On November 5th, voters in the 3rd Berkshire State House district will decide on their first new representative in over two decades. The rarely challenged incumbent Democrat Smitty Pignatelli was elected to represent the Southern Berkshires in 2002, and announced in February he wouldn’t seek another two-year term. He chose to not endorse in the contest to replace him. In the three-way Democratic primary this month, Great Barrington selectboard member Leigh Davis secured the party’s backing. Marybeth Mitts is running against her as an independent candidate in the general. While Davis has raised over $70,000 for her campaign to Mitts’ less than $14,000, the Lenox select board member tells WAMC that she hopes her unity message will prevail over party politics.
MITTS: I respect the candidate. She's got a lot of great ideas, but I'm running because I believe I have the depth of experience that the district needs to move forward. I have a lot of federal experience in housing and finance, I have a wealth of experience in municipal school committee activities, I've been the affordable housing trust chairwoman in my district in Lenox for the last nine years and I've been on our select board for the last six, and we've gotten an awful lot done. There's a 65-unit project that's in site preparation for a mixed income housing development project. 15 of those units will be market rate, and 50 will be affordable. We have a new public safety building going, and it's going to house our police, fire, and EMS services, and that's just poured its foundation over on Route 7 and Housatonic Street. So, I'm really proud of the work that we've done in Lenox and the work that I've helped to accomplish.
WAMC: What do you feel like most distinguishes you from Lee Davis at this point? What would you point to?
My federal experience and my great depth of experience in the nonprofit and cultural world. I've been on the staff of Shakespeare & Company, and I have a lot of experience with institutional giving. I did that also at Williams College, and so I have a great respect for people who do grant writing and try to get more funds for the needs here in Berkshire County. I believe that I have the fortuitous circumstance of having been able to work for the citizens of Lenox, to get things done for the people who want things done here in the town of Lenox, of getting new housing for folks. I've gotten 65 units of new mixed income housing, there's 68 units currently in a housing round at the [Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities], so we may have 133 new units of housing here in the town of Lenox.
Now walk us through one more time your strategy of running as an independent. This is a deeply Democratic part of a deeply Democratic state, so there's a lot of inherent built-in party apparatus that comes from running in the Democratic Party. Walk us through, at this point, with just weeks until election day, why you think the independent route is the one that's going to take you to the State House.
Well, Josh, I'll let you know that 61% of the 3rd Berkshire District is unenrolled. 64% of the state of Massachusetts is registered as unenrolled. So, I think people are looking for something different, and I want to be that difference. I want to represent everybody in the 3rd Berkshire District, I want to represent everybody's concerns, and so, by going out there and being that individual- You know, I tend to make decisions that are very fiscally sound and fiscally conservative, but I have a very socially liberal platform, generally speaking, and so I just want to work for everybody here in the district. I want to get things done for the agricultural sectors, I want to get stuff done for the cultural sector, I want to get stuff done with regard to infrastructure needs in the county, from EMS services to new police and fire stations, to new roads, bridges, and culverts, and protecting those against climate change. So, I'm for everybody. What I want to do is I want to bring the most resources that I can back here to the Berkshires.
Turning to the fundraising numbers, Leigh Davis has raised over $70,000 for her campaign. Currently your filings show you with less than $14,000 raised so far. What are your thoughts on that disparity? Is that something you're thinking about heading into November?
That's definitely something that I'm thinking about. I'm having a couple of events here in September, one this coming weekend, one the following weekend, to rally to get more funds. Clearly, being a party candidate, you're going to receive funding from endorsements, from specific interests, and I've been interviewing for a lot of those interests, but people are a little less sanguine about endorsing me, because I don't belong to a party. That's neither here nor there with me, because the only endorsement that matters to me is the voters’ endorsement. I want people to vote for me for on November 5th because I'm going to do the job for them.
Of course, there's another election on November 5th, the presidential election between Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, and former President Donald Trump, a Republican. Given that you're running as an independent, I'm interested- What are your thoughts on that race, and how do you plan to vote that day?
