Donnie R. Sellers Sr. (born November 20, 1944, in Norwalk, Connecticut) is a former Democratic member of the

Connecticut House of Representatives The Connecticut House of Representatives is the lower house in the Connecticut General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The house is composed of 151 members representing an equal number of districts, with each ...

from

Norwalk, Connecticut Norwalk is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. The city, part of the New York metropolitan area, New York Metropolitan Area, is the List of municipalities of Connecticut by population, sixth-most populous city in Connecticut ...

's 140th assembly district. He resigned his seat in February 1997. He was concurrently serving on the Norwalk Common Council and was an active policeman as well.

Early life

He is a graduate of the

University of New Haven The University of New Haven (UNH) is a private university in West Haven, Connecticut, United States. History The University of New Haven was founded in 1920 as the New Haven YMCA Junior College, a division of Northeastern University, which sha ...

, with a B.S. in political science.New York Times - By Day, It's Representative Sellers; By Night, Officer Sellers
/ref> He joined the Norwalk Police Department in 1966. He is a member of the United States Army Reserves since 1972.

Political career

In 1989, he was the first petition candidate to win his district and the first police officer to serve on the Norwalk Common Council.The Hour
/ref> In January 1993, he won election to the Connecticut House in a special election beating Republican Eleni Sotiriou by a 2-to-1 margin while running with the endorsements of the Democratic Party and

A Connecticut Party A Connecticut Party was a political party formed by former Republican senator and gubernatorial candidate Lowell Weicker in 1990. Weicker subsequently won the 1990 gubernatorial election and served a single term as governor of Connecticut. T ...

. The special election was called when Representative Doug Mintz resigned to become a Superior Court judge.Sellers easily wins 140th
/ref> He was re-elected to the Connecticut House on Nov. 8, 1994, having beaten Republican challenger, Fabian Vega.The Norwalk Hour
/ref> Sellers left office in 1997 after pleading guilty to receiving a $200 bribe to write a letter of recommendation for a gun permit.
/ref>The Norwalk Hour
/ref> In 1998, he attempted to regain his seat, but due to mistakes in the filing of petitions was unable to force a primary challenge. He also tried to regain a seat on the Norwalk Common Council, but was again unable to, due to mistakes in the filing of petitions. He was successfully able to force a primary in 2002, but was defeated in a three-way race by

Joseph Mann Joseph E. Mann (born 1955) is a former two-term member of the Connecticut House of Representatives from Norwalk, Connecticut's Connecticut's 140th assembly district, 140th assembly district. He served in the Connecticut House from 2003 to 2007. ...

Associations

* Fair Housing Rent Commissioner * Neighborhood Housing Services * NEON Christian Community Action Group * Board of Directors, George Washington Carver * Commissioner, Boy Scouts of America

References

External links

Project Vote Smart
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sellers, Donnie 1944 births Living people Connecticut city council members Democratic Party members of the Connecticut House of Representatives Law enforcement officials from Connecticut Politicians from Norwalk, Connecticut Police officers convicted of accepting bribes United States Army reservists African-American police officers American municipal police officers African-American state legislators in Connecticut 21st-century African-American politicians 20th-century African-American politicians 20th-century members of the Connecticut General Assembly