As budget season closes, Boston moves ever closer to the midterms. At a forum hosted by the Ward 4 Dems and Ward 5 Democratic Committee at Berklee College of Music, Massachusetts State Senate 1st Suffolk District candidates Latoya Gayle, Juwan Skeens, and incumbent Nick Collins faced off for the first time ahead of the Democratic primary on September 1.

Moderator and Boston Globe Political Reporter Samantha Gross asked a series of questions about how the three would function as state senators, with a focus on the outcomes they would pursue for Boston residents. The three candidates shared some common ground on issues of government transparency, the need for more housing, and the necessity of the state audit, but differed on implementation.

Collins has served as the district’s state senator since 2018 after an eight-year tenure in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. He has spent much of the past year clashing with Mayor Michelle Wu over her attempt at temporarily shifting more of the city’s property tax burden onto commercial real estate to ease tax spikes on homeowners.

“I believe that this district needs someone with the experience and the ability to deliver for the district,” Collins said

With Wu’s endorsement, Gayle enters the race as a mother of four and the Senior Director of Advocacy and Family Partnerships at Neighborhood Villages.

“For the last two decades, I built a career in advocacy that was driven because I have a child on the autism spectrum,” she said.

Skeens is the founder and executive director of Boston-based non-profit By Believe Inspire Repeat Tree House. He is no stranger to local elections, having run for Boston City At-Large and  District 4  in 2023 and 2025, respectively, and for First Suffolk in 2024.

“I’ve been running for office since 2023, calling attention to the issues inside of my community, and I have no plans on slowing down or stopping,” he said

Collins stood firm on refusing to shift the property tax burden onto commercial real estate, with Skeens positing it should be shared equally and Gayle supporting the policy, “like the majority of electeds who represent the City of Boston.”

On rent stabilization and just cause evictions, Collins said he supports a local option for the former but opposes the latter. The two other candidates said they would support both, with Skeens adding that he thinks stabilization is “too nice” and would prefer rent control.

“When there was rent control back in 1994, our rent was about maybe $500, $600, for a one bedroom,” Skeens said. “Right now, we see it skyrocketing to about $3,000 a bedroom. Rent stabilization, I don’t think will come as close to rent control.” 

All three candidates agreed that housing was the greatest issue facing the city. Gayle said the state should find ways to build more housing, stabilize rents, and hold utility companies accountable for rising bills. Skeens added that he would factor in insurance rates and how residents are discriminated against by zip code and consider breaking up what he called a monopoly on utilities.

Collins leaned on his support for the MBTA Community Act.

“We should be putting our foot on the gas with MBTA assets, particularly in the outskirts of the city. If you think about all the commuter rail stops that have parking lots, they’re not subject to local zoning. We can be building affordable housing at scale, leveraging public land,” he said.

To get more housing developed, Gayle said the state should fund projects already authorized under the Affordable Homes Act and apply a real estate transfer fee to finance more affordable housing.

Skeens said he would tap into the Community Preservation Act to expand affordable housing development within the city. He added that implementing rent control would help place residents in the state’s roughly 258,000 vacant units.

Collins said all options should be on the table and that there is a need to build not only affordable housing but also workforce and market-rate units. He favors a development strategy similar to that of the Mary Ellen McCormick, where public assets have been used to build large numbers of units in areas that can absorb density.

As a representative of a large portion of southern Boston, the First Suffolk State Senator shares a constituency with Wu. Gayle said she would see her role as a partner to the city, able to accomplish more together than in conflict.

“I’ve gotten to know [Wu] since I’ve thrown my hat in the ring for state senate, and we have a great relationship so far,” she said.

Skeens said he thinks the state could do more to support the city, not just its mayor, but that partnership between levels of government “goes hand in hand.”

Collins said his relationship with City Hall is both a partnership and a check on the city’s priorities.

“We’ve had great partnerships and great success in the legislature, working with the city,” he said. “ I’ve supported the mayor and the city’s efforts much more than I haven’t. But when it comes to complicated issues, sometimes we need to compromise.”

The Democratic Party has been in a rough spot since the 2024 election. Despite progressive victories in New York City, Philadelphia, and Maine’s Senate primary, party leadership has been lacking and frequently at odds with both voters and candidates.

Gayle said that the party needs to decouple money from elections and lean into progressive values. 

“I think the Democratic Party has shied away from them, and we see the result of that,” she said. “We need to lean into our progressive values and actually be progressive as Democrats.”

Skeens added that the party would do well to be more supportive of its candidates, claiming to have not received any support during his four years running for public office. He, too, opposes Citizens United and said there should not be unlimited funds flowing into elections.

“I support our party chair, Stave Kerrigan. I think he’s doing a very good job,” Collins said.

He added that the party should work to distill polarization and push for a more objective truth.

“We see how weaponized social media can be, so supporting community-based journalism and the free press is incredibly important, as that has been the backstop against this misinformation that has filled the ether,” Collins said.

He said the party should work to get more people involved through same-day voter registration and messaging around broad-based priorities that support growing the middle class, growing the economy, and supporting those on the margins instead of spending time reacting to the other side.

The full hour-long forum can be viewed on the Ward 4 Democratic Committee’s YouTube Channel.