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Roldan Bows Out

Hartford state representative decides not to run for his seat

By Jeff Cohen

June 08, 2012

Hartford State Representative Kelvin Roldan, a three-term incumbent, has decided not to run again. As WNPR's Jeff Cohen reports, Roldan's announcement came weeks after he failed to get the nod from his town committee.

Here's how this kind of thing happens. Roldan, a protege and employee of former Mayor Eddie Perez, was once on the inside of the city's Democratic party. Now, Perez is gone, the leadership of the town committee has changed, and Roldan -- who last month couldn't get nominated for the seat he now holds -- is on the outside looking in. Couple that with the fact that the boundaries of his district have changed and now include much of the city's downtown, and Roldan was in trouble.

So, in order to keep his seat, Roldan would have had to force a primary. That's something he has apparently decided not to do.

In a press release, the 33-year-old Roldan says "it is time to move on to new pursuits." Roldan still holds a top paid position at the city's board of education, and he says he wants to devote more time to leading education reform.

The endorsed Democratic candidate for Roldan's seat is Angel Arce -- a former member of the board of the Hartford Housing Authority who was kicked off that board amid allegations of mismanagement by Perez in 2006. Arce is also the son of the man who was hurt in a brutal hit-and-run accident in Hartford in 2008 that got national attention. His father later died from those injuries.

For WNPR, I'm Jeff Cohen.