The Massachusetts Nurses Association is proud to announce its endorsement of Democrat Mike Connolly for State Representative in the 26th Middlesex District of Cambridge and Somerville. Election Day is Tuesday, November 8.

"Mike Connolly represents a new generation of leaders bringing fresh ideas to the State House," said Donna Kelly-Williams, Massachusetts Nurses Association President. "I am especially excited about his strong support of single-payer healthcare and his commitment to ensure safe staffing limits in all hospitals in Massachusetts. Mike will be a hard worker on Beacon Hill and the MNA is very pleased to support him," Kelly-Williams added.

Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund, the advocacy and political arm of the Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, recently announced their endorsement of Mike Connolly for the 26th Middlesex District seat of the Massachusetts House of Representatives. Election Day is Tuesday, November 8.

“Mike Connolly understands that access to sexual and reproductive health care and comprehensive sexuality education are essential for building healthy communities. We need allies like Mike Connolly in the State House to push the state forward with policies that put patients first, strengthen reproductive rights, and eliminate barriers to vital health care for women, men, and young people," said Jennifer Childs-Roshak, MD, MBA, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts.

In the first contested Democratic primary in the 26th Middlesex District in over a decade, our campaign won with 54% of the vote.

Thank you to the friends, family, neighbors, colleagues, organizations, staff, and volunteers who came together to make this victory possible. Most importantly, thank you to the voters of Cambridge and Somerville who have placed their confidence in me to be our next State Representative. I still have a general election in November, but I will be the only name on the ballot. 

I am so, so proud of our grassroots campaign and all of our staff and volunteers. Our success was only possible because of your efforts and constant support.

I also want to express my deepest respect for Representative Tim Toomey. His lifelong commitment and continued service to the people of Cambridge and Somerville is without comparison. We are all so very fortunate to live in a diverse community where the spirit of civic engagement and concern for our neighbors is so incredibly strong. We must continue working together to make progress for everyone.

To everyone who came together to provide me with this opportunity to serve in the state legislature, I am so incredibly grateful. I cannot wait to get started working for you. I know — now, more than ever — that when we work together and stick to our principles, we can accomplish great things!

On Thursday, September 8, Cambridge and Somerville voters will go to the polls for the first competitive race for State Representative in our community in over a decade. After months of campaigning, many voters are asking: What are the differences between incumbent Tim Toomey and challenger Mike Connolly?

MIT Professor Noam Chomsky has announced his endorsement of Mike Connolly for State Representative in the 26th Middlesex District of Cambridge and Somerville. Chomsky issued the following statement in support of Mike's campaign:

Mike Connolly’s candidacy for State Representative offers all of us in Massachusetts a chance to have a representative in the legislature with an unusual career of effective and dedicated work on progressive initiatives of local and national concern.  It is a rare opportunity to advance causes that are of great significance to the state, the country, and the prospects for a livable world.

Chomsky is recognized for revolutionizing the fields of linguistics and cognitive science and is also a leading critic of politics and the mainstream media. He has authored over 100 books and has been described as "the most important intellectual alive" by the New York Times.

The National Association of Social Workers Massachusetts Chapter has announced its endorsement of Mike Connolly for State Representative in the 26th Middlesex District of Cambridge and Somerville. The election will be decided in the Democratic primary on Thursday, September 8. 

NASW PACE Co­-Chair, Gary Howell­ Walton, offers these words of support for Mike's candidacy:

“We chose to endorse Mike Connolly for his commitment to social work values. We look forward to our work together with Mike in the Massachusetts State House to pass legislation that will advance the social work profession and rectify inequities that our clients face. We feel confident that Mike will make a real difference in the lives of people in his district.”

The National Association of Social Workers makes endorsements through its Political Action Committee for Candidate Election (PACE). PACE endorses candidates for the state legislature who will actively support NASW's policy agenda.

Cambridge attorney Mike Connolly is among the first in the nation to be endorsed by Our Revolution, the much-anticipated successor organization to Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign.

Our Revolution was launched this evening by Senator Sanders via live stream from Burlington, Vermont. The organization will be led by some of Senator Sanders' top staffers; its stated goal is "to transform American politics to make our political and economic systems once again responsive to the needs of working families."

Mike is one of just sixty-two candidates from across the nation to be endorsed by Our Revolution. Other endorsees include former U.S. Senator Russ Fiengold of Wisconsin, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, Rep. Kieth Ellison of Minnesota, and Senate candidate Zephyr Teachout of New York. Senator Sanders also announced that Our Revolution will be looking to expand its list of endorsees in the coming months, for positions ranging from school board to state legislature.

The Sierra Club of Massachusetts has announced its endorsement of Mike Connolly for State Representative in the 26th Middlesex District of Cambridge and Somerville. The election will be decided in the Democratic primary on Thursday, September 8.

David Rudolph, political chair of the Massachusetts chapter, says:

We can count on Mike Connolly to a be an active, clear eyed and pragmatic advocate for the environment and sustainability in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

Mike has a record of effective leadership on environmental issues in his own Cambridge community and in building coalitions of residents, climate experts, city officials and environmentally focused organizations. Mike led the drive in Cambridge to advance a groundbreaking proposal for net zero carbon emissions that has become a model for other cities. As a Cambridge City Councilor’s aide, Mike played a key role in implementing a working single use plastic bag ban in Cambridge, the largest municipality on the East Coast to do so. He is well informed on the region’s energy, transportation and climate sustainability and sees the big picture and the details.

We feel Mike is the candidate better prepared to be a legislative leader on environmental and climate issues. We enthusiastically endorse Mike to represent the 26th Middlesex District."

The Massachusetts Chapter of the National Organization for Women Political Action Committee has announced its endorsement of Mike Connolly for State Representative in 26th Middlesex District of Cambridge and Somerville.

Nancy Rosenblum and Donna Denoncourt, Co-Chairs of the Mass. NOW PAC, say: “We can count on Mike to protect every woman's right to choose. His support of increasing the minimum wage to $15 and indexing for inflation promotes economic equity. He will be a strong, progressive voice and advocate for all of NOW's priority issues. We enthusiastically endorse Mike Connolly for State Representative in 26th Middlesex.”

The Mass. NOW PAC endorses candidates who are committed to NOW’s mission and priority issue areas, including reproductive freedom, racial justice, constitutional rights, economic justice, LGBT Rights, and ending violence against women. In order to receive the support of the Mass. NOW PAC, candidates must go through a rigorous endorsement process, including a multi-issue questionnaire and an interview with PAC members.

Here's the video of last week's debate between the Democratic candidates for State Representative in the 26th Middlesex District, challenger Mike Connolly and incumbent Tim Toomey. Coverage of the debate has also been posted to the Cambridge Chronicle and Somerville Journal. Thank you to Cambridge Community Television and Somerville Community Access Television for co-producing this event.