AMHERST — A candidate to become the next representative for the 3rd Hampshire District has won the endorsement from the current 2nd Hampshire District representative.
Sarah la Cour, the executive director of the Amherst Business Improvement District, has been formally endorsed by Rep. John Scibak, D-South Hadley, who represents Easthampton, South Hadley, Hadley and Precinct 2 in Granby.
“I think she has the right skill set and temperament to be a solid successor for Ellen Story,” Scibak said in a telephone interview last week.
Story announced in January she will retire at the end of this term, and la Cour is one of six Democrats who are seeking to succeed her when voters cast ballots in a primary Sept. 8.
The other candidates are Lawrence O’Brien, a former member of both the Massachusetts Teachers Association board and the Amherst School Committee and a social studies teacher at Belchertown High School; Vira Douangmany Cage, member of the Amherst School Committee, former organizer for the ACLU of Western Massachusetts and member of the state Asian-American Commission; Eric Nakajima, former executive director of the Massachusetts Broadband Institute; Bonnie MacCracken, a professional property title examiner and member of Amherst Town Meeting and the Democratic State Committee; and Solomon Goldstein-Rose, a former member of the Amherst School Committee and recent Brown University graduate.
Scibak said la Cour will be able to begin her work right away and that she is committed to jobs, schools and the environment.
“Her background and experience are focused on generating revenue that is important for Amherst and Granby,” Scibak said.
He also pointed to her town-gown work and her familiarity with the natural gas moratorium imposed by Berkshire Gas, which has impacted local development.
The other candidates also are beginning to receive and solicit endorsements.
Goldstein-Rose said he has received endorsements from a number of prominent Amherst-Pelham school educators, including Mark Jackson, high school principal, retired math teacher David Mullins, and English teacher Sara Barber-Just.
Mullins said in a statement that he appreciates Goldstein-Rose’s youth and energy.
“We urgently need more young progressives involved in our government,” Mullins said. “He will continue Ellen’s track record of compassionate government and lead us toward a clean energy economy.”
MacCracken said she became the first candidate to receive a labor and a political action committee endorsement. The Amherst Firefighters Local 1764 endorsed her and Wednesday she was endorsed by Mass Voters for Animals, the state’s animal protection political action committee.
In an email, the group wrote “we are endorsing your candidacy in the upcoming elections since we feel that you stand out as a person who truly cares about animal welfare and someone who would be a strong state house advocate for animal protection and the prevention of cruelty.”
Nakajima announced that he had won endorsements from both secretaries of housing and economic development who served under former Gov. Deval Patrick, Dan O’Connell and Greg Bialecki.
“Eric was an effective leader working with business and academic communities on the state’s Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative and in the development of the Massachusetts Green High Performance Computing Center in Holyoke,” Bialecki said in a statement.
Douangmany Cage said she will have a list of individual endorsements soon.
O’Brien said he is in the process of seeking endorsements from various organizations.
