SENATOR CECI MAHER

Connecticut Values. Real Results.

CONNECTICUT VALUES. REAL RESULTS.

CECI MAHER

FOR STATE SENATOR

Serving Connecticut’s 26th State Senate District

Representing Darien, New Canaan, Redding, Ridgefield, Stamford, Weston, Westport, and Wilton

I’M CECI MAHER

I’m running for re-election. I’d love to have your support.

The past two years serving as your Senator have been the honor of a lifetime. I have worked on issues that are vitally important to the people of the district: affordability, gun violence prevention, reproductive freedom, environmental protection and sustainability, and children’s mental and physical health. I’ve collaborated with our Federal and local leaders to attract funds to support local businesses, arts and education organizations, and non-profits that make our region so vibrant.

In just two years, I have delivered meaningful results for the 26th district.

As your Senator, I’ve helped make living in our region more affordable by delivering the first real middle class tax relief in two decades, to protect our seniors in elder care, support local business and redevelopment, and clean up brown sites. And, as Chair of the Senate Children’s Committee, I have been able to deliver free breakfast to our students and expand youth mental and physical health services.

Please join me in my campaign and in the work of delivering meaningful results for our district.

ABOUT/BIO

I’m proud to represent the 26th District.

I grew up in Stamford and settled in Wilton, where my children attended the public schools. I still reside in the house we bought 36 years ago. I treasure this community and I love to hear from my constituents.

I spent my early career in retail, running a multimillion dollar department at Lord & Taylor.  While I raised my three children, I volunteered in my community, which led me to earning a master’s degree in social work from Columbia University.

As a licensed master social worker, I worked with children and youth in a psychiatric hospital, and then moved to leading local nonprofits. I led the growth of educational opportunity programs at the Horizons National Student Enrichment Program for five years, before serving as chief executive officer of Person-to-Person. During my time at Person-to-Person, we grew from serving 15,000 people to 25,000 people per year– ultimately providing food for more than 2 million meals annually to people in need in our region.

I’m also proud to have led Sandy Hook Promise as interim executive director, supporting gun violence prevention programs, including the important “Know the Signs” program helping to create safer communities for students and families.

IN HER OWN WORDS

A message from Ceci

MY TOP PRIORITIES

Here are the issues I’m most passionate about.
And prepared to fight for.

Affordability

“As a state, we are growing and really positioned well. We are financially solvent, which is remarkable, and really paying down our pension funds. We’re poised for great things. I was able to bring back millions to the district in bonding and support through grants.”

Delivered first tax cuts in decades: $600 million for the middle class.
Continued 100% exemption of Social Security Benefits on state income taxes.

Reproductive Rights

“We cannot thrust our daughters and granddaughters into a dark past. As we’ve witnessed, ‘settled law’ is a myth.”

Ceci is a staunch supporter of reproductive rights, including the right to fertility treatments, like in vitro fertilization, and drugs like mifepristone that make abortion less traumatic and invasive. These decisions are some of the most personal and impactful a person will ever make and Ceci believes firmly that they should be made between patients and their doctors.

Gun Safety

“We cannot let up. If an idea would save even one child’s life, we should do it.”

A proponent of gun safety laws long before she served in the Senate; she served as the interim CEO at Sandy Hook Promise and that tragedy informs her dedication to this issue.
In the Senate, she helped pass the most sweeping gun violence prevention bill since the 2012 Sandy Hook Shooting, including banning the open carry of firearms, closing loopholes in the assault weapons ban, expands the safe storage law, cracks down on ghost guns and prevents the bulk purchase of handguns.
Supported legislation that requires primary care providers to provide patients with information on gun safety, reflecting the impacts gun violence has on public health.

The Environment

“There is a vital need to keep our air clean, our ecosystems active, and our communities green. Our environment is key to our future and the future of our children.”

Supports a climate bill that addresses extreme weather, infrastructure, and greenhouse gas emissions, among other issues.
Received a score of 93 percent from the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters in 2023.
Secured $521,300 state grant to preserve more than 20 acres for the Aspetuck Land Trust.
Welcomed more than $2 million in brownfield remediation grants for the Gilbert and Bennet Wire Mill in Redding.

Children & Education

“No child should face discrimination, but we know it happens all too often." "Hungry kids cannot access learning. They know it, we know it.”

Chairs the Senate Children’s Committee.
Passed legislation to study and address the effects of hate speech on children.
Improved access to mental, physical and emotional health services for children; and provided a continuum of care in the delivery of such services through development of a common intake document.
Increased education funding by $230 million for towns across the state.
Committed to equal and comprehensive access to education and academic opportunities for all children in Connecticut.

Caring for our Seniors

“As more and more people prefer aging in their home to receiving care elsewhere, I’m glad we are meeting their needs and preparing for the future.”

Continued and expanded state income tax exemptions on pensions, annuities and social security.
Improved the quality of elder care through new training, expanding oversight of nursing home operations to protect the health and dignity of clients, and increasing access to care for seniors who want to age in place.
Facilitated reporting of financial exploitation of seniors.