[PREFACE: this letter was submitted as a guest column to the Daily Hampshire Gazette on 10/23. It is unlikely to be published due to the number of pending submissions.]
Hearing councilor Alex Jarrett’s recent call for answers on difficult budget questions, I hope to set forward some of my own thoughts as I run to succeed him in Ward 5.
When I met with councilor Jarrett during his public office hours in June, he indicated – to my understanding – that both coalitions heading into this election had viable economic proposals. We were unable to reconcile our fiscal priorities for the coming term, but we agreed that the question would be settled at the ballot box. He has since charged myself and other candidates with deception in his newsletter on one hand, while privately crossing clear ethical boundaries to support my opponent on the other. My campaign has rejected the politics of private, invite-only house parties, which are a prevalent means of keeping power in the same set of hands. Instead, my events have been open to the entire community, and when one such gathering was made public in my neighborhood, councilor Jarrett privately contacted our host on Ms. Davis’s behalf and asked him to meet with her.
As a co-chair of the Western Massachusetts CPUSA, I am fiercely committed to political honesty: we live by it ourselves just as we demand it of others. The same representatives and ideologues who have red-baited, harassed private individuals in council meetings and otherwise undermined democratic processes have done little from their position in government to proactively engage with the public on fundamental municipal issues, from fiscal practices to Picture Main Street. Large sections of our city have been left out of the conversation entirely, whether by neglect or, as we have seen in this campaign, intentional isolation. The pressing needs of our schools and services have been pitted against infrastructure improvements, as though it was the opposition’s call to defer maintenance and our own incumbent government bears no responsibility. The city’s fiscal stability plan, which is only as stable as its periodic override scheme, faces a vote of no confidence as early as next year, with many of its staunchest supporters privately acknowledging that another override cannot pass under these conditions.
As such, we have set forward a program of dignity, transparency, democracy and funding for public services in this election with the utmost urgency. The combination of increasing taxes and declining services is unsustainable, especially as our city continues to fund low-priority infrastructure improvements with recurring, fungible revenues at the expense of our schools. At the same time, other critical infrastructure needs remain unmet, with methods of capital planning that divert these public resources away from public needs until election season rolls around. Understaffing in our DPW didn’t just fall from the sky, either: our mayoral administration bargained for the contracts that kept wages and benefits uncompetitive in the 2022-25 period. At every angle, the status quo is out of steam, and there is no hidden pot of money – instead, there is a profound social crisis and a set of decisions that led us to this point.
In such a dire moment in our world, it is imperative for working people to lead our path out. This election will determine our city’s course not only in funding our municipal priorities, but against Trump’s fascist tide. Do we recognize that the civil rights of our children are worth the investment, or do we accede to the magical thinking that these needs will go away if we continue to underfund them? With military occupations and ICE’s terrorism spreading across the country, do we legislate like our lives are on the line, or will our flags continue to fly at half-staff when Trump gives the order? Our city deserves better, and it’s on all of us to struggle for it.
[Early voting has begun and election day is November 4th. For more information, visit northamptonma.gov/elections or contact me at rotelloforward5@gmail.com. Onward!]
[This piece has been edited for more neutral language in describing events leading up to the house party.]
Rotello for Ward 5 City Council 
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