Welcome to the campaign
Hi! My name is Chris Oates and I am running for the Massachusetts House of Representatives for Medford and Somerville.
And this newsletter is not going to be about why I should be elected.
There are a lot of publications, opinions, and and takes about politics. But when I started thinking about running for office, I found there wasn’t a lot about what running for a state legislature actually entailed.
And I don’t mean just what a state rep or senator does, but what a week in the life of a candidate looks like. What steps need to be taken to set up a campaign. What the emotions are about putting yourself out there for an level of government that is simultaneously very powerful on certain issues but also overlooked by the national media.
That is what this newsletter will try to provide. I’ll bring you along the campaign with me, explain my thought process as we go, and invite you to contribute. It will also include a mix of policy explainers so that you can learn more about the issues that I’ll be (hopefully) legislating on and a bit more about how state government works.
What this newsletter won’t be is part of the campaign messaging. It’s not going to be a list of my achievements, or why I’d be a great legislator, or how you need to CHIP IN $5 NOW or else the world ends.
The purpose here is to educate everyone who is interested in state-level politics and government. I’ll restrict the persuasion to doorknocking and social media ads.
So please let me know what are the questions you have about running a local campaign, what issues you’d like more clarity on, and I’ll do my best to provide.
And, of course, if you are interested in helping out the campaign and showing other candidates that honesty and openness are winning strategies, you can do that here.
About me
I’m a dad, civic tech entrepreneur, and a political risk analyst. I got into the race to bring more urgency to our state government and solve problems in housing, transit, childcare, and mental health. I’ll talk more about myself and the thinking behind getting into the race in future issues.
