Unscripted Change Candidates at Bombyx
How many times could Newman ask me, "You say you want to fund essential service- what will you cut?
There's a narrative going around that change candidates (e.g. candidates who would like to work WITH residents in reconsidering city priorities and funding) are irresponsible idiots and will drain our reserves. Newman has pushed hard on this narrative while he goes down his list of pre-election interviews. Thus far he is batting zero in gotchas.
Why? Because we bring diverse voices and an enormous range of talents to the table, and because we are committed to ensuring that Northampton has a solid financial foundation without sacrificing current essential services. Here's who we are:
W1 Michele Ronco is an Italian -American engineer who has served on his home town city council, has children in NPS city schools, and manages multimillion dollar renewable energy projects and budget.
W2 Al Simon is a former Windsor Ct (a city our size) long time city councilor, chair of finance and deputy mayor.
W3 Quaverly Rothenberg is deeply involved in helping her constituents access daily needs and find resources.
W4 Jeremy Dubbs is an expert accessibility advocate, musician and actor with a solid first term behind him.
W5 Luke Rotello is a service worker, labor organizer, seriously smart and an excellent researcher and brings youth to the table.
W6 Chris Stratton is an MIT alum engineer and a cyclist with a deep interest on road safety and city planning.
W7 Rachel Maiore is our three term incumbent with international teaching and political advocacy experience, has shown her deep thought, kindness and concern to her work on council for her ward 7 and is well known for her consistent drive for collaboration.
At Large Deb Henson: attorney, social worker, special education expert, was a former city small business owner and member of the Downtown Business Association.
At Large Meg Robbins (me!): 22-24 NPS W1 School Committee member, Rules and Policy, Chair Curriculum, deeply enmeshed in budgeting and fair labor negotiations, history teacher, NPS parent and grandparent and over 50 years participating as an active city resident.
Mayor Jillian Duclos brings years of experience from downtown business, is a fresh young voice and has a demonstrated ability to bring all voices to the table. She knows where to ask questions and where to bring in expertise. She is level headed and very smart.
What a line up!
Newman threw 4 of the same questions at me about funding, reserves and intent, ending with asking me some pretty odd little pokes.
Newman says he is neutral on who he will vote for (although his lawn signs suggest otherwise) - you decide if he is neutral in his interviews!
It's well worth listening to Ronco's opponent , Gwen Nabad whose interview is on next after mine to compare Newman's hard balls (me) and soft lobs (Nabad). Nabad, who has not offered any learned or work budgetary experience, uses her final 30 seconds on air to say that she is really worried for the city budget if the 'wrong people' get in. Guess she means us! Boy, is she mistaken.
Talk the Talk Radio WHMP Meg Robbins 10/20/25
How many times could Newman ask me, "You say you want to fund essential service- what will you cut?
There's a narrative going around that change candidates (e.g. candidates who would like to work WITH residents in reconsidering city priorities and funding) are irresponsible idiots and will drain our reserves. Newman has pushed hard on this narrative while he goes down his list of pre-election interviews. Thus far he is batting zero in gotchas.
Why? Because we bring diverse voices and an enormous range of talents to the table, and because we are committed to ensuring that Northampton has a solid financial foundation without sacrificing current essential services. Here's who we are:
W1 Michele Ronco is an Italian -American engineer who has served on his home town city council, has children in NPS city schools, and manages multimillion dollar renewable energy projects and budget.
W2 Al Simon is a former Windsor Ct (a city our size) long time city councilor, chair of finance and deputy mayor.
W3 Quaverly Rothenberg is deeply involved in helping her constituents access daily needs and find resources.
W4 Jeremy Dubbs is an expert accessibility advocate, musician and actor with a solid first term behind him.
W5 Luke Rotello is a service worker, labor organizer, seriously smart and an excellent researcher and brings youth to the table.
W6 Chris Stratton is an MIT alum engineer and a cyclist with a deep interest on road safety and city planning.
W7 Rachel Maiore is our three term incumbent with international teaching and political advocacy experience, has shown her deep thought, kindness and concern to her work on council for her ward 7 and is well known for her consistent drive for collaboration.
