Jake Oliveira is now the sixth member of Portuguese origin in the MA House

Luso-descendant Jake Oliveira, 34, will be the State Representative for the 7th Electoral District of Massachusetts. The November 3rd election results were close, but his opponent already conceded: Oliveira obtained 50.36% (or 11,256) of the votes.

Oliveira’s victory means another State Representative of Portuguese origin at the “Bay State” House, and it is also historical: he is the first Luso-descendant to represent the 7th Electoral District.

“As the great-grandkid of Portuguese immigrants in Ludlow, I am very happy with the election,” stated Oliveira, in an interview with the Luso-Americano newspaper. “Our community has a long history of ties with Portugal, and I am looking forward to taking on my new responsibilities.”

The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for January 6th, with the location still to be determined due to the uncertain COVID-19 situation.

Oliveira will start earning the state legislator annual salary of 66,257 dollars.

Oliveira will be the sixth member of Portuguese origin of the Massachusetts House. The other five were reelected on November 3rd (António Cabral, Dylan Fernandes, Alan Sílvia, David Vieira, and Carol Gomes Doherty). Jake Oliveira is a member of the Ludlow School Committee, and he won the Democratic primaries without opposition. In the general election, he faced Republican James “Chip” Harrington. The incumbent State Representative, Thomas Petrolati (D), decided not to run for reelection.

With a Political Science degree, Jake Oliveira worked for Luso-American Senator Michael Rodrigues about ten years ago.

The candidate is the great-grandchild of migrants from Guarda, “one of the first Portuguese families to settle in Ludlow. They came to work in the manufacturing industry. My connection to my Portuguese origins is very strong (even though I am also of Polish origin). Last year, by the way, I went to Portugal for the first time, and I visited my family’s hometown.”

Besides Ludlow and Chicopee,  the 7th District also includes the city of Springfield.

Oliveira went to high school in Ludlow and graduated in Political Science at Framingham State University in 2008. In addition to occupying a seat in the school committee for the last 11 years, he has been a reference in the Education field in Massachusetts.

A Ludlow native, he still lives on East Street, next to his grandmother, Lena Oliveira.