State Rep. Evandro Carvalho, running for re-election in the Fifth Suffolk District after winning the seat in a special election in 2014, is facing challenges from perennial candidate Althea Garrison, who held the position for one term in the early 1990s, and from Melinda Stewart, a reticent newcomer to the local political scene.

The three names are on the primary ballot in sections of Dorchester and Roxbury for the Thurs., Sept. 8, election. The district includes Uphams Corner, Bowdoin-Geneva, Grove Hall, Meetinghouse Hill, and parts of Fields Corner, Melville-Park, and Codman Square.

Carvalho, who succeeded former Rep. Carlos Henriquez after his ouster from the House, is a Cape Verdean native who has lived and worked in Dorchester and Roxbury since arriving in the US at the age of 15.

Garrison is a familiar face for many in the district, having run for numerous offices since her original bid for state representative in 1982. She was elected to the Fifth Suffolk seat in 1992 and served one term. Since then, she has been unsuccessful in campaigns for various city and state positions. She has run as a Democrat and as an Independent, and, for this election, she has registered as Republican.

Stewart, whose social media accounts indicate she works for a Boston non-profit, did not respond to outreach from the Reporter. According to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance, she is running as a Democrat. She has no correspondence filed nor has any campaign committee information been listed.

The Reporter asked each of the candidates to fill out a questionnaire that would re-introduce them to the community they hope to represent. Portions of the questionnaire and candidate responses follow, excerpted and edited for clarity. All questions and answers are available in full at dotnews.com.

Q. Please describe your community background. Feel free to note any local organizations with which you have been involved.

Carvalho: Before being elected, I was on the board of Teen Empowerment in Dorchester. I was also a volunteer for MAHA - Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance - in Dorchester, where I advocated for banks to give families affordable mortgages.  

Garrison: My community background is also deep in my community. I have been a community activist for at least 40 years. I am vice president of Uphams Corner Health Center for over 23 years and a board of directors member for at least 25 years. I served on the board of directors of Suffolk University’s General Alumni Association for over two years.

Q. Please name up to three (and at least one) of your political role models? Please feel free to explain your choices.

Carvalho: President Barack Obama has been my number one inspiration! He was the first person I voted for in America, as I just became a citizen around the time of his first election in 2008. I was living in Washington D.C. at that point (I’m a Howard University School of Law graduate, class of 2008) and attended his inauguration. Since then I’ve watched him closely and, though I don’t always agree with his policies, I admire his ability to stay cool no matter the pressure and listen to both sides of an issue. Beyond Obama, I idolized Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., and Amilcar Cabral – individuals who lived and died for the betterment of their people.

Garrison: My political role models are President Ronald Reagan and Congresswoman Barbara Jordan of Texas.

Q. If this is your first run for office, what drew you to seek this post? If you are an incumbent, what would you like to build upon from your earlier terms?

Carvalho: I want to continue to push for economic social justice policies: 1) high quality early education so that our children can start on a path to success from birth; 2) workforce development and job training programs, particularly for youth and young adults; 3) better opportunities for immigrant integration; 4) [progress] on transportation inequities particularly as it relates to the MBTA. I will also continue to push for sound criminal justice reforms; lengthy prison time, CORI, and drug and alcohol addiction continue to have devastating, crippling consequences in our community.  

Garrison: This is not my first run. I have run many times for various elected positions and in 1992 I got elected as state representative in the 5th Suffolk District and served one term (1993-1994) and I could build upon my past experience and being a competent and effective state representative. Some of my policy platforms I would like to highlight during the campaign and address are the homelessness problem among families who can’t afford the high rents; [the] fight to repeal the 9.3 percent increase in the MBTA fare increases because this outrageous fare increase affects urban commuters; [and the] fight for real affordable child care for working mothers. In addition I would like to fight for real affordable housing for poor and modest income families who needs more affordable housing.