Attorney, activist and community organizer Mike Connolly is a progressive Democrat running for State Representative to advocate for renewed investments in affordable housing, early education, public transportation, and social services in Cambridge and Somerville's 26th Middlesex district.

Mike's commitment to these issues stems from his own background: raised in public housing by a single mother who struggled with health issues, Mike benefited from a Head Start program and many other social services as a child. 

With the help of community mentors and a loving family, he went on to attend Duke University on a football scholarship, earning his degree in computer science. After that, he attended Boston College Law School, became a licensed attorney, and worked for a global technology company.

Inspired by these experiences, Mike became deeply involved with activism and community organizing during 2011's Occupy protests, and he led a local campaign focused on campaign finance reform and legislative accountability in 2012, earning the support of Noam Chomsky, Lawrence Lessig, and thousands of voters in Cambridge and Somerville.

In 2013, Mike joined with neighborhood leaders to call on MIT to build more affordable housing for its graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, and he organized a successful campaign to focus Cambridge officials on a "net zero" carbon emissions plan that has since become a model for others around the Commonwealth. He also worked to support the election of successful challengers to the Cambridge City Council and the Somerville Board of Alderman.

In 2014-15, Mike was hired to work in Cambridge City Hall as a legislative aide, where he performed research, organized committee meetings, responded to constituent requests, and supported legislation for affordable housing, citywide planning, public open space, multi-use bike paths, clean elections, renewable energy, and environmental protection.

Most recently, Mike helped organize support for zoning approval of Cambridge's first medical marijuana dispensary, and he chaired a public forum on transit and traffic issues with the Mass. Budget For All coalition, the Cambridge Residents Alliance, Green Cambridge, 350Mass Transit Group, Fresh Pond Residents Alliance, and some of the area's leading advocates for investments in transit.

Mike's kickoff is being co-hosted by Cambridge City Councillors Dennis Carlone, Jan Devereux, and Nadeem Mazen, Somerville School Committee member Lee Erica Palmer, and local residents such as Katherine Anderson, Phyllis Bretholtz, Ben Echevarria, Adam Friedman, Frank Gerratana, Guillermo Hamlin, Catherine Hoffman, Elechi Kadete, Andrew King, Jonathan and Jackie King, David Mattei, Nancy Ryan, Suzanne Schlossberg, Joshua Tauber, Katie Wallace, Kathy Watkins, Daniel Wong, Quinton Zondervan, and many others!

The kickoff event will run from 6:30 to 8:30 pm and will include snacks, drinks, and lots of local artwork. At 8:30 pm, the kickoff will come to a close, and Out of the Blue Too will open its doors for a Prince tribute show.