Courtesy of Eli Sabin
On Thursday morning — a week before the general election — Eli Sabin ’22 emphasized his alignment with New Haven’s ideals in his first campaign press conference for Ward 1 Alder.
At the New Haven Public Library — where Ward 1 will cast its ballots on election day — Sabin and three Yale student supporters gathered to discuss the stakes of the upcoming election. Sabin hopes to be the next in a long line of Yale students to be elected as a New Haven legislator representing Ward 1. At the conference, Sabin vigorously denounced his Republican opponent, emphasized the importance of the upcoming election and touted his activism in the city.
“While volunteering in Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro’s office, tutoring English-language learners at Elm City Internationals, knocking on doors for local Democrats, helping lead the Progressive Caucus in the state legislature and serving on the Homeless Advisory Board, I have seen the challenges facing our neighbors in this great city,” Sabin said.
The Grace Hopper sophomore also used the speech as an opportunity to lay out his vision for New Haven’s future, one that prioritizes affordable housing, infrastructure, job training and public education.
Sabin, a native of East Rock and graduate of the Hopkins School, paid particular attention to the intersection of the city’s housing crisis and its overall level of poverty.
“Twenty-five percent of New Haven residents are living under the federal poverty line,” Sabin said. “Forty-one percent are considered ‘rent-burdened’ because they have to spend more than thirty percent of their income on rent.”
After detailing his own experience and agenda, Sabin turned his focus to key differences between himself and his opponent, Chris Marcisz, presenting Marcisz as a regressive choice for a progressive city. New Haven is a longtime Democratic stronghold — the city has not seen a Republican mayor in more than half a century, and currently all 30 members of the Board of Alders caucus are with the Democratic party.
Students affiliated with Sabin’s campaign gathered at both sides of the podium, holding screenshots of posts from Marcisz’s Facebook page. Sabin denounced those posts, pointing out that Marcisz has called for the end of New Haven’s sanctuary city protections and described climate change as a “hoax” and the Mueller investigation as a “media conspiracy.”
Sabin also called on his fellow Yale students from New Haven for support. Donasia Gray ’22 read a statement on behalf of herself and 11 other New Haven Yalies, endorsing Sabin’s candidacy and citing Sabin’s “deep commitment to serving
our community.”
“He will be a strong advocate for every neighborhood in New Haven,” Gray said.
The statement emphasized the importance of diversity, inclusion and respect as community values for New Haven, and echoed Sabin’s own outlined contrast between himself and Marcisz.
Sabin also stressed the importance of this election in his closing remarks, asking for residents and supporters to show up at
the polls.
“We urge Ward 1 voters to show up to the polls on Tuesday to make their voices heard in this critically important race,”
Gray said.
Polls for the Ward 1 election will be open this Tuesday, November 5th from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. at 133 Elm Street.
Matthew Cline | matthew.cline@yale.edu