Jake Auchincloss is an at-large Newton city councilor, representing Ward 2. Prior to his election, he served as a captain in the U.S. Marines. He is endorsed by Newton City Council President Susan Albright and over 30 other Newton elected officials and community leaders.
What should high school students know about your platform?
That I represent the issues that are going to define their experience as Americans in the next generation — climate change, racial justice, income inequality, the end of our forever wars overseas — these are the issues that are not just today’s issues but are going to be tomorrow’s issues. And I’m the candidate who has expressed not just the biggest, boldest vision, but also has the track record of being able to deliver results on that vision in the military business, in local government [and] in nonprofits.
How has your campaign been impacted by the coronavirus? What challenges and opportunities have you encountered?
The term social distancing — it’s just about the antonym of the term political campaign. So everything has been different. We have pivoted to online events. I have hosted webinars with six economic public health experts, most of them to help inform my constituents about the issues of the day at a time when high-quality information is so important. We have done phone banks to check in on Newton seniors to make sure that they’re doing okay in a time of isolation. And we have done virtual office hours so that constituents can continue to contact me with their concerns.
What have you learned from being a new father and how has it impacted your candidacy?
Having a child underscores that we’re all temporary stewards of this country and of this planet, and my son’s inheritance is a direct reflection on my actions, whether that means the environment and the quality of his climate as he’s my age, whether the opportunities that he and his peers have are as wide and as bright as they could be, whether he lives in a more racially just society. These are endowments that he’s going to receive from our generation, and it’s incumbent upon us to step up.
To learn more about Jake Auchincloss, visit https://www.jakeforma.com/.