Former state senator and current Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh has secured the endorsement of the 200-member Manchester Police Patrolman’s Association, his mayoral campaign announced Wednesday.
“I am grateful for the support of the men and women of Manchester law enforcement, who put their lives on the line every day to keep our community safe,” Cavanaugh said in a statement. “As mayor, I will support our brave officers to help ensure we continue to offer the support needed to recruit, train and retain our patrolmen.”
During his tenure on the Board of Mayor and Aldermen, Cavanaugh has supported adding 33 officers to the Manchester Police Department and has backed technology upgrades to improve case clearance.
“We are proud to endorse Kevin Cavanaugh as the next mayor of Manchester,” MPPA President Kyle Daly said in a statement. “Kevin will work hand-in-hand with our officers to provide the necessary support and resources needed to keep our community safe.”
Cavanaugh’s campaign recently announced it raised more than $110,000 in the first 2 1/2 weeks after he announced he was running for mayor.
Three other candidates have declared their candidacies for mayor of the state’s largest city — Alderman-at-Large June Trisciani, Ward 2 Alderman Will Stewart and former Republican congressional staffer Jay Ruais. Cavanaugh, Trisciani and Stewart are Democrats.
Mayor Joyce Craig announced earlier this month she will not seek a fourth term.
Cavanaugh launched a campaign website last month, KevinForMHT.com, that has more about his background and what his priorities would be as mayor. Voters also can follow his campaign on Facebook and Twitter.
Cavanaugh grew up in Ward 6, attending Green Acres Elementary School and St. Joseph Regional Jr. High School. After graduating from Memorial High School, Cavanaugh entered the workforce when he was 19, working 35 years as a telephone technician and holding leadership roles in his union.
He was first elected to represent Ward 1 on the Board of Mayor and Aldermen in 2015, and served in the state Senate from 2017-2023. He was unsuccessful in an attempt to unseat former Mayor Ted Gatsas, a Republican, from the Executive Council in 2022. Gatsas won by almost four percentage points.
Cavanaugh and his wife, Kerri, live in Ward 1 in Manchester
Among the highlights from his time on the board, Cavanaugh lists supporting the redevelopment of underused city-owned land for 450-plus new mixed-income apartments; supporting housing policies that led to 2,000 new housing units in development, including 500 new affordable units; leading union contract negotiations in 2022 for the city’s 13 public sector unions; and passing city budgets that included increases for the police and fire departments.
Voters will decide the Queen City’s next mayor this fall.
The official filing period for the 2023 Manchester municipal election runs from 8 a.m. on Monday, July 10, to 5 p.m. on Friday, July 21.
The municipal primary election will be held on Sept. 19 and the general election on Nov. 7.
Although municipal elections in Manchester are nonpartisan, the reality is that races for major offices — particularly mayor — typically feature candidates backed by the two major parties.
The mayor’s office was occupied by a steady string of Republicans from 2006 to 2018, when Craig defeated current Executive Councilor Ted Gatsas.
