To The Editor:

I’m running to represent Newtown as your next State House Representative for the 106th District because this isn’t just where I live, it’s my home.

For 14 years, I’ve worked alongside neighbors to make Newtown a better place to live, raise a family, and grow older in comfort. That work has meant preserving Newtown's unique open spaces for our community and future generations. It has been helping rebuild Sandy Hook Elementary, a project that asked the very best of us in the face of the unimaginable. It’s meant supporting seniors so they can stay connected, students so they can thrive, and standing by the veterans who stood up for us.

It’s also the quieter work that shapes daily life, like protecting the aquifer we all depend on, strengthening school safety, expanding transportation for seniors, and making decisions like changing school start times to support better learning. None of this happens without putting in effort and sometimes entertaining difficult discussions. It’s what happens by showing up, listening, and teaming up with others to turn ideas into outcomes.

I’ve also worked directly with state leaders to deliver for Newtown. I proudly served on the Regional Advisory Team to the Secretary of Education and Governor Ned Lamont to guide our return to school during COVID, helping strike a balance between safety and students’ well-being. On the Legislature’s Food Allergies Task Force, I worked with advocates and lawmakers to pass a Good Samaritan law that saves lives. I’ve testified and pushed for better school funding, safer communities, and healthier classrooms.

Those relationships matter and helped bring resources back to Newtown. From brownfield cleanup to HVAC funding for our schools, from housing and community investment grants to preserving open space like 6 Commerce Road, I know how Hartford works, because I’ve already been at the table.

But this campaign is about what comes next.

Newtown deserves a voice that understands our values and will stand up for them. On housing, for example, we need policies that reflect reality. As written, 8-30g doesn’t work for towns like ours. When you account honestly for the housing we already have, Newtown has done its part. What we need now is someone working on solutions that make sense, in a thoughtful, balanced, and grounded approach.

I don’t believe this role belongs to any one faction or ideology. Newtown is made up of Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters who want the same thing: someone who listens, works across lines, and delivers results. That’s how I’ve always approached this work and is at the heart of why I do it. It is what I’ll bring to Hartford.

I’m not running as anything other than your neighbor, someone who cares deeply about where we’ve been, and where we can go together.

If you’re a registered Democrat, I hope to earn your vote on May 26 at 6 PM at Newtown Middle School. Learn more or reach out at kuisforyou.com.

Michelle Embree Ku

Candidate for Connecticut House District 106

Newtown