As Islanders head to the polls on primary day on Tuesday, the only contested race on the Democratic ballot is to replace Dylan Fernandes as State House representative to the Island.
The two candidates vying for the seat — Arielle Faria, an Islander, and Thomas Moakley, of Falmouth — have been making a final push for voters leading up to the election. With no Republican in the race, Tuesday’s winner will take the seat.
Faria, a West Tisbury resident, and touted by her supporters as a dogged advocate for housing, has built an image of herself as someone who would bring a unifying voice for the Island to the State House with her experience in grassroots organizing.
Moakley, a Falmouth native and assistant district attorney in the Cape and Islands District Attorney’s office, wants to continue bringing a youthful voice to the State House, where he will advocate for sustainability — both for infrastructure in the face of climate disruption and to help families sustain a living in the region, with high housing costs.
According to the latest data from the secretary of state’s office, Moakley has so far outraised Faria in funding through July. Since announcing his candidacy in December, he has raised about $62,000, while Faria has raised about $51,000.
Friday is the last day to vote early on the Island; polls will be open on Tuesday from 7 am until 8 pm.
Arielle Faria
For Vineyard voters — who represent nearly 50 percent of the vote — Faria would be the first representative from the Island since the seat was reconfigured in 1989 (The seat previously represented the Outer Cape and Islands, instead of parts of Falmouth. Terrance McCarthy was the last Islander before the change, who last served in the late 70s). According to data from the Massachusetts Office of the Clerk of the House of Representatives, Faria would also be not only the first woman ever to serve the Island in the state house, but the first queer woman of color.
“Equity in leadership means ensuring that everyone — regardless of race, gender, or sexual orientation — has a voice at the table,” Faria said. “When individuals like me take up positions of authority, we bring perspectives that have been historically excluded, which leads to more inclusive forward-thinking policies. My election would send a powerful message to future generations, especially to young black girls and queer individuals, that they, too, can step into leadership and create meaningful change.”
Faria and her supporters from the Vineyard have rallied around the fact that she does live on the Island, noting that the six towns haven’t received the attention it deserves with lawmakers representing the Vineyard from the mainland. She hopes to bring home legislation for a real estate transfer fee, which has been gaining momentum in recent years. The tool would provide a revenue stream for Island towns to develop housing through a tax on high-end real estate.
Faria’s origins on the Island began in the 1960s, when her grandparents bought a home in Oak Bluffs. Her family has been visiting the Island since then, and she moved to the Island full-time about 15 years ago. She has two sons, one a senior at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School, and another enrolled at the Martha’s Vineyard Charter School. She’s a small business owner, worked as the affordable housing manager for the town of Edgartown, and is project and program development manager at the Island Housing Trust. She served as co-chair for the Coalition to Create the MV Housing Bank, a group that has lobbied state lawmakers to pass the real estate transfer fee. In the task, she helped get the transfer fee support on all six Island town meeting warrants.
“It took us two years — two years — to get everyone informed on the issue, going around to every town and every committee and every official to get on the same page so that we could be successful at town meetings,” she told The Times. “People came out because they were informed and empowered to make a difference.” With the Vineyard at the table, momentum has been building for the passage of a real-estate transfer fee option.
By helping to unify the Island’s voice, Faria says that she will be able to advocate for other Island priorities as well, such as better compliance and operations at the Steamship Authority. She said that having more state oversight of the Steamship could create performance metrics and ultimately translate to be service.
While much of the public dialogue has been about her commitment to housing, Faria’s overarching platform is infrastructure. With climate change, there have been impacts to the Island like Five Corners and Beach Road. The area in Vineyard Haven has been flooded twice in the past week due to heavy rains. She wants to advocate for state funding to come to the Island to help.
Thomas Moakley
While Faria leans into her experience in grassroots organizing, Moakley has touted his experience within the Cape and Islands District Attorney’s Office, where he serves as assistant district attorney. While a Falmouth resident, he is a frequent commuter to the Island, and says he’s experienced firsthand the struggles with the Steamship Authority.
Moakley was raised in Falmouth, where he attended public schools. His parents met on a NOAA research vessel out of Woods Hole, where his dad worked. Moakley would go on to attend Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, looking for a career in the State Department. When Donald Trump was elected president, the administration was not not keen on hiring diplomats, so Moakley said that he eventually returned to his hometown, and then eventually began working in the local district attorney’s office.
Most recently, he said he was assigned as the sole assistant DA to the Vineyard, where they prosecute over 800 cases a year. Part of the job, Moakley noted, is maintaining relationships with local and state law enforcement on the Island. During his time, he helped create a recovery court at the Edgartown courthouse by looking at examples in Barnstable and Falmouth. The program is intended to provide an alternative to incarceration through treatment and recovery.
One of the issues he’s seen firsthand is a lack of translation services in the court system, which is leading to inequalities. Moakley said that the Portuguese interpreter he worked with in Edgartown was spread thin working for courts across the Cape and Islands and beyond. That left many in the justice system without adequate services. If elected, he would try to serve on the Joint Judiciary Committee to shepherd in changes.
