John Barrett III (born 1947) is an American politician serving as a Democratic member of the

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into single-member ...

. He was elected to the post on November 7, 2017, filling the vacant seat previously held by

Gailanne Cariddi Gailanne M. Cariddi (November 1, 1953 – June 17, 2017) was an American politician as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives for the First Berkshire district. The First Berkshire District consists of nine communities including t ...

, who had died of cancer in June 2017. He represents the furthest northwest district in the state, the 1st

Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...

district. Barrett serves on three committees in the chamber: the Joint Committee on Marijuana Policy, the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing, and the Joint Committee on Election Laws. Barrett was reelected to the House of Representatives in 2018. Barrett previously served as the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of North Adams for twenty-six years, from 1984 to 2009, making him at the time the longest-serving mayor in the state. As mayor, he was noted for his efforts to revive the city's economy after the closure of a leading employer, Sprague Electric, and as a supporter of the

Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art The Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA) is a museum in a converted Arnold Print Works factory building complex located in North Adams, Massachusetts. It is one of the largest centers for contemporary visual art and performing ar ...

, which opened in the former Sprague facility in 1999. In his 2009 bid for a fourteenth term, he was defeated by council member Dick Alcombright. He won a term on the city council in 2011, then lost to Alcombright in another run for mayor in 2015. He attended North Adams State College, now known as

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) formerly known as North Adams State College (NASC) is a public liberal arts college in North Adams, Massachusetts. It is part of the state university system of Massachusetts. It is a member of the ...

(MCLA), where he received

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ye ...

and

master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

degrees as well as an honorary doctor of public service degree and the distinguished alumni award, and in 2016 he was named to MCLA's board of trustees. "MCLA Announces Appointments to Board of Trustees"
, MCLA, April 2016 (accessed 2018-03-08).

References

1947 births Living people Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts alumni Massachusetts city council members Democratic Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives People from North Adams, Massachusetts 21st-century American politicians {{Massachusetts-MARepresentative-stub

See also

References