Chelmsford's Van Tassell Running for State Representative

Chelmsford resident Ken Van Tassell announced this week that he will be running for the 14th Middlesex District State Representative seat on the platform of improving public education, protecting privacy and restoring government transparency.

Van Tassell is a lifelong Chelmsford native who earned the rank of Eagle Scout while attending Chelmsford High School. 

A Libertarian candidate, Van Tassell said that because he graduated from college just last year, he understands the challenges facing young people when it comes to the education system.

“Now is not the time to lower curriculum standards and force teachers to change what has worked so well for Massachusetts,” said Van Tassell. “Let our teachers teach and keep the politicians out of the way. Educators don’t attend college for six to eight years to have them be told by politicians how best to run their classroom. Educators are the ones who should do the teaching, the job of the State Legislature is to make sure they have the appropriate tools and environment to do so.”

If elected, Van Tassell said he will work to sponsor a bill that requires all roll call votes be made available in a searchable database on the state's website.

The Chelmsford resident said this bill would make it easy for residents to find out how their representative voted on key issues.

“Massachusetts is currently tied for last place with Alabama, Kentucky, and Nebraska in government transparency, receiving a grade of F in a recent non-partisan study examining how state legislatures make data available online,” said Van Tassell. “This is unacceptable. The people of Massachusetts deserve to know how their Representatives are voting on each and every bill that makes its way through the House and Senate in a timely fashion.”

For more information on Van Tassell's candidacy, visit him on Facebook or email Campaign@ElectVanTassell.com.