by Adam Walker The New Haven independent
Standing near the New Haven Harbor at sunset, Republican mayoral candidate Steve Orosco delivered a fiery rebuke of Yale University’s dominance in the city and urged his party to take the fight directly into Connecticut’s Democratic strongholds.
He put forward that argument Monday night at a fundraiser at the Pequonnock Yacht Club.
The event was attended by roughly 60 people, including Republican gubernatorial candidates Ryan Fazio and Jen Tooker, Orosco’s campaign strategist Jason Bartlett, and Republican Town Committee Chair John Carlson.
Over the course of three hours, Orosco — a mixed-martial artist and frequent Republican candidate for office who is challenging three-term incumbent Democrat Justin Elicker in November — cast his campaign as a battle against entrenched power, arguing that Republicans must engage more aggressively in cities like New Haven, Hartford, and Waterbury if they hope to compete statewide.
“Until Republicans in Connecticut start fighting in cities and stop worrying about being canceled, the state is never going to change,” Orosco said to applause. “We all agree crime is a problem. We all agree education is a problem. So if we all agree, why aren’t we all fighting for the same thing?”
Much of Orosco’s criticism centered on Yale, which he accused of draining city resources and shrinking the tax base. He argued that the university’s expansion shifts the financial burden onto residents and creates a model that is “not sustainable” for taxpayers funding essential services.
Orosco tied Yale’s footprint to broader failures in city governance, citing shortages of police officers, teachers, and public works staff, as well as neglected waterfront development opportunities. He also underscored what he sees as Yale’s outsized influence on local politics, noting that many Democratic leaders — including incumbent Mayor Elicker, former Mayor Toni Harp, and both candidates in this year’s Ward 1 race — were educated at the university.
“The goal is for Yale to control the city,” Orosco said, warning that unless the balance is shifted through economic growth and investment beyond the university.
Yale’s spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this article. Yale’s spokesperson has previously pointed to how the the university makes the largest voluntary contribution to its home city of any university the country; that it is one of the city’s largest taxpayers; that it is New Haven’s largest employer; and that it has developed community partnerships through programs like New Haven Works and the New Haven Hiring Initiative.
Elicker, meanwhile, has pushed back on Orosco’s critique that he is too close to Yale as “silly,” pointing to his administration’s role in boosting Yale’s voluntary payment to the city from $13 million to $24 million annually as part of a six-year deal approved by the alders in April 2022.
Orosco also painted a vision on Monday of what New Haven could be if its assets were better used.
“We are the most important hub of the entire state. We have a growing airport in Tweed. We have Yale, everything is here — but can you name one reason to come besides for pizza?” Orosco said, referring to Connecticut being named the pizza capital of the country. “We are literally the Boston of Massachusetts or the Manhattan of New York. We’re the only city on the entire eastern seaboard that has not built onto the water.”
Guest speakers echoed Orosco’s message. State Sen. Ryan Fazio — the front-runner for the Republican gubernatorial nomination — praised New Haven’s potential while blasting current leadership for rising crime, higher property taxes, and poor educational outcomes. He said the city has “all the attributes for success” but is being held back by failed policies, arguing that Orosco would bring the accountability and reforms needed to make New Haven more affordable and ensure every child receives a quality education.
“This city deserves a better class of leadership. It deserves a better mayor, and that mayor is Steve Orosco,” Fazio said, pointing to Orosco’s proposals on literacy, phonics, and ending “social promotion” in schools.
Jen Tooker, the first selectwoman of Westport, also spoke, drawing on her experience running a heavily Democratic community. She described the role of mayor as the “CEO” of a city and stressed that vision “comes from the top.” Tooker said Orosco will need to unite residents behind his goals, build an effective team in City Hall, and act as the city’s “biggest cheerleader.”
As of the time of this article’s publication, Orosco’s team had not announced how much money the fundraiser itself brought in.
Orosco is not participating in the city’s public-financing Democracy Fund program, thereby allowing him to raise campaign contributions worth up to $1,000 apiece. Elicker is participating in the program, and has voluntarily limited individual contributions to no more than $400 apiece in order to qualify for matching funds and a public grant.
As the election season intensifies, Orosco’s waterfront fundraiser offered a glimpse of the message he plans to carry into the final stretch: challenging Yale’s influence and rallying Republicans to compete in urban strongholds.
Jason Bartlett (right) with Orosco at Monday fundraiser.
Rayn Fazio (right): “This city deserves a better class of leadership.”