Attorney Bill Rivera Is First Hispanic Elected To Probate Court

Democrat Reverses 2021 Special Election Loss To Republican Mike Carrier

By John McNamara

NEW BRITAIN – Attorney Bill Rivera, a Common Council Majority Leader in the 1990s, won a close race for Judge of Probate in the November 8th state election and is believed to be the first person of Hispanic heritage elected to office in the state’s Probate court system.

The 2022 Election: Judge of Probate

Rivera edged incumbent Mike Carrier by 496 votes, 11,588 to 11,092 in the court district that covers Berlin and New Britain. The results were a tale of two towns as Carrier carried Republican Berlin by 1,863 and Rivera won reliably Democratic New Britain by 2,359.

In a 2021 special election on municipal election day, New Britain’s abysmal 28% turnout of voters gave Carrier the win to succeed Walter Clebowicz. The long-serving Clebowicz, who mostly ran unopposed every four years, ended 30 years on the bench upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 70 in October, 2021.

Rivera, who grew up in Berlin and campaigned in his old neighborhood there, said his door-to-door efforts in both communities were the difference in his election. Noting the big vote for the Republican line in Berlin, Rivera wished that he had “started earlier” to reach voters there where he attended school in his formative years. In New Britain, Rivera got a boost and “a lot of encouragement” from the Hispanic community in turnout throughout the city. Rivera recalled standing all day campaigning at the popular Borinquen Bakery on Arch Street, engaging with voters and registering new ones.

Rivera said that at most doors he knocked voters knew little about the probate court and the services it provides. Unlike other districts pitting major party candidates against each other every four years, the Berlin-New Britain court had not seen a competitive election in a generation. Connecticut’s probate courts are the only part of the judicial system to elect judges by popular vote.

Overall turnout in New Britain was 43% of 34,000 registered voters with Democrats sweeping all offices and giving U.S. Rep. Jahana Hayes more than 60% of the vote, the highest winning percentage of any city in the competitive 5th Congressional District..

Last year’s mandatory retirement for Clebowicz led to a Democratic primary in the 2021 special election between Attorney Bob Scalise, Jr. and Rivera, who received the convention endorsement. Carrier initially sought the Democratic nomination and was considered a favorite to get the nod as the Democratic nominee over Scalise because of his longstanding support of Democratic candidates. Moreover, Clebowicz, although scrupulously neutral in the election to choose his successor, had tapped Carrier to be a delegate at one of his recent nomination by acclamation conventions, telling party leadership at the time that Carrier was a likely candidate to succeed him.

But Carrier, saying the response from some Democratic delegates was “luke warm”, was not confident that he would prevail against Scalise at the convention. He accepted the nod of Republicans before the May conventions after Mayor Erin Stewart asked him to accept the GOP nomination and, at the behest of Berlin Republicans, he switched parties.

Attorney Rivera, who like Carrier has been a practicing attorney in the city for more than 30 years but largely out of politics since his 1990s city council terms, says he offered his support to Carrier as the Democratic candidate only to jump in when Scalise had the Democratic field to himself. In the low turnout municipal election Carrier jumped on the Team Stewart train and defeated Rivera 7,384 to 6,070 in the special election. He is completing the remainder of Clebowicz’ term with Rivera set to be sworn in for the four-year term in January.

According to Rivera, a first-term goal of his will be to hold informational sessions for high school students and residents about the functions of the court using resources of the National College of Probate Judges.

The Berlin Probate Court, located at One Liberty Square, includes Berlin and the City of New Britain and is one of 54 Probate districts in the state. Also known as “family courts” probate judges who preside have jurisdiction over the oversight of trusts and estates, including probating wills and the administration of estates; overseeing testamentary and living trusts; determining title to real and personal property; and determining the meaning of wills and trusts. Judges of Probate are responsible for overseeing court operations but are also allowed to maintain their own law practices.

(Editor’s Note: The writer is a former Democratic Town Chair and was Chair at several Democratic conventions that nominated Walter Clebowicz.)