Newton mayor launches bid to capture governor’s office
Newton Mayor Setti Warren officially plunged into the gubernatorial race yesterday by quickly staking out the left in the Democratic primary, building an early message around addressing economic inequality and supporting single-payer health care.
“Some say that finding economic inequality is too daunting or we just don’t have the resources to address it. But just getting to the next year is not enough,” Warren told an estimated crowd of 400 to 500 who gathered in a closed-off street in front of his Newton home. “The status quo is not acceptable.”
Warren, a two-term mayor and Iraq war veteran, has long signaled his intention to challenge Gov. Charlie Baker in 2018, and enters a primary with a challenge of building recognition of a name unfamiliar to many voters. Jay Gonzalez, a former budget chief under Gov. Deval Patrick, and Robert Massie, a longtime activist and former statewide candidate, have already both launched campaigns.
In his remarks, Warren signaled a plan to appeal directly to a progressive base. He said Massachusetts is in need of more “revenue,” and touted the state’s ability to weather the recession by its willingness to raise taxes. He called for more investment in transportation infrastructure and the MBTA, hitting an area Baker has made a focus in his first term but said needs reform, not more money.
Warren delivered his early message in broad, sweeping strokes, saying while the state is “on a roll,” he believes it can do better.
“We need a single-payer health care system. And we need to make public colleges free,” he said to cheers from the crowd, which included former Gov. Michael Dukakis.