Democrats Greg Schwartz and Amy Mah Sangiolo each won contested primary elections on Tuesday in races for Newton’s state representative seats.
Schwartz will be the Democratic candidate in the 12th Middlesex district while Sangiolo will lead the Democratic ticket in the 11th.
In the Nov. 5 general election, Sangiolo will face Vladislav Yanovsky, who ran unopposed in the Republican primary. There was no Republican challenger in the 12th district race, so Schwartz will run unopposed in the general election.
Following the retirement of state-house veterans Kay Khan and Ruth Balser, two Democratic races in Newton ensued this summer to fill the newly opened seats.
Khan held the longest tenure in the state house when she retired, having served 15 terms since 1994. Balser served 13 terms, representing Newton and Brookline since 1999.
The 11th and 12th districts both fall between Newton and Brookline. They are among just 26 contested congressional districts of all 140 house districts in Massachusetts.
A small part of Newton falls in the 10th Middlesex district. There, the incumbent, John Lawn, ran unopposed.
Sangiolo, the winning Democrat in the Middlesex 11th, served as a Newton City Councilor for 10 terms, between 1997 and 2017. Since then, she’s worked as an affordable housing advocate at the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office.
She had run against Alexander Jablon, a 28-year-old Newtonite and political rookie. Jablon works as an auditor for RTX and ran on a progressive platform, emphasizing government transparency.
Schwartz is a doctor who served on the Newton City Council from 2011–19. He served as chair of the Land Use Committee.
Two current Newton City Councilors challenged Schwartz in the Democratic race, Rick Lipof and Bill Humphrey.
Humphrey, who was elected to the city council in 2019, ran on a progressive platform, primarily focused on championing labor rights and environmental issues.
Lipof, a small business owner and Newton city councilor of 23 years, focused on countering antisemitism and bolstering collaboration during his campaign.
During the race, Humphrey met criticism for not signing a letter that denounced The Mapping Project, a website created by activists that claimed to show organizations across Massachusetts that were responsible for abuse of Palestinians.
The map included Jewish schools, cultural centers, and places of worship.
In 2022, Newton City Councilors published a letter condemning the Mapping Project for antisemitism, and Humphrey was the only councilor not to sign it.
Humphrey has said he would sign a similar letter today, following the attacks on Israel on Oct. 7. He called for more proactive defense against antisemitism at the state level during debates between the three candidates.
Tensions culminated with protesters demonstrating at a campaign event Humphrey held with the Newton Teachers Association last week.
Lipof also received backlash last December for text messages he sent to a city council colleague, Brenda Noel, which she called “inappropriate.” Noel endorsed Humphrey in the 12th Middlesex race.
Lipof apologized publicly, and the City Council made a resolution to work on an ethics code for councilors following the incident.
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