Justin Thurber vies for Haddad's rep. seat in Fifth Bristol District

SOMERSET — In over 20 years as a state representative, Pat Haddad has rarely faced a challenger.

On Nov. 8 Haddad will face off against political newcomer Justin Thurber, a retired United States Air Force reserve whose path to the General Election has been unconventional.

Thurber, a Swansea native and a Somerset resident, retired last October and was told by friends to run for office. In March of this year, that request for him to run came from James Lyons, the chairman of the state’s Republican Party.

Thurber said he had to change his party affiliation from unaffiliated to Republican. Due to campaign laws, Thurber couldn’t appear officially as a candidate for the recent primary election. However, he learned in June that no Republican had come forward to challenge Haddad so Lyons encouraged Thurber to run a write-in campaign.

His late entry into the race forced Thurber to do what he says he does best: “Think outside the box.”

Thurber said instead of knocking on doors or mailing out flyers, he relied on friends and family to spread the word. He also built his own logo and Facebook page.

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Earlier this month, he netted 285 write-in votes and now will officially face Haddad in the General Election.

“If I did it the same old same old way, I would be the same old politician,” Thurber said.

Thurber said he brings new and creative ideas to the office. His background in the military will help him develop a good mindset for the seat, he says. 

“Service before self — it’s not about you but getting the job done,” Thurber said. “When I’m a representative, it’s not about me, it’s not about the party, it’s about the people."

One of the hot button issues for Thurber is improving education after COVID policies impacted education for the area’s youth. He said economic issues and working to eliminate government bureaucracies will also be a focus.

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“A lot of those things are hitting people’s pocketbooks and they don’t see representatives doing anything to work on those issues,” he said.

Before this state representative run, Thurber once ran for a School Committee position in Swansea. However, Thurber was also running against current Swansea Selectman Christopher Carreiro. Both Thurber and Carreiro met and decided that if one of them drops out of the race, they would have a better shot of unseating the incumbent and would not split votes.

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Thurber dropped out of the race and supported Carreiro, who won the seat.

“Our plan worked,” Thurber said.

Haddad welcomes an opponent

Haddad says she has not met Thurber, but encourages people to run.

“I welcome him to the process,” she said.

She says she will be running on her long and extensive record of success.

Haddad said she will also focus on the economy and touts how she has worked on and has passed landmark legislation that has brought money back to the taxpayers in her district.

“I’m going to run on my record. I have an extensive record. I’m going to be myself. Nothing is going to change,” Haddad said.

Like Thurber, she is also concerned with education and chairs the New England Board of Higher Education, which has been analyzing learning losses due to COVID.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: State Rep. Pat Haddad has a challenger in Fifth Bristol District