The following was provided by the campaign for Mike Barrett, a Lexington Democrat seeking the 3rd Middlesex State Senate seat Sen. Susan Fargo, D-Lincoln, will vacate after eight terms.

State Rep. Jay Kaufman (D-Lexington) has endorsed Mike Barrett in the Democratic primary to succeed Susan Fargo as State Senator for the 3rd Middlesex District, consisting of Bedford, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Concord, Lincoln, Waltham, Weston and large parts of Lexington and Sudbury.

“Mike has assets that set him apart from the other fine people in the field,” Rep. Kaufman says.  “As a former State Senator for Cambridge in 1987-1994, culminating in his race for Governor in 1994, he has legislative and political experience the others can’t match.  He’ll hit the ground running, which is what we need.”

Kaufman added, “After moving with his family to Lexington 16 years ago, Mike carried on with his activism on environmental issues, including open space and historic preservation.  He’s helped us with dual objectives locally – support the R&D mission at Hanscom Air Force Base but fight Massport’s attempts to expand the civilian airport for passenger and cargo use and for private jets, all of which cause environmental degradation to the area.”

Barrett, in his prior service, chaired the Legislature’s Environmental Caucus and sponsored successful legislation to clean up hazardous wastes and reduce toxics in the soil and in drinking water.  

“Of these fine State Senate candidates, Mike has the best environmental and clean energy record by far,” Kaufman says. “Issues don’t begin and end at legislative district boundary lines.  As an ally to me, Sen. Donnelly and other area legislators, Mike’s return to the State Senate will be a plus for everybody in the region.”

This year’s Democratic and Republican primaries are an anomaly in that they fall on Thursday, Sept. 6, just three days after Labor Day.