Group of Stamford Democrats, seeking to unseat incumbents, band together to force primaries

Nina Sherwood, center, a former Bernie Sanders' delegate, is pictured at the Democratic National Convention last summer. Sherwood was nominated to run for a Stamford Board of Representatives seat in November as party leaders denied the endorsement to 12-year incumbent Eileen Heaphy. less Nina Sherwood, center, a former Bernie Sanders' delegate, is pictured at the Democratic National Convention last summer. Sherwood was nominated to run for a Stamford Board of Representatives seat in November as ... more Photo: Neil Vigdor / Hearst Connecticut Media File Photo Buy photo Photo: Neil Vigdor / Hearst Connecticut Media File Photo Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close Group of Stamford Democrats, seeking to unseat incumbents, band together to force primaries 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

STAMFORD — Like many Americans, Megan Cottrell wants to change what she sees as a broken political system.

Unlike many Americans, Cottrell is tackling the issue at the bottom rungs of government.

Cottrell is one of several Stamford Democrats seeking a primary battle for the Board of Representatives in the hopes of winning a spot on the party line in the November municipal election.

She is among the growing number of those unhappy with how the local system produces candidates.

“Stamford needs new voices,” Cottrell said. “The system for nominations is a little bit absurd. The people who are representing me serve on the Democratic City Committee and they nominated themselves. The citizenry needs more choices.”

Cottrell is referring to how party members pick candidates for the Board of Representatives. Divided into 20 voting districts, the DCC has two members from each district who nominate candidates to serve from that district on the Board of Representatives. The same practice happens on the Republican Town Committee for the 40-member board.

In nine districts, at least one DCC member is also on the Board of Representatives and provides their own nomination, creating a situation that some argue makes it easy for representatives in party-leaning districts to stay in office almost indefinitely.

Cottrell, 34, has teamed up with Robert Roqueta, 44, to collect the 60 or so signatures needed to force a primary in the East Side’s 4th District against Willy Giraldo and Mary Savage. The Democrat incumbents also represent the district on the DCC.

“You should do either one or the other,” said Cottrell, a paralegal who has never before run for public office.

“Whatever happens with this, win or lose, we are basically saying we want the system to change and be more responsive to citizen concerns,” she said.

Cottrell made her opinions known several months ago when DCC Chairman Josh Fedeli sought to expand the group by adding a third member in each district. Many longtime members shot down the proposal, though Fedeli has said he will bring it to a vote again. He argued the change would help the committee include more of Stamford’s 27,000 registered Democrats and introduce new faces.

Cottrell and other newcomers were in favor of the move.

“All the power is in a vacuum,” said Roqueta, a social worker and registered nurse. “Decisions are made through the voice of those self-elected individuals and that’s not how democracy is supposed to work. What we’re trying to do here is really hear the people.”

A criticism of the newcomers is that they’re largely the result of a presidential election that inspired a new wave of political activism in both parties.

Politics at the local level is often less about the national issue of the day than it is about running a city. The Board of Representatives functions as the city’s legislative body, weighing in on everything from the annual budget to animal welfare laws. Members are volunteers who spend long evenings at meetings at least twice a month.

Cottrell and others said they want to be able to tackle city issues they feel are not being addressed by their representatives. They also believe some board members are hard to reach for help with problems.

Marc Aquila, 47, received the party nod to run in Springdale’s 17th District, and he’s concerned about the changes he sees in his neighborhood.

“When I moved it was like a village — not like it is now,” he said. “It’s overpopulated, the schools are crowded, the roads suck. I listen and talk to people in my area and we’re on the same page about what we want — and it’s not getting done.”

Aquila and 10 other newcomers were endorsed this week at the DCC nominating convention. Many of the newcomers are in districts further north, where Republicans are the incumbents.

The biggest shake-up was in the Cove’s 8th District, where 12-year incumbent Eileen Heaphy was denied a nomination in favor of Nina Sherwood. The other endorsed seat went to DCC member and board incumbent Anabel Figueroa, who nominated herself and Sherwood. Heaphy has said she will force a primary for the seat.

Sherwood, 33, is known for leading the presidential campaign effort for U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, D-Vermont, in Stamford.

“I’ve done a tremendous amount of work on multiple campaigns, and through those experiences I met really good people who care about where they live and who share the same passion I do about this city.”

The Stamford native, who works as an animal curator at the Stamford Museum & Nature Center, was at the registrar’s office Friday helping four candidates get the information and documents they need to collect signatures.

“This is democracy at work,” said Susan Buchsbaum, 58, who plans to trigger a primary for the downtown’s 6th District, where incumbents Annie Summerville and Denis Patterson were endorsed.

The process can be daunting for the uninitiated.

“It’s designed that if you don’t know somebody who knows somebody, you can’t navigate it yourself,” Sherwood said.

Even harder is following how your representative votes on issues, the candidates said.

“You might like the face of your representative, but you don’t know how they voted and how it affects you,” said Ines Saftic, who wants to run in Waterside’s 2nd District. “I don’t think anybody feels super informed.”

The candidates have just over two weeks to collect the signatures of 5 percent of Democrats registered in their districts. The next step is a September primary.

“The fact that we’re all here today saying we want to be part of the process,” Cottrell said, “that’s a win right there.”

eskalka@stamfordadvocate.com