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Christopher Bowen (Connecticut)
From Ballotpedia
This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.
Christopher Bowen (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Connecticut House of Representatives to represent District 105. He lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Bowen completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Christopher Bowen was born in Derby, Connecticut. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1999 to 2003. Bowen graduated from Porter and Chester Institute. His professional experience includes working in information technology and being a cellular engineer, financial journalist in the video game industry, and hockey official.[1]
Elections
2020
See also: Connecticut House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Connecticut House of Representatives District 105
Incumbent Nicole Klarides-Ditria defeated Christopher Bowen in the general election for Connecticut House of Representatives District 105 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Nicole Klarides-Ditria (R) | 67.1 | 8,997 | |
Christopher Bowen (D)  | 32.9 | 4,405 | ||
| Total votes: 13,402 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Christopher Bowen advanced from the Democratic primary for Connecticut House of Representatives District 105.
Republican primary election
The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent Nicole Klarides-Ditria advanced from the Republican primary for Connecticut House of Representatives District 105.
Campaign themes
2020
Video for Ballotpedia
| Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released September 30, 2020 |
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Christopher Bowen completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Bowen's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I am a forty year old cellular engineer living in Seymour CT with my wife and dog. I served in the US Navy from 1999 to 2003 and did two deployments, including during Operation Iraqi Freedom. I am a graduate of Emmett O'Brien Technical High School ('99) and Porter and Chester institute ('05)
- I am focusing on economic redevelopment through seeking grants for brownfield (contaminated soil) remediation and a second rail on the Waterbury Line.
- I am seeking increased energy independence through a gradual shift away from fossil fuels to nuclear energy.
- On the Seymour Board of Selectmen, I have promised to explain every single vote I make. I will continue that in the General Assembly.
Economic redevelopment, drug decriminalization and legalization (ending the "War on Drugs"), equal rights for everyone (I.E.: Black Lives Matter, ending redlining), cutting frivolous spending.
I have influences in all facets, be it national politics, history, and current events. My number one historical inspiration is John Brown, the man who died for the emancipation of slaves. I also idolize Malcolm X,who provided the stick for racial equality to go with MLK's carrot. In current politics, I admire Justin Amash and Gary Johnson, principled libertarians who continue to walk the walk. Locally, I hold great respect for former Derby (CT) mayor Anita Dugatto and former Derby (CT) alderman Art Gerckens. They both stuck to their political principles and paid the price for it, rather than become something they're not.
I am influenced largely by libertarian leaders. Prominent names include Adam Bates of the Cato Institute, Radley Balko of the Washington Post, Jason Brennan of the University of Georgetown, and the novelist Robert Heinlein. I was also heavily inspired by the works of Noam Chomsky, The Autobiography of Malcolm X, and the classic book Three Kingdoms. However, most of my worldview was shaped by the comedic genius of George Carlin.
Above all policy decisions, one must have honesty, clarity of moral principle, and empathy. One MUST have empathy if they are to place themselves in the positions of those who are struggling.
I possess strong moral clarity, a character to keep focused on what is important and the ability to admit mistakes. I also have a very strong work ethic forged from a very young age,
Communication with our constituents. It is critically important that the citizens be given all of the information that will allow them to make educated choices about what they support, what they believe, and what is happening around them.
I want to know that when I leave this world, I have left it in a better place, and that I made the lives of those around me better.
The first one that comes to my mind crystal-clear was the start of the first Iraq War in 1990. I was ten.
My first job was as a dishwasher/side cook/"gofer" in my father's restaurant in Fairfield when I was eleven years old. I had that until a bout of teenage rebellion jolted me into become a janitor at the age of fifteen, working a full 40 hour shift over the summer at the same Seymour Middle School that I had just graduated.
Three Kingdoms. It is a sprawling epic that has political intrigue, a basis in history and truth, and just enough of the supernatural to keep things interesting.
Why would I want to be in fiction when reality is so interesting?
