Just two days after State Rep. Kay Khan announced her retirement from the legislature, Amy Mah Sangiolo has announced that she’s running for the 11th District seat.
“After 20 years as a City Councilor, I am excited to put my passion for public service and advocacy on behalf of Newton residents in our House of Representatives,” Sangiolo wrote in a statement. “Kay has been a dedicated and effective State Representative, and I am committed to carrying on her legacy of progressive leadership especially when it comes to climate change, health care, transportation funding and protecting seniors.”
The district covers parts of Newton’s wards 1, 2, 3, 4 and 7.
Sangiolo is an attorney and works in the state attorney general’s Consumer Advocacy Response Division. She served as an alderman and then city councilor from 1998 to 2017, focusing much of her efforts on affordable housing, park expansion, open space preservation and school funding.
She had an unsuccessful run for mayor in 2021 against Mayor Ruthanne Fuller.
And in 2022, she co-founded the online newspaper Fig City News.
Sangiolo serves on the boards of the Organization of Chinese Americans–APAA New England chapter, and the Dow Fund which provides resources for legal service providers for the Asian community.
“As proud as I am to serve through enacting public policy, nothing is more important than listening and providing direct constituent services,” Sangiolo continued. “Fighting for progressive values, ensuring people know what is happening in their community, and getting results. That has been my track record in Newton, and that is the approach I will take as your Representative at the State House. I look forward to spending the next several months knocking on doors all over the district and hearing directly from the voters about their hopes and concerns.”
Sangiolo earned her bachelor’s degree from Barnard College and her law degree from Rutgers Law School. She and her husband, John, live in Auburndale and have three adult kids and two dogs, Frank and Aji.