STATE SEN. SONIA CHANG-DIAZ is the latest Democrat to signal a potential interest in running for governor next year.
The Jamaica Plain legislator said in a statement released Monday morning that she will give serious thought to entering the 2022 race.
“Families across Massachusetts are struggling to make rent, stay safe, and give their kids a brighter future,” she said in a statement released through a Washington public relations firm. “The crises now boiling over in our state — economic, public health, and racial justice — make it absolutely clear we need someone in the corner office who feels the same urgency working people do. Someone who’ll run toward problems, not away from them. That’s why I’m seriously considering running for governor.”
Chang-Diaz was elected in 2008, ousting embattled incumbent Dianne Wilkerson, who wound up convicted of federal corruption charges and sentenced to time in prison.
Chang-Diaz has been a leader of progressive causes in Legislature, including revamping the education funding formula to help poorer communities and criminal justice reform.
Former state senator Ben Downing is the only declared Democratic candidate in the race. Harvard professor Danielle Allen has said she is weighing a run.
Republican Gov. Charlie Baker has not said whether he will seek a third term next year.