Kimberly Norton Announces Candidacy For New Canaan First Selectman

NEW CANAAN, CT — Republican town council member Kimberly Norton announced this week she will be running for first selectman of New Canaan at the Republican Caucus in July.

According to a news release sent out by her campaign, Norton remains fully committed to fulfilling her responsibilities as a town council member while she seeks out the first selectman seat, currently held by Republican Kevin Moynihan.

Elected to the town council in 2021, Norton was appointed as co-chair of the Health and Human Services Committee and is a member of the Bylaws & Ordinances Committee.

As a Bylaws and Ordinance Committee member, she fought to reinstate the Utilities Commission and expand its membership from five to nine members, as well as advocate for a nine-member Affordable Housing Committee to open up this advisory group to more residents, according to her campaign.

In 2015, Norton worked with local police and public works to relaunch the "Slow Down in Our Town" campaign, which encouraged more careful driving and pedestrian safety, according to her campaign.

She was also a founding advocate for a statewide effort to protect students' digital school records in 2016.

A resident of New Canaan for more than 15 years, Norton is invested in the community as a homeowner, volunteer and parent. She and her husband, Bill, are raising their four children in New Canaan, all of whom have or are currently attending the town's public schools.

Norton also provided the following information regarding her platform:

• Her Shared Vision for New Canaan, Transparency: "Residents deserve more transparency on what's happening at Town Hall and assurances from their first selectman that residents are at the forefront of all town decision making. I will seek input from residents and keep them informed before important decisions are made."
• Affordable Housing: "We need an affordable housing strategy that starts with reaching out to residents, educating them about 8-30g and building consensus on how to tackle the demands of this state statute while preserving our town. We need to work with our state representatives in Hartford to unify around this strategy so they can advocate for New Canaan as a bipartisan team. This has not been done and must be. Several of our state representatives have never met with our first selectman."
• Telecommunications: "We need a telecommunications strategy that considers the latest technology available to fill gaps in cell coverage. Our first selectman is basing his plans on data from 2017. In the past six years, technology, as well as our residents' needs, have changed, and so must the solutions we consider."
• Schools: "When you ask families why they move to New Canaan, it's almost always because of our town's great schools. I plan to work hard to provide the support needed to maintain our public schools' continued excellence and place a priority on school safety."
• Fiscal responsibility: "We need to find ways to decrease government bonding and spending to offset the tax burden of living in New Canaan."
• Preservation: "New Canaan's historic properties are part of the town's unique landscape and our residents' lived history. I will focus on best ways to preserve our historic properties and our town's heritage by forging public-private partnerships to keep our buildings intact while offsetting the cost of preservation."
• Mental and Physical Health: "Our residents' mental and physical health will be another priority of mine. The after-effects of the pandemic have heightened our focus on the mental and physical health of our residents. I will do all I can to continue that focus and provide resources to help anyone struggling."