Further UPDATED 3/8/17 12:13PM: Holyoke Councilors approved the CPA ordinance Tuesday night, but an amended now requires a 2/3 vote to remove CPC members before their term is up. UPDATED 11:48AM: Holyoke Mayor Morse says he will veto the CPA ordinance if the Council passes it with
Media remains an essential part of the landscape within which politicians and government officials operate. This is true on almost all levels except, perhaps, very small towns—where it is possible to get to know everybody—and some small cities that behave as such. Springfield is not
This weekend the race for the Ward 1 seat on the Chicopee City Council began. Joel McAuliffe, a former aide to Mayor Richard Kos and Senator Eric Lesser’s district director, announced his bid. Dino Brunetti, who held the spot until 2014, has taken out papers.
UPDATED 6:55PM: To reflect a correction. McAuliffe is 25, not 24, for clarity & grammar and to include additional quotes. CHICOPEE—A deluge of candidates awaits a likely open at-large seat in Springfield and Holyoke preps for another mayoral smack down. Yet here in Chicopee, the
UPDATED 2/22/2017 8:09M: To include comments Jourdain gave to The Republican and quotes from Mayor Morse’s statement on Facebook and to reflect a correction. A previous version of this post incorrectly identified the former Ward 6 councilor as Thomas McGee. He is Todd McGee. The
Leadership in the Massachusetts House of Representatives and Senate released their committee assignments for the session that began last month. With thousands of bills to consider, committees can begin parse now that they have leaders and membership. The Western Massachusetts delegation received some plum assignments.
Maurice Cunningham’s post “MassDems- First in the Nation” continues to push a line that has become popular after November 8th, namely that Trump won on economic populism. If only Hillary Clinton had adopted Elizabeth Warren’s rhetoric then the outcome would have changed. The story that
In these tumultuous times, robust debate grounded in well-researched writing and opinions could not be more important. People are segmenting themselves off from each other via geography and media, frustrating our ability to solve problems. While WMassP&I has tried to provide sharp and fact-based news,
Donald Trump’s planned rollback of progressives and Democratic priorities has prompted one Springfield political figure to return to government service. Former City Councilor Amaad Rivera, a noted and outspoken activist, has rejoined the staff of United States Senator Ed Markey after a year in the
SOUTH HADLEY—A flurry of progressive organizing, actions and meetings across the country has followed last November’s election. The Pioneer Valley is no different, but there are challenges. Activism is no stranger to college towns like this one, the home of Mount Holyoke. Hampden County, home to