A new MassINC-Tisch College of Civic Life report examines the state of leadership and governance in Massachusetts. The groundbreaking study reveals a number of structural challenges, many of which are especially problematic for Gateway Cities. In the coming weeks, Gateways will break these issues down one by one.

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We begin with Pavel Payano, an at-large city councilor in Lawrence. Pavel talks about the demands on local political leaders in Lawrence and the challenges candidates from the lower-income quarters of a district face competing for the seat. “There’s a lot of barriers. Just looking back at my Senate race, one of the things that I didn’t take into account was the fundraising component and the access to the different power brokers,” he says.

Future episodes in this series will explore the role political parties play developing future voters and candidates, the relationship between local news coverage and civic participation, and reforms and innovations to improve representative governance in Gateway Cities. If you have thoughts on how we approach these important topics, please reach out to us with your ideas.