A crowded group of candidates is hoping to stand out in the race for Albany’s 6th Ward Common Council seat.
Christina A. Wiggins is on the growing list of hopefuls aiming for the council seat that was occupied by Gabriella Romero, who has since been elected to the state Assembly.
Wiggins, who has lived and worked in the Capital Region since 2019, says she is deeply committed to addressing issues like affordable housing, job opportunities, public safety, historical heritage, and making sure that every voice is heard. Wiggins is a University at Albany grad.
"From college up until now, tax and finance, where I worked in the community, and I worked with Liberty Tax and Jackson Hewitt and I worked with VITA sites help people understand their taxes, prepare their taxes," Wiggins said. "And I would do a little bit more than that. I would give them education. And at the same time I was learning, you know, more campaign work. I was, you know, working on the size of campaigns here in Albany, our local elections, and learning, campaign finance."
The 37-year-old Wiggins says her interest in public office began forming in 2021 when she sensed a shift in the local political environment. Wiggins says she offers "fresh eyes" for voters. She’s also pointing out that she is running only as a Democrat, and is not affiliated with the Working Families Party.
“Without the voters being aware of the differences in, you know, the Democrat Party and the Working Families Party, it makes a hard decision for or it makes it a less informed decision for the voter. Maybe some voters may want to have Working Families. OK, sure, I want to support this candidate with my Democrat vote. That's great,” said Wiggins.
The ward is represented by Richard Conti, who served as its councilor from 1997 to 2021, when he decided not to run for another term. Appointed by Mayor Kathy Sheehan to serve as an interim member, Conti rejoined the council January 1st, to finish out Romero's term until the November election.
Petitioning for the June 24th Democratic primary begins Tuesday.
“I have things set up for that," Wiggins said. "To speak with voters and get signatures. I mean, my ward, it's a strong ward, but it's a ward that is that likes to be involved. So keeping them involved is something that we care about. My voters, my people, if you didn't show up to the door, their door, they probably didn't vote for you. I've heard them say it. They want to be involved. They want to talk to and you know, I've used my social media, and you know my inside connections as well. So they're looking forward to meeting me, and I'm looking forward to meeting them. And that's going to start February 25th.”
The 6th Ward includes the Center Square neighborhood, encompassing Washington Park on its west side running from South Lake Avenue southeast to South Swan Street, bordered on the southwest by Myrtle Avenue and on the northeast by State Street and Washington Avenue.
