Westport Republican Town Committee Endorses Jen Tooker for Selectman Seat; Other Endorsements Announced

Back (L-R): Jack Whittle, Andrea Moore, Joe Sledge, Dorie Hordon; Front (L-R): Robert Harrington, Jen Tooker, Michael Keller, Karen Kleine. Contributed photo. 

Westport RTC Press Release

The members of the Westport Republican Town Committee met  last night to officially endorse Republican candidates for this November’s municipal elections.  Among those receiving the unanimous endorsement of the Westport Republican Party are:  Current Westport Second Selectwoman Jen Tooker for First Selectman; Westport Board of  Finance Vice Chairwoman Andrea Moore for Second Selectman; Robert Harrington, Dorie  Hordon and current Board of Education Vice Chair Karen Kleine for Board of Education,  Michael Keller for Board of Finance; former Westport Planning and Zoning Commission  member Jack Whittle for Planning and Zoning Commission; and Current Board of Assessment  Appeals member Joe Sledge for re-election to the Board of Assessment Appeals.  

“We are absolutely delighted with our strong slate of candidates led by our current Second  Selectwoman, Jen Tooker,” noted RTC Nominating Committee Chair Jim Foster. “With  principled, experienced leaders like Jen Tooker and Andrea Moore on the Board of Selectmen;  Karen Kleine’s, Robert Harrington’s and Dorie Hordon’s passionate advocacy for our school  community on the Board of Education, the excellent addition of Michael Keller to the Board of  Finance, Jack Whittle’s unparalleled expertise on the Planning and Zoning Commission, and Joe  Sledge’s knowledge and thoughtfulness on the Zoning Board of Appeals, I am convinced  Westport’s future will remain bright. Our candidates understand the challenges and  opportunities facing Westport, and they are the best prepared, most qualified public servants to  lead us forward.” 

Click Here to Expand Information About the Candidates: 

BOARD OF SELECTMEN 

JEN TOOKER – Candidate for First Selectman 

Jennifer Tooker is the current Second Selectwoman of Westport, a position she has held since  her election in 2017.  She has previously served as a member of the Westport Board of Finance,  the Westport Board of Education, and the Westport Conservation Commission. As Second  Selectwoman, Jennifer has worked on several key initiatives.  She launched Westport Together, an alliance between the Town, Westport Public Schools and local non-profits to promote the  positive development of our youth. Jennifer also created and hosts Westport Means Business - a  series of events that brings together local business owners and entrepreneurs to establish  connections, exchange ideas and promote Westport as the best town in which to start and grow a  successful business. Most recently, in response to the COVID-19 crisis, First Selectman Jim  Marpe appointed Jennifer as Chair of the ReOpen Westport Advisory Team in May 2020.  This  team is tasked with helping Westport businesses open and operate safely during the global  pandemic. Prior to her public service, Jennifer had a 22-year career as an executive with Gen  Re, during which time she held various leadership and management positions in the U.S. and  European reinsurance markets.  Jennifer received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics and  International Studies from the University of Notre Dame.  She is married to Mo Tooker and  they have three children; Jack, Riley and Nicole. 

ANDREA MOORE – Candidate for Second Selectman 

Andrea Moore is the current Vice Chairwoman of the Westport Board of Finance. She was  elected to the Board in 2017 and was selected by her fellow Board members as Vice Chair in  2019. She also serves on the Board of Finance’s Audit subcommittee. Prior to this, Andrea was  an elected member of Westport’s Representative Town Meeting (RTM), representing District 9  and served on several key committees, including the Education, Public Protection, and the  Library and Museum Committees. Andrea has had a 15+ year career in the financial services  industry, holding positions in institutional equity sales, equity research and investment banking  with some of the world’s leading firms, including UBS, BT Deutsche Bank and Salomon  Brothers. She is also an active volunteer in the community and has served on the boards of  several local non-profit organizations, including Staples Tuition Grants, the Saugatuck  Elementary PTA, the Westport Weston Family YMCA, and the National Charity League,  Westport Chapter. Andrea is a life long Westporter and a Staples High School graduate. She  received her Bachelor of Science degree in Finance from the School of Management at the  University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She is married to Dave Moore and has three daughters;  Tessa, Janna and Ella. 

