SOUTH DEERFIELD — After seven years representing the 1st Franklin District, state Rep. Natalie Blais, D-Deerfield, announced Friday that she will be stepping down from her position.
Blais is resigning effective Jan. 19 to take a position as associate vice chancellor of government relations at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where she will work with federal and state partners to advocate on behalf of the university.
“This felt like the right decision for me, even though it was an incredibly difficult one to make,” Blais said. “It’s been very, very hard because I love this job and I love this district.”
Blais said the position will allow her to use her skills, experience, and connections with state and federal legislators to support education and research during a time of uncertainty with federal funding and policies.
“Given everything that we’re seeing at the federal level, when it comes to freezes and cuts to research funding, policy changes to immigration and student aid, it really felt like returning to UMass Amherst was the right decision based on my state and federal experience,” Blais said. “This was a deeply personal and difficult decision for me. But it’s the right thing for my family right now.”
“We are so fortunate that Natalie is rejoining UMass Amherst in this critical role. With a deep understanding of campus operations from her time at UMass, Natalie brings a wealth of experience at both the state and federal levels to our government affairs office,” Chancellor Javier Reyes said in a statement. “She is uniquely equipped to advance the mission of the flagship campus and generate support for the critical role the campus plays in education, research and economic impact throughout the region and across the commonwealth.”
She said that balancing family time and the long hours and many miles involved in being a state representative is a challenging juggling act, and her family has been incredibly supportive and patient during her seven years in office. As her youngest son prepares to head off to college, where he plans to join his older brother playing on the Dickinson College baseball team, Blais said she wants to spend more time with her loved ones.
“If I want to be able to see their games and not have to choose between going to an event in the district or going down to see them, that would have been a really difficult choice,” Blais said. “My family has been extraordinarily loving and patient over the last seven years. My kids have grown in this and I’ve done the best that I can being a mom and wife as well as an elected official who’s traveling sometimes five to six hours a day to Boston.”
Seven years in office
Blais was first sworn into office in January 2019, as the first woman elected to represent the 1st Franklin District. The seat was previously held by Stephen Kulik.
Prior to being elected, Blais worked as an aide for U.S. Reps. Jim McGovern and John Olver, and as the chief of staff for former UMass Amherst Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy. She also previously served on the Sunderland Public Library board of trustees and as executive director for the Franklin County Chamber of Commerce.
During her time in office, Blais said she served on seven different committees, including as vice chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Families and Persons with Disabilities, and chair of the Joint Committee on Agriculture and Fisheries, as well as several caucuses and commissions, and worked to create several statewide programs, including the Office of Outdoor Recreation and Municipal Pavement Program.
She said her time in office was challenging; she was elected during President Donald Trump’s first term, and at the time, the longest-ever federal government shutdown, then worked through the COVID-19 pandemic. During the pandemic, Blais said she and other legislators were busy, not only providing constituent services relating to health care and the economy, but continuing to vote and work on legislation throughout.
“It’s been a tough seven years. When you look back at it and you look at it as a whole, it’s been tough. It’s been bookended by this administration (the Donald Trump administration) and government shutdowns, with COVID in between,” Blais said. “But despite that, we’ve been able to do really incredible things. We’ve been able to accomplish a lot that I am really proud of.”
In office, Blais advanced 52 pieces of legislation, including an act promoting solar energy canopies on large parking lots. She said she also worked to tell the stories of rural communities, and ensure other legislators think about the impact bills have on them.
“We’ve made a lot of progress on lifting up the strengths of rural communities and the challenges we face after decades of disinvestment,” Blais said. “I really focused on having conversations with people in the building (the State House) about what was happening out here, and then also bringing people out here so that they could see what we see every single day. Both the good and the bad … It’s these sorts of interactions that help people to better understand what it’s like to live and work our here.”
Blais said she is proud of her efforts to help secure $2.4 million in local earmarks for the 1st Franklin District and $25 million in infrastructure grants, as well as the creation of a state natural disaster fund, increases in rural school aid and direct cash assistance to farmers after the floods of 2024.
She noted she drove 30,000 miles annually, between frequent trips to Boston and driving around the county to speak with constituents and attend various community events. And while the many hours in the car can be hard, she’s proud to see the results, such as funding she secured for repairs to the Bridge of Flowers.
