Scott Slifka is an American politician and the current mayor

Mayor

In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....

 of West Hartford, Connecticut

West Hartford, Connecticut

West Hartford is a town located in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. The town was incorporated in 1854. Prior to that date, the town was a parish of Hartford....

. Running as a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

, he was elected to the town council in 2001 and 2003, and was elected mayor in 2004 and subsequently reelected in 2005, 2007, 2009, and 2011. His current term ends in 2013.

Slifka was raised in West Hartford and attended George Washington University

George Washington University

The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...

 and the George Washington University Law School. He served as chief-of-staff for Connecticut Secretary of State Susan Bysiewicz

Susan Bysiewicz

Susan Bysiewicz served as Secretary of the State of Connecticut from 1999 to 2011. She was briefly a candidate for Governor of Connecticut in 2010, before dropping out to run for Connecticut Attorney General. She was disqualified from running for the office by the Connecticut Supreme Court and...

. In 2006 he ran unsuccessfully for Lieutenant Governor of Connecticut, losing in the Democratic primary.

In July 2008, Hartford Magazine named Slifka one of Greater Hartford's 50 Most Influential People.