Harriette L. Chandler is the Massachusetts State Senator for the 1st Worcester district, which includes parts of the city of Worcester

Worcester, Massachusetts

Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....

, where she resides, and the towns of Berlin

Berlin, Massachusetts

Berlin is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 2,866 at the 2010 census.- History :Berlin was first settled in 1665 and was officially incorporated in 1812....

, Boylston

Boylston, Massachusetts

Boylston is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,355 at the 2010 census.-History:Boylston was first settled by Europeans around 1706 in the north part of the present-day town, most notably by the Sawyer family...

, Holden

Holden, Massachusetts

Holden is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The town was founded in 1741, and the Town Square was donated by John Hancock, former Governor of Massachusetts.The population was 17,346 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...

, Paxton

Paxton, Massachusetts

Paxton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,806 at the 2010 census.-History:Paxton was first settled in 1749 and was officially incorporated in 1765....

, Princeton

Princeton, Massachusetts

Princeton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States.It is bordered on the east by Sterling and Leominster, on the north by Westminster, on the northwest by Hubbardston, on the southwest by Rutland, and on the southeast by Holden....

, and West Boylston

West Boylston, Massachusetts

-Library:The West Boylston public library was established in 1878. In fiscal year 2008, the town of West Boylston spent 1.6% of its budget on its public library—some $37 per person.-External links:******...

, and parts of Clinton

Clinton, Massachusetts

Clinton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,606 at the 2010 census.For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Clinton, please see the article Clinton , Massachusetts....

, and Northborough

Northborough, Massachusetts

Northborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The official spelling of the town's name is "Northborough", but the shorter spelling "Northboro" is also used...

. She is a Democrat

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 who has served since January 2001. From 1995 to 2001 she was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives

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 single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...

. Prior to serving in the Massachusetts legislature, she was a member of the Worcester school committee from 1991 to 1994. She is the first woman from Worcester to ever be elected to the Massachusetts Senate.

Leadership positions and committee assignments

Chandler is the current Assistant Majority Whip of the Senate and the Vice-Chair of the Joint Committee on Public Health. Previously, she was the Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Federal Stimulus Oversight, the Assistant Vice-Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, and the Vice-Chair of the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs.

During her last two terms in the House, she was the Chair of the Joint Committee on Health Care.

Caucuses and organizations

Senator Chandler also sits on several caucuses and boards, including the Legislature’s Oral Health Caucus (Co-Chair), the Central Massachusetts Caucus, the Caucus of Women Legislators, the Legislature’s Tobacco Control Caucus, the Leadership Council of the Worcester County Regional Network, the Worcester Women’s History Project, the Worcester Art Museum, the United Way of Central Massachusetts, the Jewish Healthcare Center, the Worcester Democratic City Committee and the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee.

Political views

Chandler is a long-time pragmatic progressive advocate for health care reform, education, veterans’ issues, housing, civil rights, and women’s matters.

Lawsuits

In November 2010, Chandler filed a defamation lawsuit against William J. Higgins Sr., her opponent in the November 2010 election. She claimed Higgins knowingly made false statements about her during the campaign that went well beyond reasonable political campaign statements. The lawsuit, and a lawsuit in response from Higgins, were dropped in June 2011 after Higgins admitted his allegations were not true.

Personal life

Senator Chandler earned degrees from Wellesley College (B.A.), Simmons College

Simmons College (Massachusetts)

Simmons College, established in 1899, is a private women's undergraduate college and private co-educational graduate school in Boston, Massachusetts.-History:Simmons was founded in 1899 with a bequest by John Simmons a wealthy clothing manufacturer in Boston...

 (M.B.A.), and Clark University

Clark University

Clark University is a private research university and liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts.Founded in 1887, it is the oldest educational institution founded as an all-graduate university. Clark now also educates undergraduates...

(Ph.D.). She is married to Worcester attorney Burton Chandler and has three adult children and four grandchildren.