By Michael P. Walsh
Special to the Voice
Dorinda Borer will serve as West Haven’s second female mayor when she and the rest of the city’s elected officials are administered the oath of office at 11 a.m. Dec. 3.
State Attorney General William Tong will swear in Borer, a three-term state representative, during a ceremony in the West Haven High School auditorium, 1 McDonough Plaza, where the mayor-elect will formally begin her inaugural two-year term at the helm of Connecticut’s youngest city.
The public is invited.
State Rep. Treneé McGee, D-West Haven, will serve as the master of ceremonies, and interim University of New Haven President Sheahon Zenger will serve as the keynote speaker.
Borer, a Democrat, defeated Republican candidate Barry Lee Cohen and write-in candidate Steven R. Mullins in the Nov. 7 general election, earning one of the highest vote totals for mayor in decades.
She will succeed Democratic Mayor Nancy R. Rossi, who did not seek a fourth term, to become West Haven’s 13th mayor since the city’s incorporation in 1961.
Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz will administer the oath of office to elected Democratic City Clerk John W. Lewis, elected Democratic Treasurer Ronald M. Quagliani and elected Democratic Tax Collector Eric Murillo.
Probate Judge Mark J. DeGennaro will swear in the five incumbents and eight newcomers on the City Council.
Returning council members are Sarah J. Ackbarali, D-3; Gary Donovan, D-4; Katherine Tucker, D-7; Steven J. Johnstone, R-10; and Meli Garthwait, R-at large.
New to the council are Anne Heffernan, D-1; Michelle Coletti, D-2; Edward McMillian, D-5; Dawn Callahan, D-6; Christopher E. Vargo Jr., D-8; Kathleen Mueller, D-9; Brian Laucks, D-at large; and Nicholas A. Pascale, D-at large.
DeGennaro will administer the oath of office to members of the Board of Education, including incumbent Democrat Caryll “Cebi” Waterfield, incumbent Republicans Robert J. Guthrie and Patricia B. Libero, and elected Democrats Heather Shea and Jonathan E. Jones.
DeGennaro will also swear in incumbent Democrat Joseph W. Harvey III, incumbent Republican David Riccio Jr. and elected Democrat Suzanne Mink to the Board of Assessment Appeals.
The West Haven Charter mandates that all elected officials take the oath of office on the first Sunday in December.
The inauguration will commence with a procession led by the West Haven Police Honor Guard and a musical selection performed by the West Haven High School Band.
The ceremony will feature Borer’s inaugural address.
West Haven Veterans Council President Dave Ricci will lead the Pledge of Allegiance, and the Bailey Middle School chorus under the direction of Paul Scanlon will perform “The Star-Spangled Banner.”
First Congregational Church Senior Pastor E. Carl Howard and Vertical Church Outreach Pastor Paul Bronson will give opening and closing prayers, respectfully, and Hannah and Olivia Coppola will sing “God Bless America.”
Borer, a lifelong Westie, has devoted much of her life to public service.
She was elected to represent West Haven’s 115th General Assembly District in a special election in February 2017.
She is a deputy speaker of the House of Representatives and the chairwoman of the General Bonding Subcommittee of the Finance, Revenue and Bonding Committee.
Borer is also the chairwoman of the Veterans Affairs Committee and a member of the Environment and Public Health committees.
In 2009-13, she served on the city’s Board of Education. She also served a stint as Bailey’s PTA president.
Her work in the thriving Irish American community includes serving as the grand marshal of the 2003 Greater New Haven St. Patrick’s Day Parade and West Haven’s Irishwoman of the Year in 2014.
Borer has also been honored by the West Haven Black Coalition and the West Haven Hispanic Society for her contributions to build better communities through diversity.
For 10 years, she worked in municipal government as the personnel director of the town of Stratford and the city of Bridgeport.
She also worked in banking as an auditing manager and a branch administrator for seven years.
Borer, a 1981 graduate of West Haven High, earned a Bachelor of Science in business administration and management from Southern Connecticut State University and a Master of Business Administration from UNH.
A longtime resident of the 8th District, she is the former wife of former seven-term West Haven Democratic Mayor H. Richard Borer Jr., who served from 1991 to 2005. They have a son, Drew, 22.