Anthony Brooks, “Sonia Chang-Díaz is the Democratic underdog in the Mass. governor’s race, but she’s overcome long odds before,” WBUR, June 23, 2022.
Some other progressives agree, including Jonathan Cohn, policy director for Progressive Massachusetts, which endorsed Chang-Díaz.
“She’s been a leader on a number of the marquee progressive victories in recent sessions — where she’s been somebody who really did go to bat for those issues,” he said.
Cohn said Chang-Díaz has led on education, transgender rights, criminal justice reform and police accountability. And unlike Maura Healey, he points out that Chang-Díaz supports other big progressive goals, including single-payer health care and debt-free public college.
Lisa Kashinsky, “Maura Healey’s Democratic rival drops out of Massachusetts governor race,” Politico, June 23, 2022.
And with a growing air of inevitability around Healey’s ascension to the governor’s office, Democratic activists are now starting to look ahead to January. Jonathan Cohn, policy director for Progressive Massachusetts, which had endorsed Chang-Díaz, said now is the time for activists and progressive groups to begin having conversations about early priorities for a progressive Democratic governor and a Democratic supermajority Legislature that skews more moderate.
“It’s not clear what are the first things a governor Healey wants to do, or wants the Legislature to do,” Cohn said. “There need to be discussions among groups about what can be pushed early on in her term, both when it comes to executive actions and what having a Democratic governor means for shaping what action looks like in the Legislature.”