I'm 100% behind Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. I think that it's time to, as they say, turn the page on the past and step into the future. I think that these two candidates are very different. I would like to leave the older generation behind and bring up some new up-and-comers. I think it's time for us to pass the torch to a younger group, and I believe that Ms. Harris and Mr. Walz have that energy and have that vision for an aspirational America.
Turning back to the election in the 3rd Berkshire District, what do you feel like are the major issues that are prevailing over this conversation? Certainly, with the Democratic primary behind us, there's even more data, if you will, on how folks are leaning or what issues they seem to be responding to. From your perspective, what are some of those issues?
Well, climate change is clearly one of those issues. Siting of new projects. We've got Vineyard Wind and some new wind projects going on off the coast of Massachusetts, we're working with Connecticut and Rhode Island to also site additional projects off of the coast of our shorelines. Reducing electricity rates for ratepayers, especially low-income ratepayers. We have the most expensive electricity in the country, here in Western Massachusetts, and we need to do everything possible to turn to renewables and to reduce those rates for people on a fixed income. I know that inflation has been a concern, so prices probably aren't going to go down immediately, but with the Fed lowering interest rates, hopefully that will impact everything from mortgage rates to groceries, and we'll start to see some relief here in the future.
Are there any topics that you feel like are under discussed in this election cycle? Any issues you want to make sure get some air time that maybe have not come to the fore so far?
Well, I think the ballot questions are really interesting, and part of me really feels very strongly about the MCAS requirement and us not saying yes to pushing that off to one side. By and large, most students pass the 10th grade MCAS exam. There are very few students statewide that [don’t] pass that exam, and by saying no to that, you're creating, or by saying- Sorry, by saying yes to that, you're creating 300 different platforms, educational platforms that students will have to rise to. It's more important to maintain that educational requirement and to help those very few students each year that don't pass it to find a way that each district can look at those students and provide them with a capstone presentation option whereby they can they can show their school district that they've mastered the competencies that they need to graduate with a diploma from their particular district.
We've heard a lot of debate about immigration in the commonwealth and about how to best address a system that appears to have truly reached its limit in the last couple years with its emergency shelter capabilities. What are your thoughts on that issue in Massachusetts? We saw families come out to Western Massachusetts and the Berkshires as a result of the statewide system being filled to capacity- What's your take on that scenario?
Well, it's a very difficult scenario, no question. We're very lucky in that we have several nonprofit organizations that rise to the occasion in helping these undocumented folks come into our area to get work authorization, to find community and find housing. We're very, very lucky in that we have such active- Berkshire Immigrant Center and then several other nonprofit groups. It is a significant burden financially for the state and for the localities. So, I'm hoping that there will be funds available through the federal government, passing through the state that can help us be able to support these folks and get them on to work visas and work authorization so that they can- Because I know that they're coming here, and they want opportunity, and they want to be part of the American dream. They want to do their part. They want to be able to pay taxes and have their children go to our schools and have better opportunity, which is why all these people are coming in this direction.
What's your evaluation of first-term Democratic Governor Maura Healey? How has she done since her historic swearing in early last year?
Well, I have to give her a lot of credit for championing the Affordable Homes Act and really ensuring that the legislature, was working with the legislature, that they got that passed for $5.2 billion. That's going to really help infuse a lot of activity in improving our public housing stock, really renovating that and bringing it up to code and decarbonizing it, providing more funds for rural development. We need so many more funds out here in the rural parts of the county so that we can provide infill homeownership and rental opportunities, so that our elderly can maybe move out of their homes they probably can't take care of anymore, or maybe they don't want to take care of anymore, and they want to move into congregate living situations so that somebody can mow their lawns and they can pick up the phone and get their gutters cleaned out and stuff like that. The Affordable Homes Act, I would give her a lot of credit for. I also give her a lot of credit for passing universal school meals for kids, breakfast and lunch. That's a huge one. That's a huge economic development driver. If parents don't have to worry about getting breakfast and lunch for their kids and know that they're going to get that good, healthy food at school, that just leaves more money on the table for a family to concentrate on providing good, healthy food for dinners and all the other utilities and shelter care that each family is paying for.