There is a Geico commercial with a woman singing something about taxidermy, or tax attorneys. I am by nature a forgiving man, but I might have to make an exception for that infernal lizard.
Ideally, we would remove the split in the chambers and make it a professional, full-time legislature.
Only to an extent. The representative bodies must be representative, and that doesn't necessarily mean having an existing politician. One can be in politics so long that they forget why they got involved, and only know that they want to stay there no matter what. Fresh faces are always necessary.
We have a huge wealth gap between one part of the state and the rest of the state. I represent an economically distressed area that I feel Hartford has either forgotten about or largely ignored. We cannot be judged on the standards of Westport and Greenwich.
Ideally, the relationship is one of polite tension. Legislative and executive bodies must act as checks on each other, and if the skids are too greasy, they never know when to stop.
It is beneficial to build relationships with everyone. Legislators, key stakeholders, constituents, everyone. That relationship, however, must be built on trust and communication, not back-slapping. It's only a worthwhile relationship if there's a free flow of information - including bad news - instead of just sycophancy.
We need to ensure that smaller towns are not split up in their representation, even if that makes the numbers iffy. Seymour is split between two separate senators (pop. 16,000). Derby (12,500) has three state representatives. It is hard to represent a town properly if the people representing it are split up, and especially if they're different parties.
I will actively be trying to be seated on the Energy and Technology Committee (I'd be the only engineer), as well as the Veterans' Committee (currently, out of eighteen, three are veterans and one is a blue star mother).
As a Freshman, I would have no ability nor desire to be anywhere close to leadership.
I model myself after Justin Amash (L-MI), who explains every vote he makes and is not afraid to buck leadership when it's important.
No. I have no higher ambitions than the CT House.
I once spoke to a constituent who long, long ago was my neighbour while knocking doors who explained to me that she never voted (she was 88 at the time). When I pressed, she explained that it was because she was a "war bride" from France. She went on to explain how her husband had brought her over after World War II, and she assumed the role of a "proper" American housewife, even after her husband's passing. When I was a boy, they were simply my neighbours, nice folks, but her experiences, and the way she told her story, reminded me that I can read all of the books on history that exist and still not really know what I'm talking about.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Noteworthy events
On July 28, 2020, Bowen announced on Facebook that he had tested positive for coronavirus.[2]
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on October 12, 2020
- ↑ Valley Independent Sentinel, "Seymour Candidate For State Representative Tested Positive For COVID," July 29, 2020
Current members of the Connecticut House of Representatives
Leadership
Speaker of the House:Matthew Ritter
Majority Leader:Jason Rojas
Minority Leader:Vincent Candelora
Representatives
District 1
Matthew Ritter (D)
District 2
District 3
Minnie Gonzalez (D)
District 4
Julio Concepcion (D)
District 5
Maryam Khan (D)
District 6
James Sánchez (D)
District 7
Joshua Hall (D)
District 8
Tim Ackert (R)
District 9
Jason Rojas (D)
District 10
Henry Genga (D)
District 11
Patrick Biggins (D)
District 12
Geoff Luxenberg (D)
District 13
Jason Doucette (D)
District 14
Tom Delnicki (R)
