With 84% of the vote, members of Our Revolution Massachusetts have endorsed Sonia Chang-Diaz for Governor of Massachusetts!
As Democratic convention delegates look for clear policy differences, Sonia distinguished herself as a progressive standard bearer, championing debt-free pre-K-to-college public education, a Green New Deal, and Medicare for All.
In response to our questionnaire, Sonia committed to hold annual townhalls with incarcerated citizens, support legislation to cap insulin prices, and use executive action to advance tree equity. In a live conversation with members, Sonia emphasized her plans to end subsidies for fossil fuel infrastructure, appoint Department of Corrections (DOC) leaders focused on culture change, and announced she would release an anti-corruption policy for refusing campaign donations from unethical sources.
Sonia spoke of her effort to require the Baker DOC to obey court orders to reduce prison crowding during peak Covid. “To meet this moment to undo systemic racism in our systems, be it the criminal legal system, our education system, our environmental system. We need leaders who are going to use every tool at their disposal and use them proactively. Sometimes you’re going to have to invent tools that don’t exist to get the job done. That’s what I did when I wrote the oversight office into law.” The law granted power to the Attorney General to appoint an oversight director, which she failed to do. “We gave AG Healey the ball. She likes to talk about her experience as a point guard, but when we needed her to take that shot, she put down the ball and walked off the court.”
While the AG has taken no position on Medicare for All or maintaining the cap on charter schools, she has sided with the GOP on marijuana, facial surveillance, and no-knock raids.
Sonia has shown she will consistently stand up for the people, no matter what politician stands in her way. Sonia proved her commitment with her coalition work – bringing together union leaders and NFL players – to pass the Student Opportunity Act and unlock billions in funding for public schools. She proved her commitment when, after reports of abuse of people in ICE detention, Sonia traveled to the Bristol County Jail where Sheriff Hodgson illegally refused her entry.
Sonia said, “What I have seen in my 13 years in the state legislature is it’s not just money. We are enormously limited in our political culture on Beacon by fear of difficult conversations and controversy. Sometimes that is fear of difficult conversations with well monied interests, but sometimes it’s timidity about having difficult conversations within our own Democratic family.
“I have shown throughout my 13 years in office, I will work with anyone […] no matter what party you are […] if you are here to get stuff done for working families. That was true during the Student Opportunities Act. We had bipartisan cosponsorship and active partnership with our colleagues across the aisle. But I will also stand up and speak truth to anybody who is standing in the way obstructing that change… It’s fact based and it’s always inviting people to be their best selves and to do what is best for the Commonwealth.”