Although many Fairfield students are not registered to vote in the Fourth Congressional District, which represents both the University and the region, it is still an important race for the campus.
Jim Himes represents change, a word that has been thrown around a lot by Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama and the rest of his party. Himes is only 42 years old, while the incumbent, Republican Christopher Shays, is 63 and has served in the House of Representatives since 1987.
Shays may bring experience, but after so many years of representing the people of Connecticut, its time for him to be pushed aside. Himes is energetic and brings a new outlook on life. He was born in Lima, Peru, to American parents and speaks both English and Spanish, which provides him with a very advantageous tool in a region that includes many Hispanic people.
He was raised in a household that encouraged public service, his father worked for the nonprofit Ford Foundation and for UNICEF in South America. His mother instilled the hard-working values of a single-mother, after bringing Himes and his two siblings back to America in 1976.
Following his graduation from college Himes found an entry-level job at Goldman-Sachs ‘amp; Co. and worked his way to the top, rising all the way to vice president in just 12 years. But instead of riding his success for a paycheck, he decided to give back, taking a job at the nonprofit Enterprise Community Partners, working to alleviate urban poverty.
With four years of experience working directly with those in the urban regions of the Northeast, Himes is the perfect candidate to take his knowledge, both of banking and the suffering of others, to Washington in this tough economic time.
Shays is well respected and a great leader, but in this time it is the tax-relief platform of Himes that is more important. He has called for more renewable energy sources as well, which will eventually help the economy in its own way.
As a Democrat, Himes has an opportunity to do what his fellow party members have failed to do over the past few elections. Diane Farrell lost by under five percentage points in both of the past elections and as other Democrats in New England took Congressional seats, Shays remained as the lone Republican member of the House from the region.
Himes has called for a change and he has the background and enthusiasm to truly bring it about. He has enough real-world experience to know what it truly takes to help the country and he has the motivation to do it.
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