Former Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez announced a new run for mayor at the Arch Street Tavern in Hartford Thursday, the same place where he celebrated his last election win more than a decade ago.
He announced his intention to run in an interview with NBC Connecticut's Keisha Grant Wednesday.
Perez said that during his time as mayor, he invested in jobs, educations and neighborhoods. He became the city’s first Latino mayor, serving from 2001 through 2010.
He also told a crowd of supporters that he made some serious mistakes, hurt the image of the city, and let people down.
He resigned in 2010 after being convicted on felony corruption charges. That conviction was eventually overturned, and he pleaded guilty to bribery and larceny by extortion charges.
At Thursday’s announcement, he said he’s truly sorry.
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“The people of Hartford have every right to hold me accountable for those actions… I only ask to each and every resident of our city that they measure me by the total path that I have taken in this city. A path to make the city better for all our families,” he said. “I ask for your forgiveness. I ask the city to give me a second chance.”
Current Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin’s campaign released a statement, saying:
"As Mayor, Eddie Perez raised property taxes year after year, crippling small businesses, and hurting homeowners and renters, and still left the city with a budget mess. If Eddie Perez plans to run on his record, we look forward to reminding people what that record looked like."
There are four other Democrats running for mayor in Hartford – incumbent Mayor Luke Bronin, Craig Stallings, Stan McCauley and Aaron Lewis. There are no Republican candidates.
