Gov. Healey campaigns in Florence on affordability and federal funding
The governor discussed federal funding cuts, housing, and food security at a campaign event in Florence.
FLORENCE — Gov. Maura Healey campaigned in the area Wednesday morning, stopping at Sip413 Coffee Shop to discuss food security, housing costs, and federal funding cuts ahead of the November 3 gubernatorial election.
Healey met with Northampton Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, State Sen. Jo Comerford, and other supporters. She will face the winner of the Republican primary on September 1, where Brian Shortsleeve, former MBTA chief administrator under Charlie Baker, and Michael Minogue, former CEO of medical technology company Abiomed, are competing.
During her remarks, Healey described the state as facing "hard times" due to federal funding cuts affecting state and local programs. She stressed affordability in healthcare, childcare, and medical research as priorities. "When it comes to human services, you know, and issues that you have worked on for so long, we need you," Healey said. "We need your thoughts, your voice right now, because we've got a Trump administration that's continuing to hack the hell out of everything in terms of funding."
The governor noted her administration's achievements, including bringing Massachusetts to first place in education nationally, lowering medical copays, and spurring development of more than 100,000 new homes through her signing of the $5.16 billion Affordable Homes Act.
Healey also addressed her administration's support for food security following Trump administration cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and investment in renewable energy. She called on the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority to offer more robust support for municipalities protecting the Quabbin Reservoir, which supplies drinking water to 3.1 million people across 61 eastern and central Massachusetts communities.
Mayor Sciarra introduced the governor and praised her engagement with western Massachusetts. "Your cabinet has been so engaged with us. They are here all the time," Sciarra said. "We are taking cabinet members to different places and talking about what's happening here in Northampton and throughout western Mass, and that has made the world of difference for all of us."
Comerford voiced strong support for Healey's reelection, arguing that western Massachusetts has been historically overlooked but the current administration is working to correct past inequities. "She has seen us all equitably, and there are too many ways, and you all are living them, where we are inequitably treated or valued in this commonwealth, and Maura is overturning them one-by-one-by-one," Comerford said.
Healey briefly addressed residents' longstanding concerns with the state's payment in lieu of taxes program, which uses a funding formula that disadvantages rural towns with smaller populations. She urged constituents to vote and speak out on social media in support of her campaign.