Nat Kerman, Contributing Photographer

Kiana Flores ’25 and Simon Bazelon ’25, both Yale students born and raised in New Haven, will become Ward 1’s co-chairs on the Democratic Town Committee, or DTC, after an uncontested run.

As co-chairs, Flores and Bazelon are responsible for mobilizing local Democratic voters and endorsing candidates during election season. They will work closely with Ward 1 Alder and New Haven native Alex Guzhnay ’24, gathering resident opinions on city policy. Flores and Bazelon submitted their application for the uncontested position in late January. They will officially take over in March from the two Yale students who last held the position, Donasia Gray ’23 and Michael Martinez ’21. 

“Even though the Ward 1 alder is usually a Yalie, it’s also important for that Yalie to be from New Haven,” Flores told the News. “Especially because they’re representing local politics. And we thought it would be the best decision to have two New Haven natives as the co-chairs, just because it adds more meaning to the role since we are not only part of the Yale community, but we were part of the New Haven community first.”

Ward 1 encompasses the majority of Yale’s campus residences and buildings. Its boundaries stretch vertically from Wall Street down to Crown Street, and from Park Street over to the edge of the New Haven Green. 

Two co-chairs from each of New Haven’s 30 wards are appointed to the DTC, under the leadership of chairperson Vincent Mauro. These co-chairs then can help their local alder to convene committees of up to 50 people from within their ward to get resident feedback, and also may hold neighborhood events such as constituent breakfasts.

At the New Haven’s Democratic Party’s convention during election seasons, the co-chairs then offer official endorsements of candidates for municipal and state races. Last year, the DTC unanimously endorsed Mayor Justin Elicker during his re-election bid. 

First-year Flores grew up in the Fair Haven neighborhood, attending Cooperative Arts & Humanities High School. She hopes to major in political science and environmental studies, and she was one of the youth co-founders of the New Haven Climate Movement.

In addition to her work as an activist pushing for environmental justice in New Haven, Flores also volunteered with former Ward 1 alder Eli Sabin ’22’s campaign for Ward 7 alder last year. It was through this work that she met Guzhnay, and she soon decided to run for Ward 1 co-chair at Sabin’s suggestion. 

“My work with the New Haven Climate Movement definitely introduced me to the local government and the Board of Alders, and I’ve always been really interested in the way we organized to try and influence the city government,” Flores said. “I think that working on the [Sabin] campaign last semester also gave me a new perspective on all the work that the different alders have to do … it was like a really nice transition into local politics.” 

Flores said that she is excited to conduct voter engagement efforts as co-chair. In past campaign work, she said, it was “really satisfying” to speak to residents personally to get them to register to vote and let them know who is representing them. 

As a co-chair, she hopes to continue advocating for stronger environmental action and the “interdisciplinary issues that work in tandem” with the effects of climate change, such as housing, poverty and immigration. 

Bazelon, a first-year student who plans to major in philosophy and political science, was drawn to the position of Ward 1 co-chair due to an ongoing passion for New Haven local politics. He grew up in the East Rock neighborhood and attended Wilbur Cross High School. During his time there, he began working as a freelance journalist for the New Haven Independent, which he said gave him the chance to “go around the city and talk to folks, learn about their lives.” 

“I’m most interested in helping Yale students understand the issues that matter to people in New Haven,” Bazelon said. “I think that there can be a disconnect between Yale students and the broader community. I want to make sure that everyone is on the same page about what we need to do to make New Haven a thriving, really wonderful city.” 

He added that he hopes to do outreach work to engage Yale students in the local community, getting more students to register to vote through mobilization events. 

The issues that Bazelon believes New Haveners care about the most at the moment are “jobs, housing, education, and public safety.”

This position, he said, will hopefully be a chance for him to give back to the city that he grew up in. “Anything I can do to help New Haven politics, make New Haven a better place, is something that I’m really excited and passionate about,” Bazelon said.

Guzhnay said that he believes Bazelon and Flores will fit the role of Ward 1 co-chairs “perfectly,” bringing up Bazelon’s journalism experience and Flores’ years of local organizing. 

“I’m excited to work with both of them,” Guzhnay said “They have an experience of growing up here in New Haven, but also have skills that are important to the ward and that will help them get out the vote in these next elections that are coming up. And also to serve an advisory role and give back to the community, which is something that I know both of them are dedicated to.”

Terms for Democratic Town Committee ward co-chairs last two years.