Ellen Zoppo-Sassu

Ellen Zoppo-Sassu is the Mayor of Bristol, Connecticut, having first developed an interest in local government as a child when she attended city meetings with her father, who served on the Board of Finance. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Providence College in 1990, followed by a Master's Degree in Public Administration with a concentration in local and urban government from the University of Connecticut in 1992. Prior to her mayoral tenure, Zoppo-Sassu served eight years on the Bristol City Council, during which she chaired the Code Enforcement Committee, which addressed substandard housing and blight through revised Housing and Property Maintenance ordinances. She also helped oversee the completion of the Bristol Public Library renovation, the creation of the TEAM (Tourism, Arts, Entertainment and Museum) Committee, and the renovation of three city parks.

In 2017, Zoppo-Sassu became the first woman elected Mayor of Bristol. She was re-elected in 2019 before losing office and subsequently returning to the mayoralty in 2025 after narrowly defeating Republican incumbent Jeff Caggiano, receiving 7,457 votes to Caggiano's 7,273. During her first two terms, she chaired the Task Force to develop a reuse plan for the historic Memorial Boulevard School, which resulted in the opening of the Bristol Arts and Innovation Magnet School and Rockwell Theater in Fall 2022. Her administration also pursued downtown revitalization efforts, including new housing developments, the expansion of Bristol Health's downtown location, and construction of Wheeler Health's new corporate headquarters. Additional infrastructure initiatives included a realignment of the Route 72 and Route 69 intersections, planning for a new Veterans Bridge and gateway entrance on Riverside Avenue, a $2 million Brownfield grant for the Sessions factory site, and the reopening of a renovated City Hall in October 2023.

Under Zoppo-Sassu's leadership, Bristol also undertook several organizational and programmatic initiatives. The Parks and Recreation Department was merged with the Youth and Community Service Department, and the Water Pollution Control division was moved from Public Works to the Water Department. New initiatives launched during her tenure included a Task Force on Opioid Prevention, an Arts and Culture Commission, a Diversity Council, and a Senior Tax Relief program.