The candidates are crisscrossing the district. They’re opening campaign headquarters on Blue Hill Avenue and Washington Street and announcing a steady stream of endorsements.

But the race to replace retiring state Rep. Willie Mae Allen and to become the next state representative from the Sixth Suffolk District, an area that includes parts of Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park and slivers of Roslindale and Jamaica Plain, has largely been a quiet affair. The first full-blown forum of the campaign, planned by the civic nonprofit MassVOTE, is scheduled for Aug. 26.

...

Karen Payne: Her grandmother founded a church in Connecticut. And her mother organized tenants and worked as a campaign manager for mayoral candidate in Hartford. “It’s in our blood to continue to give back to our communities,” Payne said in an interview at her campaign office in Codman Square.

As president of the local chapter of the NAACP, she worked on combating drop-out rates and increasing awareness of the HIV/AIDS virus, she said. She has also worked on the campaign of Rep. Liza Malia (D-Jamaica Plain), whom she met during a community meeting when Malia was a State House aide. She is also a member of the Democratic State Committee.

A Roslindale resident, she has also lived in and around Dorchester and Mattapan. “I’ve been out in the community and people know me,” she said. She has three degrees, in information technology, management, and science, and worked at the New England Medical Center for 24 years. Payne has picked up a number of endorsements, including support from gay rights group MassEquality, Latino political group Oiste, pro-choice organization NARAL, and several unions covering teachers, carpenters and restaurant and hotel workers. Lawmakers supporting her include Allen and Malia, Rep. Marty Walsh (D-Dorchester), Rep. Alice Wolf (D-Cambridge), and Rep. Carl Sciortino (D-Medford).

Read the full article at:
http://www.dotnews.com/2010/sixth-suffolk-shuffle-five-candidates-seek-replace-allen-house