Alex Morse
Alex B. Morse is the 44th and current mayor of Holyoke, Massachusetts. On November 8, 2011, he was elected the youngest mayor of Holyoke at age 22, defeating incumbent Mayor Elaine Pluta. He has since been re-elected three times, and is presently serving the first four-year term as mayor of the city.
A member of the Democratic Party, Morse was the first incumbent mayor in the Commonwealth to endorse the legalization of cannabis during a 2016 ballot initiative, an industry he has since sought to promote in Holyoke's economy, in tandem with information technology startups.
In July 2019, Morse announced his run for Congress in Massachusetts's 1st congressional district.
Early life and education
Alex Morse was born on January 29, 1989, in Holyoke, Massachusetts, the youngest of three children of Tracey and Ingrid Morse. He is Jewish. At a young age Morse took an interest in politics, joining the Holyoke Youth Commission in 2001 at the age of 12, a group which advises city leaders on issues affecting young people. A graduate of the Holyoke Public Schools, Morse served two terms as student representative for the Holyoke School Committee and three years on the Massachusetts Governor’s LGBT Commission. He was a participant in Upward Bound, a federal program that facilitates higher education in students from low-income families.During his time at Holyoke High School, Morse formed a chapter of the Gay-Straight Alliance, and was the inaugural recipient of Boston's Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays Elsie Frank Award, a scholarship named in honor of the mother of Congressman Barney Frank. The following autumn Morse entered Brown University, working part-time as an assistant for Providence, Rhode Island Mayor and future Congressman David Cicilline. Morse graduated in the spring of 2011 with a Bachelor of Arts in Urban Studies. In 2016, Morse completed program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government as a Leadership Fellow.
Mayor of Holyoke
Elections
In January 2011 Morse announced his campaign for Mayor of Holyoke, while he was in his final semester at Brown University. During the prior summer Morse attended a three-day workshop in New York City hosted by Wellstone Action, a grassroots campaign training organization for progressives, and began quietly fundraising at the end of that year.Morse's election in 2011 at the age of 22 received national coverage, as he was youngest and first openly-gay mayor of the city and, at the time, among the youngest of any in the United States.
Tenure
Cannabis industry
On August 1, 2016, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, Alex Morse became the first mayor in Massachusetts to publicly endorse the legalization of cannabis. Following legalization, Morse has encouraged investment of marijuana cultivation in the city, calling Holyoke "the Rolling Paper City", and vetoing a 2017 moratorium placed on recreational retailers by the city council. Morse has attended a number of cannabis cultivation forums as a speaker, including several on the industry which have been hosted in Holyoke. Among the earliest projects to open in Holyoke was a $10 million dollar cultivation facility for Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries which was operational by Summer 2018. Several other businesses have since purchased facilities in the city, including a $3.2 million sale of a former American Thread Company mill to Trulieve, a company seeking to produce and sell retail marijuana at the site.Casino
During the initial 2011 campaign, an issue that defined the mayoral race was plans for a potential casino in the city, with then-Mayor Elaine Pluta supporting such a measure and Alex Morse opposing. In an October 2012 editorial Morse would elaborate on his position, concluding "I oppose a casino in Holyoke because I have not given up on Holyoke". On November 26, 2012, Morse would hold a press conference announcing reversal on this stance, vowing to work with local businessman Eric Suher and others to build a casino on the site of Mountain Park, accepting a $25,000 payment from the developer to pay for the costs of a review process by the city. Facing backlash from supporters of his previous campaign against casinos, by December 2012 Morse had reversed course and returned the funds, citing a ″resounding voice against the casinos″.Crime
Under the city charter, Holyoke mayors exclusively appoint the chief of police, negotiating the terms of their contracts. During Morse's administration the city has continued to see declines in crime, based on data from NeighborhoodScout from 2010 to 2018 the city has seen a 14.6% decrease in violent crime and property crime rate decline of 26.5%.Upon the retirement of Chief James Neiswanger, previously appointed by Elaine Pluta, in 2018, Morse would appoint 23-year department veteran Captain Manuel Febo following interviews with the department's four captains. Febo is the first Latino police chief in the city's history and the first in two decades to be hired from within the department upon departure of a previous chief.