“We ended up securing $25 million in the last seven years in the MassWorks program and that funded projects like the Bridge of Flowers. It funded several culvert and bridge projects in the region,” Blais said. “So when I drive around and know that as a state we were able to make that investment, that we were able to say to whoever was administering the program this is important, we are worth investing in and then to have that funding come through, it’s a pretty amazing feeling.”
Legislators Natalie Blais and Adam Hinds take selfies with young calves during a tour of Clessons River Farm in Buckland in 2022. 
Rep. Natalie Blais speaks in Buckland Town Hall at a ceremony declaring Buckland to be a Purple Heart Town. 
Natalie Blais stands on the corner of Routes 116 and 47 in the center of Sunderland in 2018, thanking passersby following her election to state representative for the 1st Franklin District. 
U.S. census worker Elaine Arsenault, left, and legislators Paul Mark and Natalie Blais speak at a Census 2020 informational event at the Senior Center in Shelburne Falls. 
State Rep. Natalie Blais, D-Deerfield, speaks at a Revenue Committee hearing. 
Rep. Natalie Blais and former Sen. Adam Hinds speak at the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the restored barn at the Wilder Homestead in Buckland. 
State Rep. Natalie Blais, center, checks out an old vote tallying machine on display in “Voices and Votes: Democracy in America,” in the library at Mohawk Trail Regional School in Buckland.
Goodbyes and next steps
Blais said her first day at UMass will be Jan. 20, a day after she officially resigns as state representative. In the coming weeks, she plans to continue working to support the 1st Franklin District the best she can; say her goodbyes to the town clerks, town administrators and municipal board members she has gotten to know over the years; and prepare for the transition.
“I am deeply grateful to our town clerks and town administrators and selectboards who are volunteering their time, their skills and their expertise, and only want the best for their communities,” Blais said. “They’re stretched so thin and I see that, and I’m grateful to them for caring enough to serve our communities.”
Blais added that she will be saying thank you and goodbye to her colleagues in the State House, as well as her staff.
“I’m really grateful for my staff who have been extraordinary,” Blais said. “Lily, Corinne, Kelly, Jacob and Juliet, those are the staffers that have been with me and I couldn’t do this job without them. They’re just tremendous.
“I’m grateful for this Franklin County delegation. We work really well together and we have to because there’s so few of us compared to Boston,” Blais continued. “It’s been tremendous to be able to serve along with this delegation.”
Blais’ term was set to conclude at the end of 2026. The Massachusetts Speaker of the House will decide whether to hold a special election or leave the seat vacant until the November election. The towns represented by Blais are Ashfield, Bernardston, Buckland, Charlemont, Colrain, Conway, Deerfield, Hawley, Heath, Leverett, Leyden, Monroe, Montague, Rowe, Shelburne, Sunderland, Whately, and Precincts 5, 6, 7 and 8 in Greenfield.
Blais said she was unsure about the specifics of when and how an election would be held to fill her position, but whoever takes over the remainder of her term should remember that the seat belongs to the people of Franklin County and it’s important to listen to what matters to the people.
“It’s important to show up where the people are and to listen. We can’t do our job representing our people if we’re not hearing directly from them,” Blais said. “As a state representative, you work for your people, and we can only do our job as good as we’re hearing from them, and what we’re bringing back to Boston in terms of lifting up their voices.”
She said her job was to track bills and consider how they would impact the people of Franklin County, and explain those impacts to House leadership.
“If there’s something I know is going to impact our communities, I’m watching it through the committee process. I’m talking with the bill sponsor and when it comes out if there are things that are going to negatively impact rural communities, it’s my job to talk with the chair of the committee to say, ‘If we don’t change this, rural communities are going to be impacted,'” Blais said. “These are the conversations that can be difficult, but [it] also helps build strong relationships with your colleagues in the Legislature.”
Blais said she will miss working with the people of Franklin County, but she is thankful for all of their support over the years.
“I’m deeply grateful to them for placing their trust in me to make their voices heard in Boston,” Blais said. “And for teaching me so much about what’s so important in each and every one of these communities. Our people are the very best. They are passionate and they’re invested and they want to make a difference.”