First Latina elected to Massachusetts Senate unveils bid for governor

The first Latina elected to the Massachusetts state Senate unveiled her 2022 gubernatorial campaign on Wednesday.

State Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz (D) unveiled her campaign in a roughly three-minute video, in which she touted her record on key issues such as criminal justice reform and education reform.

She vowed to push back against “Beacon Hill insiders.”

“Those wins didn’t come easy. Beacon Hill insiders dragged their feet every step of the way, saying, ‘Think smaller.’ Instead, we fought unapologetically for the things working families actually need,” the state senator said.

“The trouble is, that kind of urgency in our state government is still the exception rather than the rule,” she continued. “Too many leaders are more interested in keeping power than doing something with it. I’m running to change that.”

I’m running for Governor because I’m tired of waiting for our government to live up to our hopes and our families’ needs. Real change starts with us. Join our movement: https://t.co/ibVGXFVcnQ pic.twitter.com/3kVHF1Y1IW

— Sonia Chang-Díaz (@SoniaChangDiaz) June 23, 2021

Chang-Díaz was first sworn into office in 2009 and represents the 2nd Suffolk District. Prior to serving in the state Senate, Chang-Díaz was a teacher.

The senator highlighted her family in her campaign video. Her father, Franklin Chang-Díaz, notably became NASA’s first Latino astronaut in 1981.

Chang-Díaz is the latest Democrat to join the race to replace Gov. Charlie Baker (R), who is in his second four-year term. Baker is not term limited, but has not said whether he will run for a third term.

Harvard University professor Danielle Allen launched her Democratic gubernatorial bid last week, according to The Associated Press. She is the first Black woman to run for governor in a major political party in the state’s history.

Also in the race for the Democratic nomination is former state Sen. Ben Downing, the news service reported.