Education
As the chair of the Holyoke School Committee, Morse was opposed to state receivership prior to the takeover in 2015, saying "we should agree that local control matters, which is to say that a corporate takeover of our district or a charter organization running our district, is not acceptable". Since receivership the mayor has become increasingly supportive of state implementation, as public schools have seen marked improvement, with graduation rates increasing by 20%. The mayor has also publicly supported state expanded programs such as bilingual education, and the tentative construction of two new middle schools for a reported estimate of $132 million.Labor support
In 2017, following a trial shutdown, or "brownout", of a local fire engine company, the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 1693 made a vote of no confidence for Morse, saying in a press release "Chief Pond's continued reductions to the Department and practice of operating the Department at unsafe levels, all with the support of Mayor". The Mayor has repeatedly affirmed support of the fire chief and denied the validity of these concerns, saying at a protest outside of a fundraiser that such claims were not true.In contrast, Morse was endorsed by the AFL-CIO during his 2017 election campaign, and as well as the New England Regional Council of Carpenters Local 108.
Municipal finance
Morse was criticized by the city council in 2014 for refusing to disclose reason for providing a $45,000 exit agreement to city solicitor Heather Egan, a year after her appointment. In response to this controversy Morse would state in a Reddit AMA– "I do admit that I should have briefed the City Council before executing the settlement agreement with this former employee as to avoid issues of perception. Again, when faced with the decision to potentially spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in legals costs to fight frivolous lawsuits, or to execute a settlement agreement with funds that were already allocated in the budget, I chose the latter. Separation agreements are not uncommon in both the private and public sector."During Morse's administration the city has seen growth, with the average number of building permits issued rising by more than 20%. The city's financial ratings have also remained steady or improved, according reviews by Moody's and Standard and Poor's. Following the resignation of the city auditor in 2018, who suggested receivership and stated he did not believe the Mayor's office followed protocol, state auditor Suzanne Bump responded to a city council request stating "I do not believe the circumstances in Holyoke rise to the level of warranting a state audit". In the previous month a private audit by firm CliftonLarsonAllen found all city funds accounted for. Although Holyoke's government has a strong mayor–council government, Morse has called for finance-related departments to be placed under a chief financial officer appointed by the mayor and subject to City Council confirmation. The charter currently calls for the election of city treasurers.
Sanctuary city status
On November 19, 2014 Morse issued an executive order to the Holyoke Police Department to not enforce federal civil detainer requests for holding immigrants suspected of being in the country illegally past the point they would usually be released, codifying a practice previously implemented during his tenure. This however would not apply those who were registered as sex offenders, had previous indictments or convictions, or outstanding warrants. Following a threat by the Trump administration to defund sanctuary cities in 2017, Morse reaffirmed this practice, acknowledging he knew of no instance where local police ignored federal immigration requests and that this policy does not directly affect Holyoke's largest group of residents, the Puerto Rican community, who hold American citizenship.Run for Congress
Morse was speculated by Politico and The Boston Globe to be a contender to primary Representative Richard Neal in Massachusetts's 1st congressional district. It was also reported that he could be a candidate for governor in 2022. On June 22, 2019, Morse announced his run for Congress and was later endorsed by Justice Democrats.Electoral history
Personal life
In 2012 Morse was ranked #9 in Out magazine's annual list of 100 most eligible bachelors, and again in 2013 ranking at #66. In response, Morse said "I'd like to thank Out magazine for their recognition. It's always positive to see Holyoke highlighted in national publications."Following his first re-election, Morse was hired in 2014 as a lecturer of political science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Forbes magazine named Morse in their 2019 30 Under 30 list for Law & Policy, citing his "initiatives include offering refuge to Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane Maria, encouraging legal marijuana businesses and restoring the city's downtown."
Morse's mother suffered from severe mental health issues and his brother struggled with drug addiction; both died during his term as mayor.