For the past 10 months, the 1st Franklin District has been without representation. Meanwhile, the challenges our communities face have grown more serious. Over the course of the campaign, we’ve knocked on more than 5,000 doors across the district, and I’ve listened and learned. I’ve heard concerns about finding housing that’s affordable, the rising cost of healthcare, and school budget cuts that threaten the futures our children deserve.

I’m running for state representative because Franklin County towns deserve a strong voice on Beacon Hill — someone who understands the challenges facing residents and municipal leaders and who has the experience to bring people together, solve problems creatively, and deliver results.

For more than 25 years, I’ve worked to make our region a better place to live, work, and raise a family. As the founding executive director of the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters, I built coalitions, advocated at the State House, and helped advance environmental and climate policies, including foundational climate legislation. I learned how to navigate state government, build relationships with legislators, and turn shared goals into meaningful policy changes.

As a parent, I’ve also experienced firsthand what happens when state funding falls short. When budget cuts threatened our local schools, I worked with other parents, neighbors and teachers to organize and successfully restore funding. That experience helped lead me to public service.

As a Greenfield City Council member and now council president, I’ve learned how state policy affects our towns and what it takes to govern responsibly. I understand the difficult choices local officials face when costs rise faster than revenues. I’ve also demonstrated that collaboration can produce tangible results.

When Greenfield faced a proposed 19% increase in health insurance costs, I helped bring public unions into negotiations that resulted in an agreement reducing the increase to 2%, while creating greater stability for the future.

These experiences have taught me that lasting progress doesn’t happen because one person claims to have all the answers. It happens when people build trust, find common ground, and work together toward shared goals.

That is the kind of representative I will be.

My priorities are clear:

  • We need a fairer school funding system that recognizes the realities of rural communities, where declining enrollment doesn’t mean proportionally lower costs.
  • We need more housing options so that young people, working families and older residents can afford to live in the communities they call home.
  • We need to protect our farms, forests, and natural resources while investing in resilient agriculture, clean energy, and the infrastructure that sustains our rural economy.

These challenges are connected. We can expand housing while protecting valuable farmland. We can strengthen our schools while fighting for a more equitable share of state resources. We can advance climate solutions while creating economic opportunities for our region. Doing so requires creativity, regional thinking and a willingness to work across differences.

I won’t solve these challenges alone, but I know how to build the partnerships necessary to make progress. I will work with our school committees, selectboards, town administrators, fellow legislators and residents across the district to make sure Franklin County’s needs are heard and our communities have a stronger voice in decisions made on Beacon Hill.

I’m ready to get to work on day one. I won’t need to start from scratch learning how state government operates or building relationships with the people who can help us deliver for western Massachusetts. I bring decades of experience in advocacy, coalition-building, organizational leadership and local government.

I know how to listen, how to work independently when a challenge demands initiative, and how to bring people together to reach our common goals.

For the past 10 months, our district has lacked representation at a time when our communities need it most. On Nov. 3, we have an opportunity to elect a leader who will show up, listen, stand up for our values, and work every day to get results.

I’ve spent my career doing that work. I’m ready to bring that experience, commitment and determination to the State House on behalf of every town in the 1st Franklin District.

I hope I can earn your vote.

Lora Wondolowski lives in Greenfield.