Given that Smitty Pignatelli, the outgoing state representative, is a Democrat, there's obviously a lot of pressure on folks running to replace him within his own party, to promise aspects of similar components of his approach to leading the office. Certainly, we've heard a lot about his constituent reach out being something that people want to really maintain. It seems like you have an opportunity running as an independent candidate to, if you so desired, break from some of Pignatelli’s legacy and sort of offer a change in pace for the office. Any thoughts on that? Are there any issues where you feel like you differ enough from Smitty that this would be something you'd want to communicate to voters?
Well, I think it's really incumbent upon everybody who's in the legislature to be very upfront about their voting records and what they're doing in committee and showing the people that they're serving them at their best. And I understand Ms. DiZoglio, the auditor for the state, I understand her desire to audit the legislature, although it's not something that she would be able to do, even if that ballot measure passed, because she would have no control over the core legislative functions, which are voting, debates, committee assignments, and policy procedures or policy priorities. But I do see the sense in some sort of Open Meeting Law. As a municipal person, as somebody who is a select board member, I have to adhere to Open Meeting Law. I do not think that that is a problem or should be a problem at the legislative level. I would be happy to have more sunshine placed on the legislature so people can see the work that's being done. I think it's really important, because I think that to be an honest broker and showing the people what you're doing for them is really critical. And so, in that regard, you know, I'm all for more sunshine in the legislature.
To follow up on that, I'm interested- What are your thoughts on the ballot question effort by State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, to essentially secure her right to audit the legislature through the ballot box? She's talked a lot about this effort to bring more transparency, a lot of incumbents and a lot of Democrats on Beacon Hill oppose this effort- What are your thoughts on that?
Yeah, well, like I said, the core legislative functions, even if this were to pass, she would have absolutely no control over. She would not be able to drill down on the votes and debates and committee assignments and policy priorities that the legislature, that's their core function. She would be able to look at things like employee training rules at the legislative level, how our cybersecurity norms are effectuated, and the procurement practices, say, of the legislature. That's more like, the General Accounting Office at the federal government level evaluates how the various executive branch agencies act. That's what Ms. DiZoglio does. She evaluates how the state executive agencies function, and if they're delivering effective service. So, the legislature could- They're not going to consent to this. They would have to consent to an audit, and they're going to, the legislature probably wouldn't do that. They would have leverage in potentially defunding the auditor's office, just dragging their feet in offering consent to an audit. So, I don't think it's an effective it's an effective ballot measure, and I think it would be voted down, and I would be voting no on that issue.
And lastly, what does this ultimately come down to? What do you feel like the final deciding issue is going to be that might swing this your way against Leigh Davis?
I think it's going to be my experience and my record. I have a solid record of delivering for the people of Lenox, Massachusetts. I've been on the school committee for nine years. I understand school committee funding and the factors that that come into play with regard to regionalization. I understand municipal finance. I've been active in our gathering a feasibility study and getting a getting a public safety building off the ground and into the ground, literally, with the foundation going in right now, and I've been six years at putting together new housing units here in the town of Lenox, and it's a big lift. It's a big lift, it took a lot of time. We tried to do it with town land at first, and town meeting voted that down, and I continued to work with the developer to make sure that if they found the land, we would help them with the 40B process. And it takes a lot of effort, and it takes a lot of cooperation, and it takes a lot of soft power, and I believe that I delivered that by getting that 65-unit project up and running. I just also wanted to add that, as a former business owner, I understand that the trickiness of trying to get a small business up and running. You've got to get credit, you've got to get errors and omissions insurance, you've got to find employees that are that are good and that you know you can retain and that you can make it worth their while to stick with you. I have experience with all of that, personal experience having been a principal owner of a company, and it's critical to find those people here in the Berkshires and provide training for them, to provide workforce opportunities for them, professional development, and to do everything that you can to grow good employees throughout the Berkshires, and I think that we have the talent here, and we do have a lot of great training opportunities through the state, through the Community Compact Corporation and MassHire and Berkshire Workforce Board, there are a lot of terrific training programs, and It's going to be incumbent upon the next state rep to really help build that workforce and help retain the workforce here in the Berkshires.
