House Speaker Ron Mariano made his second endorsement in a statewide race, backing Andrea Campbell for attorney general a week after endorsing Maura Healey for governor.
“Andrea has dedicated her entire career not only to advocacy but to action. She has defended the rights of children and their families as an education lawyer, pushed for greater equity in our education and transportation systems under the Patrick Administration, and passed historic housing and criminal justice legislation as President of the Boston City Council,” the Quincy Democrat said.
He also cited Campbell’s lived experience as resonating with Bay State families. Campbell grew up in Roxbury, bouncing between various family members’ homes and foster care homes. Her two brothers ended up cycling through the prison system, while she graduated from Princeton University and UCLA Law School.
Campbell has previously worked as a lawyer, and served on the Boston City Council as its first Black woman president. She unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Boston last year, coming in third place out of five in the primary.
“I’m incredibly grateful to have Speaker Mariano‘s endorsement. As the leader of the House, he has spearheaded legislation related to health care, criminal justice, gun control, education, and so much more – always fighting for better outcomes in communities across Massachusetts,” Campbell said of the endorsement.
She added that she’s the only attorney general candidate who has passed legislation in the State House. Her Democratic rivals include labor attorney Shannon Liss-Riordan and former Biden and Obama administration staffer and former lieutenant governor candidate Quentin Palfrey.
Mariano endorsed Attorney General Maura Healey for governor last week during an impromptu talk at a State House News Service forum, as MassLive reported.
“I’ve had the opportunity to work with (Healey) on a number of health care issues — to work with her health care department in the AG’s office,” Mariano said. “And (I) have admired her fact-finding efforts and her hard work to get up to speed on the health care issues.”
Notably, Mariano endorsed Healey over his colleague in the Legislature, state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz, D-Boston.
Previous House Speaker Robert DeLeo, who left his post in 2020, rarely endorsed candidates. He said he was voting for Elizabeth Warren in the presidential primaries in 2020, and endorsed former Dorchester Rep. Evandro Carvalho for Suffolk District Attorney in 2018, who lost to Rachael Rollins.
