Haverhill congressional candidate Alexandra Chandler turned in the necessary 2,000 signatures Wednesday to secure a spot on the fall primary election ballot. (Courtesy photograph)
City resident Alexandra Chandler secured the necessary 2,000 signatures to secure a spot on the congressional primary election ballot, her campaign said Wednesday. Chandler also makes history as the first openly transgender congressional candidate to get on the ballot in Massachusetts.
Turning her nomination papers into the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office in Boston, Chandler marked the occasion alongside her wife Catherine and campaign supporter and civil rights advocate Holly Ryan.
“As a first-time candidate, as a middle-class person, as a mom, and as a transgender lesbian woman, being on the ballot is humbling,” Chandler said in a statement. “I am the first openly transgender candidate for Congress in the history of the Commonwealth to get on the ballot. Our campaign has already made history, standing on the shoulders of so many giants who came before us.”
The former Navy analyst is running to succeed retiring Congresswoman Niki Tsongas in the 3rd District, which includes Haverhill. Chandler maintains what she calls “an unapologetically bold progressive agenda for the working and middle class.”
She faces opposition from Merrimack Valley-area Democrats including Sen. Barbara L’Italien, Dan Koh, Beej Das and Lori Trahan, among others.