This week, Rep. Carl Sciortino, Jr. picked up seven new endorsements for his bid to win re-election to the State House. The three-term Democrat represents Somerville's Ward 7, parts of Ward 4 and parts of Medford. All seven endorsing organizations describe themselves as working to support working families.

"Rep. Sciortino's work on affordable health care, accessible senior housing, closing corporate tax loopholes and the sustainable creation of jobs in this economy shows his commitment to the working families in his district," said Genevieve Coyle of the National Association of Social Workers, Massachusetts Chapter, one the seven new endorsers.

The other six include Neighbor to Neighbor and the Massachusetts Nurses Association, as well as four Service Employees International Union branches: 1199 SEIU Massachusetts, SEIU Local 509, SEIU Local 888, and the SEIU Massachusetts State Council.

A sensational campaign history

Rep. Sciortino first gained a seat at the State House in an upset by defeating eight-term incumbent Vincent Ciampa in the hotly—and nastily—contested 2004 race. During that campaign, Sciortino's opponents distributed incendiary pamphlets stating that the openly gay candidate was a ''militant homosexual activist" or that he was part of a ''a secret campaign to install a homosexual, anti-Catholic extremist in the state Legislature." (Read Boston Globe coverage here). Sciortino stuck to discussing the issues and won.

In an equally tense reelection campaign in 2008, he managed to keep his seat after his nomination papers mysteriously vanished from his State House office, forcing him to run as a write-in candidate. This year, he is opposed by independent candidate Richard J. Cannava of Medford.

Pushing for jobs, higher wages and budget transparency

"Increasing the minimum wage, closing corporate tax loopholes, and bringing transparency to our state's finances are just a few examples of what I've worked hard to accomplish," said Rep. Sciortino. "I've also prioritized investments in local infrastructure and grants for local business to support the creation of local jobs. In my past three terms in the State House, I have fought for these issues and hope for the opportunity to continue fighting for the needs of working families in our community."

Rep. Sciortino was a lead advocate of a budget transparency measure that passed this year.  "Knowing where our money is going, and being able to measure the effectiveness of state spending, particularly on business tax incentives, is critical to ensuring the most efficient and robust job creation in the state," said Rep. Sciortino. "Starting next year every dollar spent in every state agency and quasi-public entity like the MBTA will be online and searchable, in addition to detailed information about what businesses have received tax breaks intended to spur job growth."

SEIU praises "fighter for working families"

"Rep. Sciortino has been a consistent fighter for working families since he first was elected to office," said Harris Gruman, Executive Director of SEIU Massachusetts State Council. "Rep. Sciortino knows that investing in our community beats tax breaks for multinational corporations as the best way to create jobs and opportunities for working families right here in Massachusetts. SEIU is excited to endorse Rep. Sciortino and looks forward to continuing our work with him."

Other organizations that have endorsed Rep. Sciortino include the American Federation of Teachers-Massachusetts, the Boston Teachers Union, the Massachusetts Teachers Association, the Massachusetts Chapter of the National Organization for Women, NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, MassEquality, Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts, Mass Alliance, the Victory Fund, the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus, the Progressive Democrats of Somerville, the Bay State Stonewall Democrats, Clean Water Action, the Sierra Club, the Massachusetts Organization of State Engineers and Scientists, and the Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters. He is running for re-election on November 2. His website is www.electcarl.org.