NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Committee to Elect Gailanne Cariddi has plans for supporters of the 1st Berkshire District's first woman representative to see her sworn in.

Cariddi, elected in November to replace outgoing Rep. Daniel E. Bosley, will be sworn in at the State House on Wednesday, July 5, at 11 a.m. with other incoming legislators.

The committee has engaged King Ward Coach transportation to accommodate the many requests of people in the 1st District to attend the ceremony. The cost for the round trip to Boston is $30 per person. There will be ample time to visit the State House, surrounding historical areas of Boston and enjoy lunch.

The bus will leave North Adams at 7 a.m. from TD Bank on Main Street. There will also be one stop in Pittsfield at the Crowne Plaza, departing at approximately 7:45 a.m.

The State House ceremony includes the oath of office for the governor, lieutenant governor, senators, representatives and members of the Governor's Council.

Anyone interested in attending the celebration should contact Antoinette Cariddi at 413-652-2023 or Marie Harpin at 413-664-4362 by noon, Thursday, Dec. 9. Participants may make their check payable to the Committee to Elect Gailanne Cariddi and send them to 100 Galvin Road, North Adams, MA 01247. 

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Gailanne Cariddi emerged as the winner in the 1st District, the first new state representative in 24 years and the first woman to occupy the seat. Although a primary election, there's no Republican running so the Democratic winner will coast to victory in November.

The longtime North Adams city councilor was surrounded by well-wishers at Petrino's Cafe on Main Street in North Adams as numbers continued to flow in from the district's hilltowns.

"I'm sure that it really hasn't hit me yet because it's so wonderful for so many voters to come out and support me," said Cariddi. "I really want to thank all the voters because without all of them, and the team we put together to run this election, we wouldn't be this happy right now."

The city native felt she was the leading candidate and her father was sure. He wasn't excited Tuesday, she said, "he said he knew I was going to win."

"Right along I felt I was the leading candidate but I told everyone I had two opponents from Adams nipping at my heels so I had to keep going," said Cariddi, referring to House hopefuls David Bisssaillon and Edward MacDonald.

Cariddi easily took North Adams, pulling 1,710 votes to Bissaillon's 575 and MacDonald's 379. She came in second in Adams, no surprise, with Bissaillon sweeping the town with 1,328 votes; Cariddi took 356 and MacDonald 261. It was in Williamstown, however, that Cariddi pulled far enough ahead that it would have been tough to catch her. She pulverized both men with 70 percent of the vote. Some 1,028 ballots were cast for Cariddi in the Purple Valley compared to 293 for Bissaillon and 164 for MacDonald.

She continued to roll up the smaller towns, gaining 221 votes in Clarksburg (Bissaillon, 120; MacDonald, 48) out of the 425 votes cast, and took Charlemont with 84 votes.

Cariddi believed her stances on the economy, jobs, community development, green initiatives, agriculture, small business, tourism and arts and culture put her over the top.

"They want somebody with a positive attitude who's going to keep moving our district forward," she said. "I think all of those things resonated with the voters. I talked about them time and time again. People wanted issues; I gave them issues."

The party was winding down at the Bounti-Fare in Adams for David Bissaillon. The former Berkshire Chamber president said he didn't want his supporters to leave sad.

"The people who worked for me, who supported me, they were my heroes. I'm grateful for what they've done," he said.

He wasn't ready to speculate on if he'd make another try at elected office — "not tonight" — and planned to take a breather and get back to work at Coakley, Pierpan, Dolan & Collins Insurance Agency.

"Unfortunately, my message didn't resonate with the voters," Bissaillon said. "We ran a clean campaign and I learned a lot. .... I wish Gail all the best. It's a great victory for her."

Edward MacDonald, who had been confident of a surge on Sunday, had already closed up his gathering at the American Legion in North Adams before we got there. The Chester town administrator had worked hard but couldn't catch Cariddi nor capture his hometown of Adams.

We received a letter and link from Bill Densmore of Williamstown with his interview of state representative candidate Gail Cariddi.

Yesterday I taped a half-hour interview with Gailanne Cariddi, one of three Democratic primary candidates for the First Berkshire District set being vacated by Daniel Bosley. As could any citizen of Williamstown, I took the opportunity to request free airtime on WilliNet, our community access cable television resource.

Densmore is a former editor of The Advocate and now a consultant and leader in shaping Web journalism. However, Densmore said he interviewed Cariddi "as a partisan, not as a reporter" for broadcast on WilliNet so don't expect any sharp questioning but he does go into how she's campaigning and what she's hearing on the trail. If anyone knows of any other candidates using YouTube or other online service, let us know and we'll post the links for everyone.

BOSTON — The Massachusetts League of Environmental Voters (MLEV), a non-partisan political group that advocates for the environment, has endorsed Gail Cariddi for 1st Berkshire District state representative, citing her strong commitment to environmental issues that affect both the commonwealth and her district.

"MLEV is pleased to announce our endorsement of Gail Cariddi,” said MLEV Executive Director Lora Wondolowski. “With her strong history of local leadership and commitment to the environment, Gail will be a great legislator for her district."

In her MLEV questionnaire, Cariddi prioritized the need to preserve public space, increase recycling rates by passing an expanded bottle bill, and to lead efforts to conserve energy. According to MLEV, as a long-time environmental advocate, Cariddi has the experience to make real change in the legislature.

For information on all MLEV’s 2010 endorsed candidates, go to www. mlev.org.

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Sierra Club on Monday endorsed Gail Cariddi of North Adams for the House of Representatives. The district includes Adams, Charlemont, Clarksburg, Florida, Hawley, Heath, Monroe, North Adams, Rowe, Savoy and Williamstown.

"Gail has a sustainable vision toward sustainability," said Phil Sego, Mass. Sierra Club political chairman, in a press release. "Her activities and commitment to environmental issues such as energy conservation and agriculture are examples of the work she'll continue as a legislator, to keep our state's economy, and environment, healthy and safe for the long term."

"I am very pleased to receive this endorsement. If elected, I plan to advocate for our sportsmen, farmers and protection of our working landscapes by seeking a seat on the Committee on Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture," Cariddi said.

The Sierra Club has endorsed candidates for legislative office across the state, including Cariddi, and three for Congress. These endorsees have shown they will be leaders on pressing environmental issues such as protecting the environment through energy conservation, alternative energy development, transit, toxics reduction and more. In the coming weeks more endorsements will be announced, said officials of the l

"Any time we can recognize environmental leadership we try to do so," said Sego. "Political leadership is as important as ever — we're increasing stress on the waste stream, our water supply, our transportation systems and our public lands while cutting these agencies budgets. Leadership is necessary to keep our environment, and our families, healthy and safe."

For a complete listing of Sierra Club political endorsements, visit www.sierraclubmass.org and click the "politics" link on the left.

The Sierra Club is the nation's oldest and largest grassroots environmental organization dedicated to the preservation, protection, and exploration of the earth’s natural environment. It is noted for its high-profile national positions, and is also deeply rooted in local, regional and statewide issues. Its endorsement process includes in-depth research and careful analysis of a questionnaire designed specifically to address local environmental issues, according to the club. The club's endorsement is then communicated to its members, which currently number greater than 25,000 statewide.