Arunan Arulampalam (born September 15, 1985) is an American politician who is the

mayor of Hartford, Connecticut The following table lists the individuals who served as mayor of Hartford, Connecticut, their political party affiliations, and their dates in office, as well as other information.Kevin FloodMayors of Hartford HartfordHistory.net (retrieved April ...

. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, Arulampalam won the November 2023 election for mayor and was sworn in on January 1, 2024.

Early life and career

Arulampalam is from a

Sri Lankan Tamil Sri Lankan Tamils ( or ), also known as Ceylon Tamils or Eelam Tamils, are Tamils native to the South Asian island state of Sri Lanka. Today, they constitute a majority in the Northern Province, live in significant numbers in the Eastern Pr ...

family from Jaffna. His parents fled Sri Lanka in July 1983, at the start of the Sri Lankan Civil War. They moved to England, where they married, and settled in Zimbabwe. Arunan was born in Bulawayo in 1985. The family relocated to California. Arulampalam earned his bachelor's degree from Emory University and earned his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree from Quinnipiac University School of Law. In 2014, Arulampalam joined the

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

Updike, Kelly & Spellacy and was an associate with the firm for five years. Governor Ned Lamont appointed Arulampalam to be a deputy commissioner in the Department of Consumer Protection. In July 2021, he became the chief executive officer of the Hartford Land Bank, a non-profit aiming to reduce urban blight.

Political career

In October 2017, Arulampalam announced that he was exploring a run for

Connecticut State Treasurer The Connecticut State Treasurer serves the office of treasurer for the state of Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Ma ...

, as long as the incumbent,

Denise Nappier Denise Lynn Nappier (born June 16, 1951) is an American who served as Connecticut State Treasurer, from 1999 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she was first elected in 1998 and was re-elected in 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014. She is the first ...

, opted not to run for reelection. He received enough support at the

Connecticut Democratic Party The Connecticut Democratic State Central Committee (CT Dems) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the state of Connecticut. Its chair is Nancy DiNardo. Democrats control both chambers of the state legislature, all constitutional state off ...

convention to qualify for the primary election ballot, but ended his campaign in May 2018, citing his desire to avoid a divisive campaign. In January 2023, Arulampalam announced his candidacy in the November election for

mayor of Hartford The following table lists the individuals who served as mayor of Hartford, Connecticut, their political party affiliations, and their dates in office, as well as other information.Kevin FloodMayors of Hartford HartfordHistory.net (retrieved April ...

. He won the party's endorsement at their nominating convention. Arulampalam defeated state senator

John Fonfara John W. Fonfara (born December 1, 1955) is an American politician serving as a member of the Connecticut State Senate for the 1st district. Early life and education Fonfara was born and raised in Hartford, Connecticut and attended Hartford P ...

and former state senator Eric Coleman in the Democratic Party

primary election Primary elections, or direct primary are a voting process by which voters can indicate their preference for their party's candidate, or a candidate in general, in an upcoming general election, local election, or by-election. Depending on the ...

in September, receiving 39.6% of the vote. He won the November general election with 69% of the vote and was sworn into office on January 1, 2024.

Personal life

Arulampalam and his wife, Liza, have five children and live in a formerly blighted house in Hartford's Frog Hollow. He is a naturalized U.S. citizen.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arulampalam, Arunan 1985 births 21st-century mayors of places in Connecticut American mayors of Asian descent American Tamil politicians Asian-American people in Connecticut politics Connecticut Democrats Emory University alumni Living people Mayors of Hartford, Connecticut Politicians from Hartford, Connecticut Quinnipiac University School of Law alumni American people of Sri Lankan descent