May 11—Former state senator and current Ward 1 Alderman Kevin Cavanaugh announced Thursday he has raised over $110,000 in the 2 1/2 weeks since announcing his campaign for mayor of Manchester.

"I am thrilled and humbled by the outpouring of support we've received in the early days of this campaign," Cavanaugh said in a statement. "In talking with folks across our city in the first few weeks since we announced our campaign, I feel a tremendous level of excitement and optimism for the future of our city."

Supporters say Cavanaugh's early fundraising success speaks to his broad support in this year's mayoral race.

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.

"This campaign is about bringing people together, to ensure everyone can afford a good life, get a world-class public education, start a business, and earn a living wage that can support your family with — all right here in Manchester," Cavanaugh said in a statement.

Cavanaugh launched a campaign website last month, www.KevinForMHT.com, that includes more about his background and what his priorities would be as mayor. Voters can also 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, while holding leadership roles in his union.

Cavanaugh said he has always looked for opportunities to give back and serve the families in Manchester.

He has been very active in the community as a youth sports coach — Little League, Babe Ruth baseball, and high school and middle school football — and served as the vice president of Manchester North Little League.

Cavanaugh 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 ran an unsuccessful 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, where they raised their three kids, Jack, Ryleigh, and Myles.

Among the highlights over his time on the board, Cavanaugh lists supporting the redevelopment of underutilized city-owned land to allow for the development of 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, with Election Day on Nov. 7.

Although municipal elections in Manchester are nonpartisan, the reality is 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.