At Large Deb Henson: attorney, social worker, special education expert, was a former city small business owner and member of the Downtown Business Association.
At Large Meg Robbins (me!): 22-24 NPS W1 School Committee member, Rules and Policy, Chair Curriculum, deeply enmeshed in budgeting and fair labor negotiations, history teacher, NPS parent and grandparent and over 50 years participating as an active city resident.
Mayor Jillian Duclos brings years of experience from downtown business, is a fresh young voice and has a demonstrated ability to bring all voices to the table. She knows where to ask questions and where to bring in expertise. She is level headed and very smart.
What a line up!
Newman threw 4 of the same questions at me about funding, reserves and intent, ending with asking me some pretty odd little pokes.
Newman says he is neutral on who he will vote for (although his lawn signs suggest otherwise) - you decide if he is neutral in his interviews!
It's well worth listening to Ronco's opponent , Gwen Nabad whose interview is on next after mine to compare Newman's hard balls (me) and soft lobs (Nabad). Nabad, who has not offered any learned or work budgetary experience, uses her final 30 seconds on air to say that she is really worried for the city budget if the 'wrong people' get in. Guess she means us! Boy, is she mistaken.
Talk the Talk WHMP September 5, 2025
Buzz queries PACs and School Funding
Oddly Newman did not show up this early September morning but Buzz and I had a good chat courtesy of this website as resource for Buzz who was thrown into steering a conversation he quickly pivoted to.
Campaign Media
June 18, 2025
WHMP Talk the Talk
Al Simon and Meg from Support Our Schools (SOS) were interviewed by host Bill Newman on Talk the Talk radio. Newman seemed far more interested in vociferously declaring his strong disagreement with everything about SOS than he was in helping his audience learn more about its mission to fully fund our city schools. We were however, commended on our 'decorum'.
https://whmp.com/podcasts/elevating-conversations/
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Daily Hampshire Gazette June 4, 2025
Election season continues to heat up in Northampton, as number of candidates for council, school committee up to 28
Staff Writer Published: 06-03-2025 5:25 PM. Northampton MA
NORTHAMPTON — Summer has yet to officially begin, but municipal elections in the city continue to heat up as 28 candidates have already pulled nomination papers to run for positions on the City Council or School Committee.
Many incumbents also have announced they will not seek reelection this fall, meaning the two political bodies will have several new faces regardless of the outcome.
That’s a far cry from the municipal election in 2023, where many candidates ran unopposed.
With the deadline for pulling nomination papers still seven weeks away, here are some of the latest updates regarding the candidates and elections.
Council at-large race
A four-way race is shaping up for two at-large positions on the City Council, after two new candidates — Benjamin Spencer and Meg Robbins — announced their intention to run in the last few weeks.
Spencer and Robbins are joining incumbent Garrick Perry and challenger Deborah Henson, who had previously announced plans their plans seek the positions. Meanwhile, the other incumbent, Marissa Elkins, is not seeking reelection.
Spencer, who held a kickoff event for his campaign at the Florence Civic Center on Monday, said he hoped to provide the public with greater understanding of how the city functions with his candidacy.
“I want to help the City of Northampton live up to its potential. This means planning for both the present and the future at the same time,” Spencer wrote in a guest column in the Gazette. “Like every other city and town, Northampton has to balance the needs of our community with the realities of the budget.”
Spencer also expressed support for several city projects sponsored by Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, such as the planned Resiliency Hub and Picture Main Street.
Robbins, who formerly served on the School Committee before losing her spot in 2023, has been critical of Sciarra’s administration regarding the school budget, speaking at several council and school committee meetings in support of higher school spending.
On her official campaign website, Robbins said part of her decision to run was also in part a reaction against the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, and for the city to recommit to its progressive values.
“I believe strongly that resistance starts at home and Northampton acting locally is integral to systemic nationwide change,” Robbins wrote. “Education is the foundational building block to ensuring all of this.”
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
Candidates Talk Platform
WHMP Talk Talk October 20, 2025
WHMP Talk Talk link to media page
Preliminary-We did it!
On to November 4th!
