Meet the Candidates for District 8’s Seat on the Framingham City Council

FRAMINGHAM - The Framingham City Council seat in District 8 will be up for grabs this November, as incumbent Leslie White Harvey will be facing a challenge from former member of the group John Stefanini.

This race is a rematch of the 2023 election in District 8, as White Harvey defeated the then-incumbent Stefanini by 20 votes.

——

DISCLAIMER: Leslie White Harvey did not answer any of The Frame’s inquiries for an interview prior to publication. More information on her campaign can be found on her Facebook page.

——

Framingham native and attorney John Stefanini is looking to rejoin the City Council as District 8’s member and to add onto a political resume that has stretched decades. He served in the District 8 seat for two terms after being elected in 2019. Prior to that, Stefanini’s experience has included an unsuccessful bid for mayor of the city in 2017, five terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1993 through 2001, and an additional pair of terms as a selectman when Framingham was a town.

Stefanini said his decision to run for a City Council position again was made fairly recently.

“I feel like South Framingham has always struggled to make sure its residents’ voices are heard in the Memorial Building, and it’s a challenge,” Stefanini said in an interview with The Frame.

“I feel like we’re not being heard.”

Stefanini told The Frame that he wants to continue work towards addressing local challenges and building a communal feeling, the latter of which he called the “single biggest issue” within the city. He mentioned that one of the biggest factors in this campaign has been speaking with new people, including the newer residents and business owners of Framingham along with those who were not a part of District 8 prior to changes made to municipal districts following the 2020 U.S. Census.

Stefanini explained that “quality of life” improvements are a major pillar of his campaign: he supports the creation of a new south side elementary school, he wants the city to address environmental contamination by Cushing Memorial Park, and he is in favor of creating a local Traffic Department. If elected, he said he would push for additional traffic calming measures as well.

“We need that kind of local problem-solving on our local streets across the community—whether it’s Edgell (Road) or Water (Street), we need that kind of focus,” Stefanini continued.

Stefanini believes that his prior tenure on the City Council, specifically the two years he served while Charlie Sisitsky was mayor, was “a very productive period of time;” he attributes that sentiment to what he described as his ability to organize as well as facilitate communication and proposals. He wants to see an increase in transparency, strategic planning, and community outreach from other officials within the Memorial Building, adding that he will be available and collaborative with all stakeholders should he be elected in the fall.

In his conversation with The Frame, Stefanini notably claimed that Leslie White Harvey has not been to a meeting with the Coburnville-Tripoli Neighborhood Association, the group that he co-founded. He explained that those events typically draw 30 to 100 people.

“For our area, that’s a big group of residents...I get I’ve been active in that group, and that might be a little intimidating,” Stefanini continued.

“But, those people deserve representation as well. Our entire community deserves representation.”

Leading up to Election Day, Stefanini believes he has the track record and capacity to lead District 8 forward should he be elected to the City Council once again.

“I hope (voters) look at me and say, ‘John loves Framingham, and he has the skills, resources, and energy to improve our community,’” Stefanini said.

——

The citywide election will be held on Tuesday, November 4. The deadline to register to vote in Framingham is Saturday, October 25.

For more local voting information, visit the city’s official website by clicking here.