Clare Higgins | |
---|---|
Mayor of Northampton, Massachusetts | |
In office January 1, 2000 –September 9, 2011 | |
Preceded by | Mary Ford |
Succeeded by | David Narkewicz |
Member of Northampton City Council At-large | |
In office January 1,1993 –December 31,1999 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,U.S. |
Political party | Democratic |
Education | University Without Walls (University of Massachusetts Amherst) |
Mary Clare Higgins is an American politician who was a six-term mayor of Northampton,Massachusetts,from 2000 to 2011. A Democrat,she was the second woman to hold the position. Higgins became the executive director of Community Action Pioneer Valley in September 2011.
Higgins was born in Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania,one of seven siblings. As a adolescent,she moved with her family to Brooklyn,New York,where her father was active in politics. [1] [2] [3] She earned her bachelor's degree in 2003 through the University Without Walls (University of Massachusetts Amherst). [4] [5] Higgins worked in early childhood education. [6]
Higgins became involved in politics in the early 1990s,when she became a commissioner on the board of the Northampton Housing Authority. [2] During the same period,the city drew national media attention for its percentage of lesbians among the population. [7]
Higgins was elected as an at-large City Councilor in 1993 and held the office until 1999;she served as president of the council for the last two years. [8] [9]
Higgins was elected to her first term as mayor in November 1999, [10] assuming office in January 2000. [11] [9] She was the city's first openly lesbian mayor. [12] Higgins resigned in September 2011 to become executive director of Community Action Pioneer Valley. [13] [14] [3]
During her tenure,she was able to secure affordable housing for residents who were at risk of losing their homes due to condo conversion. [2] [15] The city's capital improvement fund for infrastructure was greatly expanded and used for a new water filtration plant,a senior center,a new police station,and new public works facility. [13]
She is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition, [16] an organization formed in 2006 and co-chaired by New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and Boston mayor Thomas Menino.
Higgins was recognized for her contributions by U.S. House of Representatives in 2012. [1] She campaigned for Barack Obama during 2012 as part of the bus tour "Mayors for Obama". [17] [18] She became a monthly columnist for the Daily Hampshire Gazette . [19]
Amherst is a city in Hampshire County,Massachusetts,United States,in the Connecticut River valley. Amherst has a council–manager form of government,and is considered a city under Massachusetts state law. Amherst is one of several Massachusetts municipalities that have city forms of government but retain "The Town of" in their official names. At the 2020 census,the population was 39,263,making it the highest populated municipality in Hampshire County. The town is home to Amherst College,Hampshire College,and the University of Massachusetts Amherst,three of the Five Colleges.
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John Walter Olver was an American politician and chemist who was the U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 1st congressional district from 1991 to 2013. Raised on a farm in Pennsylvania,Olver graduated from college at the age of 18 and went on to earn a PhD in chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and later taught chemistry at the University of Massachusetts Amherst for eight years.
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Pat Schneider was an American writer,poet,writing teacher and editor.
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Alex Benjamin Morse is an American politician who served as the 44th mayor of Holyoke,Massachusetts from 2012 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party,he was elected the youngest mayor of Holyoke at age 22. He was reelected three times,with his final term expiring in January 2022. Morse resigned on March 26,2021,to accept a position as the town manager of Provincetown,beginning on April 5,2021.
The 2018 Massachusetts gubernatorial election took place on November 6,2018,to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Republican governor Charlie Baker and lieutenant governor Karyn Polito sought reelection to a second term in office,facing Democratic challengers Jay Gonzalez and Quentin Palfrey,respectively. Candidates were selected in the primary election held on September 4,2018.
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