Candidate Interviews: Dolan & Devaney for District 3 Governor's Council
Early voting is already underway for the Democratic State Primary, which will be held on September 3. This year, as in 2022, public defender Mara Dolan is challenging 25-year incumbent Marilyn Petitto Devaney for the District 3 Governor's Council seat.
Marilyn says she's proud of the work she's been able to do with Governor Healey, and we talked about the importance of the Governor's Council, the progress she's been able to effect during her tenure, and why she feels she's still the best person for the role.
Mara hasn't stopped campaigning and communicating with voters since the 2022 election, and she spoke to me on her feelings about the current makeup of the Governor's Council, why the body is so essential, and what she believes her background as a public defender and communications professional will bring to the role.
In case you missed our primer on the Governor's Council, what it is, and why you should care, check it out here.
The Primary Election is on September 3, and the winner of this Democratic Primary race will be the Governor's Councillor for District 3 for the next two years. Anyone registered as Democrat or Unenrolled can vote in this primary.
Notes:
Mara mentions in our conversation that Ms. Devaney does not support raising the age for juvenile conviction and that she does not believe the science on brain development, which points to the part of a juvenile's brain responsible for rational thought and understanding of ultimate consequences completing development around age 25. As she says, this comment is included as a clip on Ms. Dolan's YouTube channel, though it is such a short clip I can't vouch for the surrounding context.
Ms. Dolan and Ms. Devaney have disagreed on whether or not the Governor's Council has ever had a member who was a public defender. The consensus seems to be that one out of 53 individuals who have sat on the Council, Robert Jubinville, has had experience taking some public cases since the right to council was established in the state. Mr. Jubinville couldn't be immediately reached for clarification. Ms. Dolan states that if she wins, she would be the first full-time public defender to sit on the Council.
Marilyn mentions that Mara hasn't ever come to a hearing. I wasn't able to fact-check that directly, but the hearings are now publicized on YouTube, and Mara said during our interview that she watched the entire Wolohojian confirmation hearing.
Ms. Devaney's questions Ms. Dolan's status as a public defender, which Ms. Dolan has addressed in an interview that is also posted on her YouTube channel.
Correction: A previous version of this article stated that Governor's Councilor, Robert Jubinville, had not been on the Governor's Council since 2008. Mr. Jubinville, in fact, was first elected in 2008. We apologize for that mistake.