Atop his platform are issues that he says are disproportionately impacting the younger generation. It ultimately comes down to sustainability: climate change, women’s reproductive rights, and affordability — which includes housing, wages and childcare.
“All those things are in one way or another existential issues that are going to be impacting this generation more than others,” Moakley said. Among the issues he has discussed is creating a first-time homeowner program to help residents purchase homes, and he is also in support of allowing towns to pass a real-estate transfer fee.
Moakley has also been a harsh critic of the Steamship Authority, calling the service disruptions this summer “unacceptable.” He said that the issue is no longer just about convenience, but a public safety concern with first responders being turned away from boats. He sees three underlying issues: employees are being forced to work 18 hours in a 24-hour period; the ferry line’s reservation system, he said, is worse than the coffee shop that he sat for this interview with The Times, and there is no dedicated planner that works with the host communities to figure out long-term solutions. As state rep., he would use the leverage of the state to advocate for change when the Steamship came to them for bonding.
When it comes to representing the Island at the state level, Moakley said that he has gotten to know the Island well during his time in the DA’s office and built relationships with the community. “Ultimately, what’s most important is not the address where you lay your head at night, it’s how effective you are as a state representative, how communicative you are with your constituents and the depth of understanding you have of the issues that are facing your community,” Moakley said. “I know that I can be an effective representative for the Island.”
I believe Mr Moakley has a through knowledge of the issues which the island and Falmouth are facing presently and into the future. He has shown himself to be a steady hand in our large community and would be a repersenitive we could rely on for this districts needs and wishes going forward.
I noticed that this article defined Faria as being queer, which I assume is her sexual orientation and not her gender. The article did not identify the sexual orientation or gender of Moakley. I am unclear as to why that decision was made.
If we are going down that road, is it too much to ask who their spouses are and what they do in the community? And what is Faria’s definition of queer? I know that word can mean different things to different people.
And while we are at it, can we define what the author meant as “of color”?
I’m black and don’t refer to myself as “of color”.
And shouldn’t all of this just be irrelevant when choosing a person for state rep?
Bill– I definitely agree with you that the sexual orientation
of a candidate is irrelevant — or at least it should be.
But the fact that the LGBTQ community is not accepted
by everyone does make it a bit of an issue.
But I do think it’s newsworthy that she would be the first islander,
and the first queer woman of color
to hold the office since it was reconfigured in 1989 —
the times could have given us a little more info
previous to that– .
So she is plowing through a bunch of ceilings, and that is
worth a mention.
Not for the vast majority of MAGA.
And so many Christians.
Perhaps you mean Christian nationalists like the kkk? Where Trump holds a bible for a photo op in support of racism?
The #1 priority for all of the candidates should be protecting the endangered whales for their safety and God given right to exist without being confused and tortured….Without that being a priority, just fking go home
Donald — are you against the lobster industry ?
so it seems that the editor could not care less about the comment
section here. There is an arbitrary cut off after 7 days.
Sometimes, 3 days go by without an update.
I often spend some time researching data and crafting a
comment, as do other people I am sure, and then Sam just throws it away.
That is not acceptable —Are you listening ,Sam ?
So I will take the opportunity here to repost my ignored comments
I don’t care if they are off topic.
Eddie– Look at what you wrote. buddy—
you are acknowledging that he said it while
saying he didn’t say it.
And has he said what he would do on that “one”day ?
i guess no need to sign any ridiculous executive orders —
just order the military to execute every democrat
in congress, dissolve the FBI, the DOJ, the EPA, the FDA
and release all of his cronies from prison.
That might do something– And remember, presidents
are immune from anything that they do that is unlawful.
I don’t know if you know much about history but
I assume you know something that I don’t about dictators.
But I have never heard of a single one who voluntarily
stepped down from that position.
And yeah, dictators always have a great reason to
kill their enemies and save their country.
And of course, we can all believe trump when he says
“for one day”.
He has never told a lie—-
or this one—-
John– Harris sounds like your kind of girl.
Mean and dumb…
Except of course , she presumably paid the
“hired help”.
no, No, NO —
If you want someone with true presidential qualities you
have to find someone who is not only mean and
dumb , but great at the art of
stiffing the “hired help”.
If you just refuse to pay them, you don’t need to worry
about tipping them.
Tipping is a sign of weakness.
or this one–
Jackie– how about answering my question of why
you support trump
rather than keep repeating the lies about why I am voting
for Harris. I have made it clear as to why.
But if I may, let me speculate about your motivations.
First, since it is your MO to hate anyone and everyone
who disagrees with the Israeli governments continued
efforts at genocide in Gaza , you support trump because
he likes seeing innocent Palestinians slaughtered.
Or perhaps you can’t handle a woman of mixed descent
being president. She’s not even part white.
I know how your culture and faith frown upon
marrying someone other than a Jew. So of course,
you are horrified that she is the product of an
interracial marriage. A goyim’s goyim if you will.
