls?

We’re losing ground with our competitiveness in the state, and the quality of our transportation is one of our shortcomings.” She said it’s important to have a transportation lockbox with revenue dedicated to road improvements.

I would support some sort of toll plan for Connecticut with the hopes we would reduce other taxes, like the gas tax, and that (toll) revenue would be used for roads and transportation projects.”

For example, she said state funding is needed to complete the Exit 53 interchange on I‑95, which is crucial to economic development in that area of Branford.

Would you support legalizing marijuana?

It’s a hard question. I do support the decriminalization of marijuana, and I do support the medical use. We’ve done the medical marijuana program really well in Connecticut.

I think if we were to go in the direction of recreational marijuana, that we would have an opportunity for some additional funding for the opiate crisis and some of our social service programs that are severely underfunded at this time. If the revenue from marijuana would be earmarked for recovery programs and social service programs, it would be quite helpful.”

What else would you like people to know?

I am the type of person who’s a problem-solver. I will find a way to get things done and find solutions. I do that by getting the right people to the table.”

Comey said it’s important to listen to all views and know when to compromise.

Comey was endorsed by the Democratic Town Committee in May. 

She has also been endorsed by Connecticut Working Families Party.

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