First Franklin District state House candidate Natalie Blais won the endorsement Thursday of not only the 25-year legislator who’s retiring from that seat, but also of his predecessor.
The endorsements — from retiring Rep. Stephen Kulik of Worthington and former Rep. Jonathan L. “Jay” Healy of Charlemont — represent a combined 47 years of experience in the Legislature.
Kulik, whose seat is being sought by seven Democrats running in the Sept. 4 primary, endorsed Blais in a letter saying, “She has also earned my vote by the way in which she has conducted her campaign as an accessible, responsive, thoughtful and honest candidate.”
Kulik, who had no plans to make an endorsement when he announced his retirement last March but has been asked to by many of his constituents in the 19-town district, added, “While I respect all seven of the candidates for their willingness to step forward and participate in the electoral process, in my view, there is one candidate who stands above the others for having the professional experience, leadership skills and dedication to public service that would make her an outstanding legislator.”
He said with so many candidates with similar progressive positions in the key issues, he felt it would be helpful for voters to know who he believes “can do the best job based on their background, their life experience, their work experience. … I’m not knocking the other candidates, but she’s outstanding. ”
In his written statement, he added, “I have no doubt that Natalie Blais has all of the experience, knowledge and personal qualities to be among the very best and most effective members of the House and to make sure that our priorities are addressed and never ignored.”
Blais also has received a separate endorsement from Healy, who represented the 1st Franklin District from 1971 to 1993.
“Natalie would do a great job,” said Healy, who like his father before him served as a Republican legislator but has since changed his party affiliation to Democrat.
Blais said she was honored to receive the endorsement of Kulik, who “has served our communities with extraordinary devotion and distinction. He knows what it takes to be an effective voice in Boston, and I am profoundly grateful to earn Steve’s support. I have always appreciated Steve’s thoughtfulness around the very unique issues impacting our region. His deep knowledge of the legislative process enabled him to be an extremely effective advocate for his constituents.”
She added, “Jay Healy spent his career advocating on behalf of rural Massachusetts — something he continues to do to this day. He worked across all levels of government — local, state and federal — to ensure that the voices of farmers were heard and that their concerns were addressed. I am extremely grateful for Jay’s support.”
After his time in the Legislature, Healy, a tree farmer, went on to serve as state agriculture secretary.
Thursday’s endorsements were just the latest endorsements of Blais from high-profile local politicians. The former congressional aide, chief of staff to the UMass-Amherst chancellor and now executive director of the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce, Blais has also won the backing of retired state Rep. Ellen Story of Amherst, retired Congressman John W. Olver, Franklin County Sheriff Chris Donelan, Franklin Register of Probate John Merrigan, Northwestern District Attorney David Sullivan, Northampton Mayor David Narkewicz, Shelburne Selectman and former First Franklin candidate Andrew Baker and the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus.