The crowd gathered on the corner of Elm and College vibrated visibly from across the street. Only a handful of people were present: many were in “Fish Stark for Alder” t-shirts, bright purple and orange in striking contrast to the leafy verdure of the bright September afternoon. All shared a singular energy, focused on one goal: to elect the subject of their t-shirts as Alder for New Haven’s Ward 1.
The race for Alder will begin with a primary between Stark ‘17 and incumbent Sarah Eidelson ’12. So far, Stark’s campaign has been the more visible on campus: brief reports on Yale Ideas, posters covering Yale’s bulletin boards, and meet and greet events are only a few of the tactics that they have deployed over the past few months. On Tuesday afternoon, Stark held a rally on the New Haven Green—a symbolic choice, considering his primary talking point is bridging the gap between Yale students and the New Haven community.
The rally, according to Dasia Moore ’18, one of Stark’s field organizers, was open to everyone, but it was expected that more Yale students would show up than anyone else. It featured prominent local politicians, including current and former alders and a sitting state senator. The best represented population, however, was Stark supporters themselves. They proved it through whoops and cheers during speeches in support of their candidate, holding campaign signs and posing for pictures with him.
But what was the source of the energy that drew all these people to Fish Stark? Why were they at this rally, and why did they so fervently wish to get him elected? Many, like Kerry Burke-McCloud ’17, were there because they believe in Stark’s personal characteristics: “Fish,” he said, “is a guy who deserves your time.” His confidence in his platform and his knowledge about the issues attract many to his cause.
Others, like Liam Arnade-Colwill ’18, knew Stark from before but were curious to see what exactly his platform was, and hoped to find out more by attending the rally. Still others were there for the free pizza from Est Est Est.
About ten minutes after the start of the event, the politicians began their speeches in support of Stark. Ward 10 Alder Anna Festa said that she hoped her three little boys would “become like Fish.” Ward 26 Alder Darryl Brackeen called him “the obvious candidate,” because he would represent Yale students in fields like education, an important issue that he said Alder Sarah Eidelson has neglected in the past. State Senator Gary Winfield mentioned that he “doesn’t endorse a lot of candidates,” but that he’s “standing with Fish,” because he is doing the work necessary to get elected.
The Stark campaign flexed its muscle on Tuesday, showing the crowd that its support network includes more than just students: behind it are a number of incumbents that want to see Stark as part of the Board of Alders over Eidelson. His campaigning has been constant and fierce, and this rally proved that he has the support to be elected to the Board. But it will take more than a few powerful local politicians and some students in t-shirts to ensure his victory.
Corrections: A previous version of this article referred to Dasia Moore ’18 as Stark’s Field Director. She is a field organizer. A previous version of this article also misnamed Ward 26 Alder Darryl Brackeen.