“A Shallow Experience”: Is Age More Than Just a Number in Worcester’s Elections?

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Friday, October 31, 2014

Patrick Sargent, GoLocal Worcester Contributor

The top campaign issue in most elections in Worcester right now has nothing to do with the gas tax, or medical marijuana, or even lack of funding for education. The number one issue right now is age. Specifically, the issue is young age. In terms of campaign and public service experience, age and experience, or lack thereof, have been the driving factors to sway public opinion in several of Tuesday’s upcoming elections.

At the forefront of this issue, in the South Central Massachusetts State Senate Election, incumbent Senator Richard Moore (D) is running against State Representative Ryan Fattman (R), age 30. According to Moore, campaigning against Fattman has been “a shallow experience.”

“In my case, and I’ve seen it in some other cases, I think what’s important is not so much the length of service, but what have you done with it? Ryan hasn’t really accomplished anything, but he talks a lot about what he says he will do, but he hasn’t really done anything in the four years he’s been in the House,” Moore said.

“I’ve told people to compare my first four years in the House to his first four years,“ said Moore. The Senator listed his accomplishments in his first term of cleaning up the land around the Blackstone River Canal and Heritage State Park, fixing “Dead Man’s Curve” on Route 122 in Millville, and in his second term helped create a subcommittee to investigate the number of fatalities on Route 146.

"Here's a guy who's very ambitious and willing to take the time to knock on doors even during times where he probably could have served his consituents well by being in the State House trying to get things done. The relationships in legislature are built on trust, and you have to put your time in to build those relationships. And unfortunately he hasn't done that even within his own party," said Moore. "The job is something you need to keep working at, you can't always be looking at the next job up the line and worrying about running for that. You don't really deserve to be promoted if you haven't done very much."

Experience Has Its Place

Ryan Fattman's wife, Stephanie, is running for Worcester County's Register of Probate. Senator Moore said, "Here's another case of a person who hasn't done the work to move up. She's not out of law school yet, she hasn't passed the bar. The position doesn't legally require you to be an attorney, but it helps when you're handling very sensitive issues such as divorce, custody, and wills. I think she might be capable at some point, but I think she needs to finish law school, pass the bar, and get some experience in that field and then she might be a very strong candidate. She's not there yet. And I feel the same way about him (Ryan Fattman), he hasn't done the work he needs to do to merit moving to a bigger area."

Both Mr. and Mrs. Fattman were contacted by GoLocal to respond for this piece, but no messages were returned.

As much as youth may be a positive thing, some even young elected officials believe that experience plays a large role when running for an elected position. Dan Donahue (D), State Representative of Worcester’s 16th District said, “I think experience is extremely important when you’re dealing with the political arena. Having the experience, having the background, and having different paths through life is very important and it enriches how the city’s decision making process will go.”

Donahue, age 28, said "Politics is always an ever-changing game. Getting people engaged in the process is always a good thing. But really overall, it’s great to see young people care about the city, who have a passion and desire to get involved in politics and get involved in the decision making process.”

Being Young Has An Impact

David Muradian, age 31, is the Republican candidate for State Representative in Worcester’s Ninth District. Muradian said, “It’s great to see the younger generation get involved. I worked for the current representative, George Peterson (R ), for seven years. I have formed relationships. If elected, it will be a seamless transition. I’m ready to hit the ground running. I’m going to be a full-time representative, unlike my opponent.”

His opponent, Marty Green (D), owns and runs a real estate and property management business. “He still plans on keeping his regular full-time job. This will be my full-time job. If he’s elected it could be a detriment to our district if he can’t give 100% of his time,” said Muradian.

According to Sarai Rivera, Worcester‘s District Four City Councilor, “It’s always exciting when young people are interested in civic engagement. If this is a way they feel they can exercise their right to enpower and maybe motivate other young people, I’m for it.

Rivera said, “I understand why more and more young people are coming out to run to impact legislation that is impacting them. When you have someone that’s willing to get excited about our democratic process and get out there, I say go ahead. I’m a big supporter of young leadership.”

Youth May Win Out

In the 2nd Worcester District State Representative election, youth is a guaranteed winner. Garret Shetrawksi (R), age 20, is running against incumbent Jonathan Zlotnik (D). Shetrawski said he "wants to make a little history on Tuesday." If Shetrawski wins, he will be the youngest State Representative in the state.  Shetrawski believes his inexperience will benefit him.

“My age is an asset. In our election, we have two young men willing to serve their community. But, I’m running because what I see is a lack of real leadership. I don’t support a gas tax. He voted for it. It’s that simple. If elected, there will be more visibility. It’s my job to be a public servant. I plan to go to anything I’m invited to. That kind of support is part of my job. And finally, balance is key. He believes one party leadership is okay. I couldn’t disagree more," Shetrawski said.

“People like the young, the fresh, the new. For me, there are a lot of people that want see young people as part of this process and they feel like they give us a new perspective. I’m from the school where if you want to run and you have the energy to do it and you want to push yourself out there, whether I agree with your politics or not, I am not the one to ever tell people ‘don’t run.’. Young or old, this is part of what makes our country great," said Rivera.

Muradian said, “I don’t think there’s any negative of any age and that’s the benefit of democracy. People go out and campaign and advocate about what they are going to be able to bring to the table. All the candidates out there are doing what they can to state their positives. No matter what your age, you need to identify your solutions and how you’re going to benefit your district.”

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