jackiedoherty.org

I was once advised “never let yourself get too up or down in politics.”  Good advice, but hard to take.  For incumbents who lost a seat, for challengers who didn’t make it, even for myself (less votes than the last election), the day after can be tough. There is comfort, however, in knowing that you had the courage to run, the commitment to work hard to achieve your goal, and the willingness to be an active player in the most important part of our democratic process. Thanks to all the candidates who ran and congratulations to those who got elected. Novelist and poet Barbara Kingsolver puts it in perspective this way: “Wars and elections are both too big and too small to matter in the long run. The daily work that goes on, it adds up.”

And so, I am grateful to be re-elected to the Lowell School Committee to continue the daily work of improving our schools. Thank you to all those people who donated to my campaign, gave me lawn sign locations, held signs at the polls in the cold and rain, and encouraged me every day in so many ways. Most importantly, thanks to every citizen who braved the weather yesterday to vote for me. Thank you for the opportunity to serve our community in this way. I am as determined as ever to continue to be an outspoken advocate for our children and to build on the progress we’ve made toward excellent schools.