A 19-year old Asian American first year student at Harvard hopes to inspire young people to get involved in politics by running herself.
Nadya Okamoto is up against a field of 25 candidates, including eight incumbents. There are nine open seats for the Cambridge City Council near Boston.
Her odds are long, but her unusual candidacy has garnered national attention in a city where over 30 percent of the adult population is enrolled at Harvard.
“This campaign is about Cambridge. It’s about fighting for more equity and empowerment and opportunity on the local level. But at the same time, we’re onto something bigger than us and bigger than Cambridge,” Okamoto told the Cambridge Wicked. “If we win, this is setting a precedent for young people being worth talking to and listening to, and having the ability to do something beautiful.”
Her campaign staff is made up entirely of undergraduates. All lack political experience, but Okamoto is no stranger to organizing. She launched the national non-profit PERIOD while in high school. The organization seeks to provide feminine hygiene products to low income students.
There’s so much we can be doing” she said to the Harvard Crimson. “Whether that be pre-K programs or school funding or organizing.”
Her campaign is focused on housing, increased funding on pre-K programs and getting the young politically engaged. First she must overcome the skeptics.
“I have to admit to being just a bit wary when someone who is brand new to the city —and who likely knows next to nothing about the city, its neighborhoods, or its history—launches into a self-promotional tour before actually getting to know more than a handful of people who actually live here,” said local political pundit and the editor of the Cambridge City Journal, Robert Winters.
Okamoto counters that the fact that she’s both young and an outsider make her a legitimate choice.
“I think we have a stronger future if young people are involved in those conversations.”
Note from the Editor: An earlier version of this story may have posted in incorrect picture of Okamoto
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