Dear Friends, Supporters, Colleagues, and Cambridge and Somerville constituents —

I want to invite you to my end of year virtual event, Housing For All by 2024 — it will take place one week from tonight, Wednesday, December 29, at 6 pm.

Entry to the event is free of charge and welcome to all, but you must register in advance via this Zoom link.

The event will be hosted by my campaign committee and will serve as my end-of-year fundraiser. But I've never been too keen on standard fundraisers, so this is going to include a lot of exciting substance, too.

The plan is for me to do a 15-minute presentation to tell the story of some of what we've accomplished on housing policy over the course of my first two-and-a-half terms on Beacon Hill — from passing the state's largest-ever Housing Bond Bill in 2018, to passing the nation's strongest Eviction and Foreclosure Moratorium in response to the pandemic, to winning fights in our community for graduate student housing and permanently affordable housing, etc. 

From there, I am going to ask the question: What will it take — and what will it look like — if we are to make those familiar words Housing Is A Human Right a reality here in Massachusetts?

This presentation will include a list of near-term goals — such as urgent investments in Low Threshold Housing and wraparound services, right to counsel, Tenant Opportunity To Purchase, eviction sealing, local options for real estate transfer fees, fixes to pending issues with rental assistance programs, investments in public housing, and a lot more.

Next, we'll talk about building the movement to lift the statewide ban on local rent stabilization. Just yesterday, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced the formation of an advisory committee on rent stabilization, and on January 11, the legislature's Joint Committee on Housing will hear testimony on the bill I filed with Rep. Nika Elugardo, the Tenant Protection Act, which would allow our city officials to consider options for tenant protections.

Finally, the presentation will offer suggestions for the path to winning guaranteed Housing For All by the end of the year 2024. It will also suggest some key milestones that I hope will help us build on the efforts of so many advocates, organizers, and public servants who are all working so tirelessly to advance housing policy on so many different levels.

After my presentation, we will have remarks from Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone, State Senators Sal DiDomenico, Pat Jehlen, Lydia Edwards, and Jamie Eldridge, State Reps. Nika Elugardo, Christine Barber, Dave Rogers, and Steve Owens, Cambridge City Councilor Quinton Zondervan and Councilor-elect Burhan Azeem, Somerville City Councilor Ben Ewen-Campen and Councilor-elect Willie Burnley, Jr., and Worcester City Councilor-elect Etel Haxhiaj, and local advocates/organizers Nicole Eigbrett, Beth Huang, Bill Cunningham, and Tracey Pratt.

The list of participants is still in formation, so I am expecting additional officials, advocates and organizers to be added to this list in the coming days — and hopefully, you'll join us and add your voice to the conversation as well!

Please use this link to register in advance for the event, and if you are able, please consider making a contribution to the Committee To Elect Mike Connolly so that I can continue doing this work of bringing people together to build momentum for winning a statewide program of Housing For All.

Please don't hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns — and here's wishing you and your family a very happy and safe holiday season!

Yours in service,

Rep. Mike Connolly

It's finally here: Election Day 2020!

Polls are now open across Massachusetts until 8 pm.

You can confirm your polling location here: http://WhereDoIVoteMA.com.

If you already voted by mail, you can look up whether your ballot was accepted via this page: http://TrackmyBallotMA.com.

If your Vote By Mail ballot wasn't accepted, you can still vote in-person today.

If you still need to return a Vote By Mail ballot, it must be postmarked by today.

For surest results, drop your Vote By Mail ballot in an official ballot drop box. Here's a map of Cambridge drop boxes, and here's a map of Somerville drop boxes. The drop boxes are open until 8 pm.

HOW I'M VOTING, HOW TO VOLUNTEER, AND WHY I'M HOPEFUL

Last week I voted by mail via a drop box here in Cambridge. I voted for V.P. Joe Biden and Senator Kamala Harris, Senator Ed Markey, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, State Senator Sal DiDomenico, Yes on Question 1 for Right to Repair, and Yes on Question 2 for Ranked Choice Voting.

