Aaron Saunders announces bid for 7th Hampden District state representative seatDate: 3/7/2022 GREATER SPRINGFIELD- With current state Rep. Jacob Oliveira set to seek election for the state senate seat currently held by Eric Lesser who is vacating the seat following his announcement of his candidacy for Lt. Governor, former Ludlow Board of Selectmen member Aaron Saunders announced he will be running for the 7th Hampden District seat.
Saunders told Reminder Publishing he decided to run because of his experience in public service.
“I think there is some good I can do for our communities, both in terms of leveraging the experience that I have as a former member of the Select Board in Ludlow and my time in the state house as the former chief of staff to former Sen. Candaras,” he said.
Saunders said he has spent much of his life in the Ludlow area.
“I was born and raised in Ludlow; from the Ludlow schools I went to UMASS as a 2003 graduate with my wife Melissa. After a couple years in and around Boston getting my start in government working as a constituent services role for Sen. John Kerry I came back to Ludlow and I was on the Select Board there for seven years,” he said.
Along with experience in public service, Saunders said he also has experience owning a business.
“For the last six years I have lived in Belchertown with my wife and my three daughters, and I am senior vice president of Benchmark Strategies, a Boston-based economic development public affairs firm and I am also the co-founder and part owner of Loophole brewing,” he said.
Saunders said he believes he can hit get right to work if elected.
“I think it is easy to say the right things, everyone is going to be for jobs, everyone is going to be for education. Where I believe I have something unique to offer the district is being able to hit the ground running and being effective for our communities,” he said.
“Whether that is day one advocating for full funding of the state-owned land pile for so many of our communities where the property tax effectively that the state pays for lands that they own is woefully less than what is fair, and it is less than what any of us are expected to pay.”
He said his number one priority is making sure Western Massachusetts gets its fair share.
“Everything I hope to do in the legislature will be seen through a lens of regional equity, understanding that Western Mass. is impacted differently than our friends in the eastern part of the state when it comes to anything. I want to ensure Western Mass. has a strong, effective voice on its behalf to make sure it does not have a negative impact for our communities,” Saunders said.
Saunders said along those lines he wants to focus on economic development.
“Through that lens I want to focus on targeted economic development throughout the district. That could be the Ludlow Mills, the Belchertown State School, ensuring that there is new and continued investment into UMASS, that is such an important part of our regional economy,” he said.
As COVID-19 hopefully begins to wane, Saunders said the focus of public health needs to shift to other pressing concerns.
“With hopefully the end of this global pandemic turning, our public health spotlight back to the devastating impact of addiction, ensuring that we have adequate mental and behavioral health resources for the folks who need it, understanding that because our attention has rightfully been on COVID [-19] for so long, it does not mean the pressing public health issue of addiction has gone away,” he said.
Saunders said he hopes to continue some of the work Oliveira has already started.
“There is always more work to be done and Jake [Oliveira] has done an admirable job in a short period of time under very difficult circumstances, in a way it is picking up the baton and continuing to move these items forward and it could be very localized initiatives and it could be more generalized ones including our transition to renewable energy, ensuring that we reach our benchmarks for decarbonization,” he said.
Because the district covers a wide area, Saunders said it provides a unique challenge.
“It demands somebody who understands the differences among the communities that Ludlow isn’t like Shutesbury and Petersham is not like Belchertown in every way. Simultaneously there are common threads that tie us together. It takes dedication to being present and being responsive you are working on a regular basis with seven select boards and seven school committees,” he said.
Saunders said he was the best choice for the job for four reasons.
“I think it is the combination of experience, proven effectiveness in public policy, a familiarity with the region and an interest in making sure the entire district is represented,” he said.
Ludlow School Committee member James “Chip” Harrington also announced his bid for the seat on Feb. 25.
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