Or perhaps you like trump because you actually
think it’s ok to just walk up to pretty women and
grab them by the genitals. Men are superior and have rights
after all. It’s right there in your sacred book.
All those “liberal feminist” are just trying to
indoctrinate our “woke” children. My guess is that Harris
would kick trump in the genitals so hard he would choke on
his tiny gonads if he got anywhere near her genitalia.
Or maybe it’s because trump has the strength and courage
to insult everyone who disagrees with him.
I know you like to call people who disagree with you anti-semites
among other things…
Or perhaps you like trump because he hangs out with avowed
racists and members of the KKK.
But you tell me–
And by the way, who knew there were so many
anti-semites in Israel? You know, like those horrible
vile people who protest at 5 corners calling for a cease fire
to free the hostages. Clearly anti-semites.Every one of them.
Ohhhhh— perhaps you don’t know what I’m talking about
since you seem to
have your head stuck in some right wing echo chamber
that won’t report this story.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cze5x793569o
Sam– you have to do better—
Just dissing peoples opinions because of some arbitrary
time limit is an example of poor journalism–
especially when you close down comments days after they are
written.
Both candidates want the real estate transfer fee for high-end properties. It really just looks like another way to divide rich people from everyone else. A real estate transfer fee will make it that much harder for an average person to buy a house. Say NO to the real estate transfer tax.
I agree Mary. The transfer tax would also juice the development of AH past what is environmentally sustainable. Thankfully the tax was not part of the recent AH bill that was passed into law. Keep Our Island Green
The real estate transfer tax applies to all.
It remains unacceptable and supposedly against the Terms of this newspaper to repeat outright untruths and antisemitic tropes intended to demean, degrade, and shame a group or an individual of the Jewish faith.
Examples:
1. “…how about answering my question of why you support trump rather than keep repeating the lies about why I am voting for Harris.”
~This is not antisemitic. It is simply an untrue attack. I do not support Trump, never did, never said I did, nor would I vote for him, ever. I quoted the reasons given for a commenter’s support of Harris, including that he wrote ‘She cares’ and ‘She laughs’.
2. “…you support trump because he likes seeing innocent Palestinians slaughtered.”
~I do not support Trump. This is antisemitic because I am being accused of the old antisemitic trope that, supposedly like Trump, Jews are blood thirsty, cruel savages who enjoy murder, especially of children. As much as I dislike Trump, I doubt slaughter is on his LIKE list, but antisemites and severe Trump Derangement Syndrome sufferers will make people say any untruths to promote hate speech, antisemitism, and personal attacks against individual Jews.
3. “…perhaps you can’t handle a woman of mixed descent being president. She’s not even part white.”
~This is racist. And stupid.
4. “I know how your culture and faith frown upon marrying someone other than a Jew.”
~This antisemitic, racist untruth promotes the ancient trope that Jews are exclusive and unaccepting of anyone outside the ’tribe’. The year is 2024, and without any knowledge that there are different groups, sects, and even cults with different practices within Judaism, lumping people all together as one group to demean and shame is ugly. Demeaning my faith and culture now, however, is particularly a signal of Jew-hatred. In my case, my children are of ‘mixed descent,’ and my husband was neither white nor Jewish. The Jewish community never in any way “frowned” upon me or my Jewish children. This is, frankly, one of the more stupid Jewish-hate-lies I’ve read.
5. “…you actually think it’s ok to just walk up to pretty women and grab them by the genitals.”
~This misogynistic, antisemitic untruth is also an ancient trope— The lie is that Jews are sexually deviant and predatory. To publicly slander anyone with this disgusting lie is the height of Jew-hatred.
6. “Men are superior and have rights after all. It’s right there in your sacred book.”
~Although I am unsure which ‘sacred book’ the lie refers to here, this is the antisemitic trope that ‘it is written in the Jews’ books’. It is untrue that Jews are somehow, by sacred demand, commanded to commit all sorts of deviant behavior.
7. “Or perhaps you like trump because he hangs out with avowed racists and members of the KKK.”
~This nonsense is antisemitic, portraying Jews individually or as a group as racist and aligning with white suprematists. Blacks and Jews, including non-white Jews, have stood shoulder to shoulder in the best of times and the worst of times. (White racists who thought the OB racist plaque celebrating and forgiving a southern civil war rebel should remain on public land are the ones who need to look at their racism.)
——————–
There is no reason to promote the liberal left’s growing antisemitism in this newspaper without allowing room for rebuttal and explanation of why comments, such as I’ve outlined above, are hate speech. As I’ve stated many times, the idea that free speech is allowed here, even ugly hate speech against Jews and hatred of Israel, would be okay. BUT, it becomes something entirely out of bounds when a rebuttal is censored.
When someone lies by saying I support Trump, who cares? When someone lies to promote his venomous Jew hatred and racism and misogyny, however, that’s something else. In fact, the antisemitism running wild today among many dems is why many liberal Jews have left the party. Many will not vote this November. This newspaper cannot continue to host those with an antisemtic viewpoint without hosting those who explain why that hate speech is immoral and unAmerican.
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