As a committed progressive and democratic socialist, I voted for Vice President Biden with clear eyes. I don't think he goes far enough on issues such as the Green New Deal or Medicare For All, and I don't approve of many parts of his record.

That said, I understand that removing Trump from office is the prerequisite for any progress in our nation. Our democracy and our planet cannot endure another four years of having this racist in the White House. Survival depends on removing Trump and his criminal enablers from power.

Representative Mike Connolly was recently named a "Pro-Choice Champion" for the 2017-2018 legislative session by NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, the political leader of the state's pro-choice movement.

Last month, NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts released a detailed scoring document that considered actions such as lead sponsorship, co-sponsorship, roll call votes, and leadership efforts to advance legislation supporting reproductive freedom in the Bay State. Rep. Connolly earned the highest possible grade (A+) on the scorecard; he joins a group of 26 Representatives (out of a total of 160 Representatives statewide) to earn the highest possible grade for the 2017-2018 legislative session.

Friends and supporters gathered at PA's Lounge in Somerville's Union Square on Monday to help first-term State Representative Mike Connolly kick-off his 2018 re-election campaign.  

More than 100 local supporters showed up to enjoy Middle Eastern food and to hear from some of the most exciting and promising new voices in local government and in progressive politics, including Boston City Councillor Lydia Edwards, Somerville Alderman JT Scott, and Cambridge activist/organizer Beth Huang. Also included among the attendees was U.S. Congressman Mike Capuano, State Senator Pat Jehlen, State Representative Denise Provost, State Representative Christine Barber, South Middlesex County Register of Deeds Maria Curtatone, and Somerville Aldermen Matt McLaughlin, Ben Ewen-Campen, Jesse Clingan, Stephanie Hirsch, and Bill White, as well as former Cambridge City Councillor Nadeem Mazen.

Nearly 200 supporters showed up for State Representative Mike Connolly's Winter Celebration and Fundraiser at Sonia in Central Square on Monday evening.

The event featured remarks by State Senator Pat Jehlen, State Representative Jay Livingstone, Cambridge City Councilor-elect Sumbul Siddiqui (pictured below, with emcees Nancy Ryan and Frank Gerratana), and Harvard Law professor and political reformer Lawrence Lessig.

Senator Pat Jehlen spoke about Rep. Connolly's strong constituent services; she told a story about how he was able to help resolve a situation for the seniors at Cobble Hill Apartments in East Somerville when their elevator needed an expedited inspection. She went on to highlight the fact that Rep. Connolly secured funding in the FY2018 state budget (and in a recent bond bill) to help mitigate I-93 air pollution.

Video from Senator Jehlen's speech is available here. 

Rep. Jay Livingstone spoke about how Rep. Connolly has been an active colleague in the House Progressive Caucus, working with other legislators to deliver results for constituents. He also talked about how Mike has been willing to file bold legislation, even when powerful interests are lined up on the other side. 

Councillor-elect Sumbul Siddiqui spoke about how she played a role on Mike's campaign last year as an active and early volunteer, and how in turn, Mike supported her and other municipal candidates in the city elections this year. 

And finally, Professor Lawrence Lessig delivered inspiring remarks about the need to get big money out of politics. He made the point that people on the Left and people on the Right are frustrated and disillusioned by the corrupting influence of money in politics, and how grassroots efforts help offer a way forward.

A clip from Lawrence Lessig's speech is available here.

The event was also attended by State Representative Denise Provost, State Senator Jamie Eldridge, Somerville Mayor Joe Curtatone, Cambridge City Councillor Jan Devereux, Secretary of the Commonwealth Bill Galvin, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan, Middlesex Registrar of Deeds Maria Curtatone, Democratic State Committee member and Democratic National Committee Woman Kate Donaghue, Cambridge School Committee Members Patty Nolan and Emily Dexter, former Cambridge City Councillor Minka vanBeuzekom, Somerville School Committee Member-elect Emily Ackman, Cambridge City Councillor-elect Quinton Zondervan, Somerville Aldermen-elect Will Mbah, Jesse Clingan, and Ben Ewen-Campen, Candidate for Governor Bob Massie, and recent Cambridge City Council candidate Vatsady Sivongxay.