More than fifty people came to the Newton Free Library’s Druker Auditorium on May 15 to hear candidates running for State Representative: three candidates for Rep. Kay Khan’s 11th Middlesex House seat and the three running for Rep. Ruth Balser’s 12th Middlesex seat. Both longtime incumbents announced that they will retire at the end of 2024. All six candidates have qualified to run for their seats. This forum was the first political event the Chinese American Association of Newton (CAAN) has sponsored engaging all the State Representative candidates with the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
According to a CAAN flyer, as “part of our commitment to promoting civic engagement among Chinese/Asian Americans, the forum offers unique opportunity for the community to engage with candidates, learn about their platforms, and make informed decisions in the upcoming election.” Michelle Luo CAAN chair, reiterated those goals in her introduction to the program. In fact, the event was more a Q&A forum than a debate, allowing the candidates to present themselves and their platforms and to respond to questions from the audience.
Introductions and Priorities
In her introduction, Ms. Luo noted that May is AAPI heritage month, celebrating their increasing presence and contribution to the community in the United States. AAPI residents make up 16% of Newton’s population, and their children make up more than 20% of Newton’s school population. Among the objectives of the forum, Ms. Luo explained, are to promote voting, both in the primary on September 3 and the general election on November 5. She emphasized that based on historical data, the state primary in Newton could decide the final outcomes of the election.
Candidates were allotted three minutes each to introduce themselves and identify their campaign’s top two priorities, and two minutes to respond to questions.
11th Middlesex Candidates
Alex Jablon, a first-time candidate running for Kay Khan’s 11th Middlesex seat, grew up in Newton and graduated from Newton North High School. He has a B.S. from the University of Indiana, where he studied Finance, Business Law, and Ethics, and he is completing a Masters in Business Administration at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. At the same time, Mr. Jablon works as an internal auditor for RTX — formerly Raytheon Technology Corporation. He said he is “passionate” about the city and the state, and will work for access to affordable housing, transportation, health care, and transparency. His priority is financial oversight to be sure that state money is put to good use.
Amy Sangiolo, twice a mayoral candidate, grew up in New Jersey. After high school, she attended the Julliard School, where she studied piano, and graduated from Barnard College and Rutgers Law School, focusing on environmental law. She said she and her husband chose Newton because it is a welcoming community with good schools. She served on the Newton City Council for twenty years, twice as its vice president. Her priorities include affordable housing, health care, the environment, and education. She said she is committed to strengthening schools to ensure that they meet every student’s needs. She also emphasized the need for more kindness. She noted her experience in getting things done, as well as her accessibility and responsiveness to residents. Praising Rep. Khan’s work for constituents, she pledged to continue that commitment. She noted that in her work at the Attorney General’s office, she helps people who are threatened with eviction and foreclosure.
Vladislav Yanovsky and his family emigrated from the USSR and have been living in Newton since the 1980s. His work involved health care, and he built several businesses, including one that offered a “gizmo” that makes keys. Mr. Yanovsky is the only Republican in either race. He said he is opposed to Diversity, Equality and Inclusion, preferring individual accomplishment. He also said he opposes affordable housing, preferring to support local neighborhoods and fiscal responsibility. Noting that his five children attend private school, he was critical of the fact that the majority of the City budget is spent on schools, and he asked the audience how many send their children to the Russian School of Math. Mr. Yanovsky said he will not work on climate issues because Newton and Brookline are the cleanest cities, and he objects to housing initiatives. He promised to work for more personal freedom and against illegal immigration.
12th Middlesex Candidates
Bill Humphrey, a Newton native running for the 12th Middlesex District, pledged to make Massachusetts “a Commonwealth for everyone” and said he is a dedicated environmentalist. He is a current member of the Newton City Council, where he serves as vice chair of the Programs and Services Committee. According to Mr. Humphrey, a majority of Newton’s Asian community lives near Route 9 and is disproportionately impacted by its air and noise pollution. He wants to promote harmony and reduce fear and divisions among residents. His priorities include constituent communication and transparency and climate issues, including transit reliability and housing. He said he will seek community input and involvement.
Rick Lipof, is a Newton native who has served on the Newton City Council for twenty-two years and was its vice president. He started a real estate business over thirty years ago, and he said his business and City Council experience equip him with the skills to bring people to “yes.” He cites education, the environment, health care, transportation, and housing opportunities for all as his focus in running. Acknowledging the recent uptick in antisemitism and hate, Mr. Lipof told the audience that the government should protect people from hate and that everyone deserves to feel safe. Mr. Lipof said that at the State House, he will bring every available education dollar to Newton, because a good school system brings people to Newton and increases property values. He will also focus on housing for the “middle market,” allowing retirees and young families to live in the city.
Greg Schwartz, a primary care physician at Mass General Brigham, previously served on the City Council. He said that as a physician, he has insights into problems people face in health care. He noted that his wife and children are Chinese-American and that his parents-in-law, who emigrated from Taiwan and Malaysia, have confronted discrimination and bigotry. He said he will bring his perspective on that to the State House. Dr. Schwartz paid tribute to Rep. Balser — a clinical psychologist — and her work on behalf of mental health services. He said he is committed to bringing his health care experience to the Legislature to increase services and prevent hospital failures. He will work on expanding climate action measures at the state level.
Connecting with the AAPI community
Having responded to the question about their priorities, the candidates were asked how they plan to reach their AAPI constituents and how they will work with the community against Asian hate, a growing concern during the Covid pandemic.
Alex Jablon acknowledged expressions of Asian hate during Covid, saying, “We represent every single person, and I will keep the doors open.”
Amy Sangiolo, who has belonged to Asian-American groups since college and continues to be active in AAPI groups, stood with the community at a Stop Hate City Hall candlelight vigil in 2021 when six Asian women were killed in Atlanta. She said, “We need leaders who show up…”
Vladislav Yanovsky said that the Asian American community has done well in Newton, and he believes it will do even better. Regarding hate crimes, he said, “we have laws.” He told the audience if they had safety concerns they should come to see him and he would show them how to save their lives.
Bill Humphrey said that making sure that the census counts all people is important and that census and other forms should be available in other languages. He, too, promised to have an open door to his constituents and noted that he participated in the Stop Asian Hate vigil at City Hall.
Rick Lipof told the group that he “was horrified by what was happening during Covid” and was present at the Stop Hate City Hall event. He promised an open-door policy and said that the best part of the job is learning from constituents.
Greg Schwartz praised the forum “as a great step forward for people who may be elected.” Another participant in the Stop Asian Hate vigil, he said he understood what it is like to look different from the majority of the community.
Questions from the Audience
Questions from the audience addressed exclusionary laws like the ban on Chinese nationals from property acquisition in Florida, civility in dealing with differences of opinion among city lawmakers, the teachers strike, and immigration.
An audience member asked Mr. Yanovsky about representing Newton when his children were not in its public schools: How would he know what was happening? Mr. Yanovsky replied that he knew there was anti-Semitism and Asian hate at the schools. He claimed that there were people crossing the border bringing in diseases.
Ms. Luo acknowledged the presence of Ward 8 City Councilor Stephen Farrell and Ward 3 School Committee member Anping Shen, who worked with CAAN to put the Lunar New Year holiday on the Newton Public School calendar. CAAN was instrumental in organizing the 2021 Stop Asian Hate demonstration, which brought about 1,000 people to the steps of Newton City Hall. In May, CAAN organized with other local organizations the AAPI Boston marathon relay, symbolizing the community’s conviction and perseverance in taking on challenges and aiming to inspire at large scale.