District 15
Bobby Gibson (D)
District 16
Melissa Osborne (D)
District 17
Eleni DeGraw (D)
District 18
District 19
Tammy Exum (D)
District 20
Kate Farrar (D)
District 21
Mike Demicco (D)
District 22
Rebecca Martinez (D)
District 23
Devin Carney (R)
District 24
Manny Sanchez (D)
District 25
Bobby Sanchez (D)
District 26
David DeFronzo (D)
District 27
Gary Turco (D)
District 28
Amy Morrin Bello (D)
District 29
Kerry Szeps Wood (D)
District 30
Donna Veach (R)
District 31
Jill Barry (D)
District 32
Christie Carpino (R)
District 33
Brandon Chafee (D)
District 34
Irene Haines (R)
District 35
Chris Aniskovich (R)
District 36
Renee Muir (D)
District 37
Nick Menapace (D)
District 38
Nick Gauthier (D)
District 39
Anthony Nolan (D)
District 40
Dan Gaiewski (D)
District 41
District 42
District 43
Greg Howard (R)
District 44
Anne Dauphinais (R)
District 45
Brian Lanoue (R)
District 46
Derell Wilson (D)
District 47
Doug Dubitsky (R)
District 48
Mark DeCaprio (R)
District 49
Susan Johnson (D)
District 50
Pat Boyd (D)
District 51
Chris Stewart (R)
District 52
Kurt Vail (R)
District 53
Tammy Nuccio (R)
District 54
Gregory Haddad (D)
District 55
Steve Weir (R)
District 56
Kevin Brown (D)
District 57
Jaime Foster (D)
District 58
John Santanella (D)
District 59
Carol Hall (R)
District 60
Jane Garibay (D)
District 61
Tami Zawistowski (R)
District 62
Mark Anderson (R)
District 63
Jay Case (R)
District 64
Maria Horn (D)
District 65
Joe Canino (R)
District 66
District 67
William Buckbee (R)
District 68
Joe Polletta (R)
District 69
Jason Buchsbaum (R)
District 70
Seth Bronko (R)
District 71
William Pizzuto (R)
District 72
Larry Butler (D)
District 73
Ronald Napoli (D)
District 74
District 75
Geraldo Reyes (D)
District 76
John Piscopo (R)
District 77
District 78
Joe Hoxha (R)
District 79
Mary Fortier (D)
District 80
District 81
District 82
Michael Quinn (D)
District 83
Jonathan Fazzino (D)
District 84
Hilda Santiago (D)
District 85
Mary Mushinsky (D)
District 86
District 87
Dave Yaccarino (R)
District 88
Joshua Elliott (D)
District 89
Lezlye Zupkus (R)
District 90
Craig Fishbein (R)
District 91
Laurie Sweet (D)
District 92
Patricia Dillon (D)
District 93
Toni Walker (D)
District 94
Steven Winter (D)
District 95
Juan Candelaria (D)
District 96
Roland Lemar (D)
District 97
District 98
Moira Rader (D)
District 99
Joseph Zullo (R)
District 100
District 101
District 102
Robin Comey (D)
District 103
Liz Linehan (D)
District 104
Kara Rochelle (D)
District 105
District 106
Mitch Bolinsky (R)
District 107
Marty Foncello (R)
District 108
Pat Callahan (R)
District 109
Farley Santos (D)
District 110
Bob Godfrey (D)
District 111
District 112
Tony Scott (R)
District 113
Amy Romano (R)
District 114
Mary Welander (D)
District 115
District 116
Treneé McGee (D)
District 117
MJ Shannon (D)
District 118
Frank Smith (D)
District 119
Kathy Kennedy (R)
District 120
Kaitlyn Shake (D)
District 121
Joe Gresko (D)
District 122
Ben McGorty (R)
District 123
David Rutigliano (R)
District 124
Andre Baker (D)
District 125
Tom O'Dea (R)
District 126
Fred Gee (D)
District 127
Marcus Brown (D)
District 128
District 129
Steven Stafstrom (D)
District 130
Antonio Felipe (D)
District 131
Arnold Jensen (R)
District 132
Jennifer Leeper (D)
District 133
Cristin Vahey (D)
District 134
Sarah Keitt (D)
District 135
Anne Hughes (D)
District 136
District 137
Kadeem Roberts (D)
District 138
Kenneth Gucker (D)
District 139
Kevin Ryan (D)
District 140
Travis Simms (D)
District 141
Tracy Marra (R)
District 142
Lucy Dathan (D)
District 143
District 144
Hubert Delany (D)
District 145
Corey Paris (D)
District 146
District 147
Matt Blumenthal (D)
District 148
District 149
Tina Courpas (R)
District 150
Steve Meskers (D)
District 151
Hector Arzeno (D)
Democratic Party (102)
Republican Party (49)
