DEERFIELD — The candidates in the race for 1st Franklin House representative echoed many of the same progressive positions at a Greenfield Recorder-sponsored forum Tuesday. They shared views on issues such as the need for a single-payer health care system and how critical it is for the state to tackle climate change more forcefully.
The seven Democrats — Kate Albright-Hanna of Huntington, Natalie Blais of Sunderland, Christine Doktor of Cummington, Jonathan Edwards of Whately, Casey Pease of Worthington, Nathaniel Waring of Sunderland and Francia Wisnewski of Montague — will compete in the Sept. 4 Democratic primary for the seat being vacated after 25 years by Rep. Stephen Kulik of Worthington.
There is no Republican seeking to represent the 19-town district, which includes Chesterfield, Cummington, Goshen, Huntington, Middlefield, Plainfield, Worthington and Williamsburg in Hampshire County, along with Deerfield, Leverett, Shutesbury, Sunderland and Whately in Franklin County.
The candidates differed largely in style, emphasis and level of experience, rather than on ideology or policy.
Edwards, a Whately selectman for 14 years, described himself as a “coalition builder” within his town and with neighboring communities. He advocated for creating an assistant secretary’s position dedicated to western Massachusetts economic development and called for full funding of special education by the state.
Looking at the legislative session that just ended, Blais criticized the House process of dealing with a comprehensive energy bill, “and the fact that everything was rammed through at the last minute. There was not a lot of public input. It feels like we’re being left out of the process.”
She said she “would absolutely institute carbon pricing” to generate revenue to invest in clean energy and transportation and energy. She called for a cap on charter schools so they don’t “suck the funds out of our local schools.”
Albright-Hanna said when it comes to public education, “We’re being asked to do more with less. Our towns are at the breaking point and it’s unconscionable that the Legislature failed to pass an education funding bill.”
She called for including regional school transportation funding in the state’s foundation education budget, “and we need to end charter schools. They’re taking money out of our public system and they should either be private or public, but we shouldn’t be giving our taxpayer dollars to a private system.”
Pease, calling it “absolutely unacceptable” that education funding reform wasn’t addressed by the House, said, “We really have to put pressure on leadership.”
Doktor, when asked what three accomplishments she’s proudest of, responded with farming as well as creating a project to fight proposed legislation that would have created hardship for elderly divorced mothers and their children. She also named the creation of Hilltown Legal Services to help people with small civil legal issues.
Wisnewski, a former teacher who has been a school committee member in Greenfield and Montague, said her priorities include “universal quality preschool for all” and state funding of special education.
Waring, in response to the question of how candidates will regain the clout being lost in the western Massachusetts delegation through retirements, resignations and death, said, “I consider experience equals clout in Boston to be one of the biggest problems we have in the commonwealth. … I don’t think it’s a problem that we’re losing 100 years of experience. … 100 years of (collective experience with) people who have been doing the same thing for the last 30 years. I’m looking forward to changing things. I’m looking forward to getting there and really mixing up how politics works in the commonwealth.”
The Greenfield Recorder will also sponsor a forum at Deerfield Academy presenting the four Senate candidates for the Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester seat Monday at 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s forum, which was co-sponsored by the League of Woman Voters and Frontier Cable Access Television, was broadcast live on FCAT and was streamed on FCAT’s website.