Wallingford Election 2021: Riley O'Connell Running For Mayor

WALLINGFORD, CT — The 2021 municipal election is heating up in Wallingford with plenty of races on the ballot.

Voters will head to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 2 and cast their ballots for the position of mayor, along with seats on the Town Council and Board of Education.

Wallingford Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles as election day draws near.

Democrat Riley O'Connell, 25, is running for Wallingford Mayor.

Occupation: Up Until Announcing My Candidacy For Mayor, I Worked In Criminal Investigations At The Antitrust Division Of The Department Of Justice.

Family: My family has called Wallingford home for five generations.

Family in government: No.

The single biggest issue in town is ______, and I plan to do this about it:

Over the last decade, Wallingford’s youth population (a metric for the number of young families) has declined by a staggering 15%. This is intrinsically alarming, from both a community and economic standpoint. My plan is to restore Wallingford’s reputation as an affordable family town by bringing an end to 16 consecutive years of proposed tax increases, reestablishing our declining school district as one of the best in the state, and reinvesting in attractive public assets such as Community Pool.

Critical differences between me and my opponent:

I have a plan, my opponent does not. Wallingford is in desperate need of a long-term strategic plan for the future, with proactive as opposed to reactive leadership. The past couple decades of gradual decline only further demonstrate the consequences of shortsightedness and complacency.

Accomplishments:

My career has always been in public service, beginning in Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro’s Office and through to my time at the DOJ. While at the DOJ, I oversaw teamwork across various agencies, successfully resulting in some of the largest fines in criminal antitrust history. Furthermore, as a lifelong Democrat from a Republican family, I’ve always recognized the value in reaching across the aisle whenever possible.

Other issues:

Wallingford is decades behind in deferred physical infrastructure investments, and generations behind in terms of technological infrastructure, both of which cost the taxpayer money each day we continue to delay. Without ever spending beyond our means, I plan to implement these necessary renovations over the better part of a decade, in turn improving the quality of life for residents and restoring our competitive edge as a town.

What else would you like voters to know about you?

Wallingford is a great community, but it’s also a town that has been trending in the wrong direction for far too long; I’m just here to right the ship. I want to be an advocate for everyone in our community, doesn’t matter if you’re young or old, if you are from Wallingford originally or moved here, or if you are Republican, Democrat, or anything else. My only goal is to leave our town better than we found it.