BOARD OF EDUCATION 

KAREN KLEINE 

Karen Kleine grew up in CT and has lived in Westport for over 20 years. Her three children all  attended Westport Public Schools. Karen has served on the Westport Board of Education for  eight years and is currently Vice Chair of the Board, Chair of the Policy Committee, a member  of the Finance and Facilities Committee and holds regional BOE positions with CABE (the CT  BOE) and Cooperative Educational Services, where we send some of our students who cannot  learn in a traditional learning environment. In addition to the BOE, Karen is President of the  Westport Women's Club and serves on the Board of the Friends of the Senior Center. Past Board  positions include TEAM Westport and ABC.

ROBERT HARRINGTON 

Robert Harrington has lived in Westport for more than 10 years. He is married to Claire  Harrington and has four children including a Staples High School graduate and three daughters currently attending Staples. Robert has worked in finance for over 20 years in London, Geneva  and New York, focusing on technology. He has been an active member of the Westport  community and a vocal campaigner for protecting the Westport Public Schools budget, fully  restoring Coleytown Middle School during the mold crisis, and advocating for COVID-19 vaccinations for Westport’s teachers. Born in the U.K., Robert recently became a U.S. citizen. 

DORIE HORDON 

Dorie Hordon has served on the Westport PTA for many years and just completed her tenure as  PTA Council Co-President. She was previously President of the Bedford Middle School PTA  and a member of the Executive Board at Greens Farms Elementary. She has a professional background as an educator, having taught in the lower school of the Spence School in New York  for six years. She currently works as a local coordinator for Cultural Care, where she helps place  and manage au pairs from foreign countries with area families. She is also an active volunteer as  a member of Temple Israel. Prior to entering education, Dorie held various roles over the course  of several years at JPMorgan Chase. Dorie has a Master’s in Education from Bank Street  College and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the College of Wooster. She has lived  in Westport for 14 years with her husband Rob and their three sons. Theo and Nate are both  students at Staples, and Josh attends Greens Farms Elementary. 

BOARD OF FINANCE 

MICHAEL KELLER 

Mike Keller is a partner with the Boston based law firm of Morrison Mahoney LLP and leads  their Bridgeport office with a focus on civil litigation defense. Mike attended Miami University  in Oxford, Ohio for his undergraduate degree in political science before continuing directly to  law school on a full academic scholarship at Widener University School of Law in  Delaware. After law school, he and his now wife, Courtney, lived in Philadelphia and then  Boston, but traveled to Westport often to visit family and fell in love with the town. In 2015,  they moved to Westport to start a family of their own. Their oldest son is a rising third grader at  Coleytown Elementary School, and his younger brother is starting kindergarten at CES in the  fall. 

PLANNING AND ZONING COMMISSION 

JACK WHITTLE 

Jack Whittle grew up in Westport attending Westport schools, and after graduating Staples High  School in 1981, he went on college at the University of Colorado (BA in Political Science, 1985) and then law school at Syracuse University (JD, 1988). He began his career in law as a litigator  at the Wilson Elser law firm in New York City and continued to practice in that area at Mudge  Rose before shifting focus to M&A and regulatory work in the insurance area at the New York  City offices of LeBoeuf Lamb. Since 2009, Jack has worked at Odyssey Re in Stamford, CT  where he is Senior Vice President and Assistant General Counsel. Jack and his wife Corrine have  raised their family in Westport, with the last of their children graduating from Staples in 2021.  Jack previously served on the Planning & Zoning Commission for five years, being elected in  2011 along with Chip Stephens, Cathy Walsh and Al Gratrix and then reelected in 2015. 

BOARD OF ASSESSMENT APPEALS 

JOE SLEDGE 

Joseph Sledge is currently the Chair of the Westport Republican Town Committee, a position he  has held since 2019. Joe currently serves our community as a member of the Board of  Assessment Appeals; has served on the Westport Historic District Commission; and as a Director  of the Westport Transit District. Joe worked in investment management business for 42 years  and retired as a partner of an investment advisor and principal investor of a national real estate  investment management firm. He and his spouse, Darcy, have resided in Westport for over 30  years and have two children, Kyle and Christopher, both of whom attended Westport Public  Schools. Joe has served as a director of The Community Preservation Corporation, The Real  Estate Board of New York, Inc., The Urban Land Institute, and the Mortgage Bankers  Association of America. Joe received his Bachelor of Science degree in Pharmacy and MBA  from the University of Houston.