Barrios Masters Art of Practical Politics

Jarrett T. Barrios '90 is unstoppable.

The 31-year-old Harvard College graduate has made the transition from Pizza and Politics to public housing without missing a beat, becoming one of the most successful young legislators in the Massachusetts General Assembly.

In the general election just four months away, Barrios is currently unopposed, and the Republican Party acknowledges it's not likely they will recruit a candidate to run against him.

More important is what Barrios' efforts mean for the political climate of Cambridge and perhaps even Massachusetts: that a state once dominated by liberal Democrats, but more recently by moderate Republicans, may be switching back to the Democrats--provided that they have the right candidate.

This is where Barrios comes in.

His job, however, is a difficult one. His district in Cambridge comprises nearly 38,000 people, of very diverse ethnic groups, religions and, especially, socioeconomic classes.

The district is 25 percent black, 7 percent Latino and 10 percent gay. While the district contains a large amount of public housing, there is also a large percentage of higher-income families.

Thus the question of just whom to represent comes to the fore.

This doesn't faze Barrios. He describes his legislative agenda in the vague terms so characteristic of political jargon.

His priorities, he says, lie in "listening to what the constituents have to say, because it is important to me."

Yet his actions may just be that simple--and effective.

For example, one of Barrios' favorite accomplishments lies in the realm of affordable housing.

"The State Low Income Housing Credit Act we passed will go a long way towards solving the problem [of housing]," Barrios says. "A tax credit for low- to middle-income families is something my constituents need."

The key, Barrios says, is to keep residents in Cambridge, so that they can establish themselves in their communities.

"Some families are not always so good at nesting in neighborhoods--they need to get involved, and we need to reach out to them, because they're not on the radar screen yet," he says.

Despite the costliness of the tax credit and other expensive programs, such as increasing health care benefits to immigrants and low-income families, many of Barrios' ideas have been passed into law with bipartisan support.

For example, the Community Preservation Act was passed through the joint effort of local and state officials who established a fund to rejuvenate Cambridge's parks.

The program was also sponsored by Republican Governor A. Paul Cellucci, whose clashes with the Democratic legislator have been angry and often, and who also supported the tax credit as part of his push for less government bureaucracy.

But although Barrios has mastered the art of practical politics since his election to the House of Representatives in 1998, his agenda is still a liberal one--and he is proud of it.

This shows in his support of the living wage campaign for human service workers, an issue which traditionally falls along party lines.

Barrios criticizes the "mistakes of the Republican administration" in allowing the wage for social workers to fall almost 25 percent over the last 10 years.

"They weren't paid so well to begin with," Barrios says. "Since Weld and Cellucci, their wages have fallen considerably."

Barrios' door-to-door campaigning style has been one of the major factors in his popularity. The public has been receptive to his message because of the simple fact that he listens to them.

Barrios believes a well-run campaign, one that takes public opinion carefully into account, will result in an effective and informed legislator.

"Obviously, a seamless campaign will lead to a seamless legislative office," he says. "You know what your constituents think, what they are saying, and you can do their bidding."

And now, without an opponent, Barrios can concentrate on what matters--managing the matters of his constituents.

"I think it has worked," Barrios says. "We're doing the right things."

And in a state which recently re-elected a Republican governor for the first time since the 1870's, a young, emerging liberal may be exactly the shot in the arm the Democratic party needs.