Incumbent Democrat Jonathan Steinberg debated Republican John Bolton for the seat in the Connecticut House of Representatives District 136 on Oct. 17.
The debate, hosted by Greens Farms Academy in Westport, lasted for roughly 1.5 hours. The candidates debated topics such as climate change, a district-wide cell phone policy, affordable housing and taxes.
Steinberg has been in office for 14 years to oversee the signings of important legislatures. This experience has prompted him to sign significant bills that impact Connecticut’s infrastructure.
“I’ve been involved with some really big bills like removing the religious exemption for childhood vaccines, limiting teenage vaping and a huge landmark gun reform bill after Sandy Hook,” Steinberg said.
Similarly, Republican candidate John Bolton has been a member of the Planning and Zoning committee for three and a half years. This has taught him that communication is key to accurately representing and addressing issues.
“Communication really needs to be a big part of my job,” Bolton said. “I’m going to be in [the selectman’s] office at least once a month, if they can stand me. At least once a month [we’re] having a coffee [to discuss local issues].”
Bolton, highlighting the importance of communication, believes that his opponent needs to be around more often in order to fully grasp the conflicts in Westport.
“Jonathan is never around. I’ve been on Zoning for three and a half years. And so a lot of what he’s talked about tonight and in the last debate should have been brought to us,” Bolton said. “And going to talk to somebody who resigned from the commission three and a half years ago isn’t good enough.”
Besides debating on current issues in the district, Steinberg demonstrated reservations about his opponent.
“Well, there are many things that separate me from my opponent. I was disturbed by his answers last night that issues like plastics don’t matter, that there are other issues more important,” Steinberg said.
One of the main challenges when organizing the debate was eliminating bias and maintaining respectful behavior between the candidates. The Westport Journal, who organized the debate, arranged for all of this, employing students and moderators to make sure the candidates didn’t speak overtime.
“I believe it’s important for moderators to keep the candidates on track and to not add any bias or fact checking into the conversation. In other words, the moderators shouldn’t be debating the candidates,” moderator Dorie Hordon said.
The students in attendance were grateful for the opportunity to learn more about their local candidates.
“By being active in local politics, I think students can see the democratic process at work, and really get to know the people who may represent them,” Sorel Kennedy ’25, one of the timekeepers for the debate, said. “It’s also an opportunity to inform people about voting, and really electing the candidate that represents students’ beliefs and values.”
