Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Middlesex District candidate surveys, 2022
This article shows responses from candidates in the 2022 election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Middlesex District who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey.
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- Click here to see Candidate Connection survey responses.
Candidates and election results
General election
General election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Middlesex District
Margaret Scarsdale defeated Andrew Shepherd and Catherine Lundeen in the general election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Middlesex District on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Margaret Scarsdale (D)  | 47.1 | 9,409 |
| Andrew Shepherd (R) | 47.1 | 9,402 | ||
| Catherine Lundeen (Independent) | 5.4 | 1,075 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.5 | 91 | ||
| Total votes: 19,977 | |||
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Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey responses
Ballotpedia asks all federal, state, and local candidates to complete a survey and share what motivates them on political and personal levels. The section below shows responses from candidates in this race who completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
Survey responses from candidates in this race
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Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
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The affordable housing crisis is at a tipping point, a crisis of many converging elements, including aging baby boomers, young families burdened with college debt, and no strong plan from the state to address this issue. Massachusetts needs a clear framework to help towns achieve the state’s 10% goal, and this must include a mix of incentives to developers and aid to small towns to help them bridge this gap.
The COVID pandemic has upended almost every facet of American life, and emerging from this in a strong, sustainable way is a priority. Small towns were especially hit hard, as there is often little “cushion” to meet the varied needs of a robust community: senior and veteran needs resulting from physical and emotional isolation; students struggling with almost two years of virtual learning, and the resulting loss in key literary and emotional skills; small businesses and farmers struggling to rebound, as many are the mom-and-pop operations that are so vital to community vibrancy; and strained municipal services, as exhausted employees leave the workforce. Massachusetts must address all of these needs in a robust, comprehensive way.
Funding State Mandates: As a resident of a district that comprises towns with a population from ~3,000 to ~12,000, I understand first-hand how crippling unfunded state mandates are. Unfunded state mandates, like regionalized bus transportation, leave towns held hostage as they wrestle with the dilemma of funding schools vs. funding necessary municipal needs. The state has long been focused on large cities, and many smaller towns are often left to fend for themselves, which always translates into deferred maintenance, stretching departments thin, and disinvestment that keeps them from achieving their potential.
Personal Rights: We seem to have come to a crossroads in this country about what rights seem to be “self-evident.” Now we are embroiled in a national debate – that has filtered down to the states and towns – of what it means to be a human. I have long been passionate about standing up in a prominent and defiant way for people who otherwise might not have a voice, and every person, of every color, and every sexual orientation, has unassailable rights that I will champion and defend.
See also
More about these elections:
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