Q&A: Brian Clinton, Candidate for Governor's Councilor District 2

Brian Clinton says that if elected as the Governor's Councilor for District 2 of Massachusetts, he will resign his position as the chief of staff for .

The Governor's Council consists of eight districts and eight councilors, who make $26,025 a year. The Second Councillor District (double 'l' on the Commonwealth's website) represents 39 cities and towns throughout five counties, including Dedham.

"Should I earn this, I would leave Councilor Consalvo’s office after the New Year. I know what the public thinks, and you never want a perception that you are double-dipping. I'd be honored to stay home and raise my two daughters," said Clinton, a lifelong Hyde Park resident.

The election is to replace the late who passed away in February. The election is Thurs., Sept. 6. Kelly's brother, Bart, has also announced that he's running for the position.

Clinton, 39, said he's qualified for the position due to his 15 years of work in the public sector, 10 with Consalvo, and five working as the neighborhood coordinator for Roslindale and Hyde Park for the City of Boston's Neighborhood Services Department.

"I’m running for the Governor’s Council positon I can contribute in meaningful ways to the dialogues at the state level," said Clinton. "I feel like I can be more than a guy behind the scenes. I feel like it is my time to step up and contribute more."

He's also a public notary, "It’s important to have good quality notaries... in this age of fraud and taking advantage of seniors and the like, it is important that notaries are [intelligent] individuals."

"Notaries need to be knowledgable people, bright people, and we need a diverse range of notaries. The same with justices of the peace, and the people who apply for that. We need a group of candidates who everybody can access in the Commonwealth. We shouldn’t have 20 justices of the peace in a two-mile area. We need to have them spread out."

Clinton said the Governor's Council is more recognized for its Massachusetts Constitutional mandate that requires the council to vote up or down on judgeship candidates appointed by the governor.

Clinton also said, if elected, he would start using his Massachusetts real estate license, which he acquired in recent years. 

He added his work as a member of the Boston Ward 18 Democratic Committee; as a youth worker at the ; as a Board of Director of Hyde Park Main Streets for 10 years (including two terms as president); and his work on the Board of Directors at Blue Hills Bank, where he presently serves on both the Governance and Community Reinvestment Act Committee; will definitely help him if elected.

Clinton added that he knew Timilty, "I think she served with distinction for a long time. I value her service and hope to succeed her."

For more information about Brian Clinton and his candidacy for the Governor's Councilor of District 2, check out his Facebook fan page.