STAMFORD, Conn. — Republican Mayoral Candidate Arthur Augustyn today announced his plan to recruit 40 candidates to run for Stamford’s Board of Representatives on The Future is Brighter campaign platform of breaking down the Board of Representatives through a Charter Revision Commission.
“Stamford’s Board of Representatives is a failed institution. It has failed to see people as our greatest resource and believe the future is brighter. Instead the Board supports the worldview of anti-social nihilism where ‘other people are bad’ and ‘nothing can be trusted.’ This worldview builds nothing, helps no one, and is against virtually everything,” said Augustyn. “The overwhelming majority of Stamford residents do not have a favorable view of the board or their district’s board representative. My campaign is offering the choice voters want — candidates for the board running on the platform to eliminate their own job.”
Augustyn detailed his reasons for breaking down the Board of Representatives in his most recent longform policy video about the Board.
Break Down the Board of Representatives
A recent poll of Stamford residents revealed only 6.8 percent of respondents were satisfied with the Board of Representatives’ performance, while 51.7 percent expressed dissatisfaction. This is in contrast to national data showing the majority of Americans have a positive approval rating of their local government. Augustyn said the Board’s history of rejecting professional advice, disparaging residents not born in Stamford, waging feuds across mayoral administrations, wasting millions of public funds, and accusing local organizations of conspiring against the public’s interest, will justify public support of a systemic change to the Board of Representatives.
To launch this effort, Augustyn is assembling a future-focused coalition of 40 candidates – Republican, Democrat, or unaffiliated – who will run on the promise of reimagining Stamford’s local government by eliminating their own position. Augustyn encourages any candidates who want to run for office just once to contact him directly at arthur@thefutureisbrighter.com.
Stamford’s government is guided by a city “charter.” A two-thirds majority of the Board of Representatives has the power to initiate a Charter Revision Commission at any time. Members of this commission are selected by the Board of Representatives. Once selected, the commission will work independently from the Board to propose revisions to the City of Stamford’s charter. The commission’s proposals will be approved/rejected by the Board and presented to voters as a ballot question (or several ballot questions) in the next election. Achieving systemic change in Stamford requires the public to vote in candidates for the Board of Representatives in this year’s election to begin this process, and again to vote in favor of specific ballot questions in a future election.
Primary Proposal and Alternatives
Augustyn will campaign on the most direct solution for anti-social nihilism in Stamford’s government: breaking down the Board of Representatives in its entirety. This would include moving any powers from the Board of Representatives to the Board of Finance as needed.
However, if Stamford voters prefer a more modest change, Augustyn has provided alternative proposals to the Board of Representatives. These include:
- Reduce the number of voting districts from 20 districts to 5 districts, returning Stamford’s board to the original size proposed in 1946.
- Stagger elections, providing annual accountability similar to Stamford’s Board of Finance and Board of Education.
- Shorten terms to two years, addressing the 25 percent mid-term resignation rate among current board members.
- Create a modest $30,000 part-time salary to attract qualified candidates and end uncontested elections.
- Elect half of all representatives citywide to improve long term planning and ensure minority party representation.
“This election, Stamford voters won’t just choose a new mayor, they’ll decide if our community can rise to the cultural problems that make us miserable,” said Augustyn. “Reimagining local government is a big project — and it is risky — but if Stamford’s community rediscovers they can take risks and accomplish big projects, we will unlock our potential and our city’s brighter future.”
Campaign Background
Augustyn is running on the platform “The Future is Brighter.” His campaign has identified Stamford’s problems come from a worldview known as “anti-social nihilism.” Anti-social is the view other people are bad, and they make the city worse. Nihilism is the view nothing can be trusted and the only change possible is exploitation by powerful interest groups.
To resolve this negative worldview, Augustyn has proposed an alternative worldview called “pro-social conservatism.” Pro-social is the view people are the city’s greatest resource. People build families, businesses, and places to live. Pro-social policies encourage people to live in Stamford and contribute to the community. Conservatism is the view Stamford is great because of the values and people who made it what it is today. Conservative policies defend the public spaces and traditional American values from bad actors and negative worldviews.
Augustyn has announced his intention to share three longform policy videos.
- Break Down the Board of Representatives.
- Pro-Social policies.
- Conservative policies.
More information about Augustyn can be found at www.thefutureisbrighter.com.
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