By Rit Carter
Bristol Mayor Jeffrey Caggiano will seek re-election, he announced Wednesday night at Main Street Pint and Plate.
Before an enthusiastic audience of supporters, family, friends and colleagues, Caggiano, a Republican, touted his accomplishments while looking ahead.
“Our citizens don’t understand why downtown was not a destination where people can live, work, and play, but that has finally changed,” the mayor said. “We have finally broken ground in the Centre Square with Wheeler Health to add another work option to join Bristol Health with the first new project in five years,” he said.
“Over the next few months, the city will see additional new projects downtown and all over this great city.”
His announcement, titled “Being in the Right Place at the Right Time,” was brief and to the point while touching on some of his familiar themes, such as stagnation, a walkable downtown, and Bristol being a big small town. The speech lasted almost five minutes.
Despite a rocky start to his administration, with the Republican city council rejecting the initial Wheeler Health proposal on Centre Square before a reversal two months later, the mayor has found his footing in part due to his consistent presence on social media.
Councilman Sebastian Panioto (R-District 1) said that he thinks the key to Caggiano’s popularity is his good-natured personality.
“He is personable, and he has good relationships with a lot of people in town going way back,” Panioto said after the speech. “It’s what you need as an elected official to build on those relationships you have had for so long.”
Caggiano, 54, before being elected mayor, served on the Zoning Board, the Board of Education, and as chairman of the Republican Town Committee.
He is seeking his second term.
The Democrats have yet to announce his opponent in the November election.
Rit Carter can be reached at rcarter@bristoledition.org
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