Since Monday the 20th, Representative Robert Quattrocchi has been in the media for asking fellow Representative Rebecca Kislak if she was a pedophile. The situation has only escalated since then, including his removal from the State Government and Elections Committee last week.

I am uniquely poised to opine on this subject, as I ran as the Democratic candidate against Quattrocchi in 2018, and now reside in Kislak’s district.

Quattrocchi’s recent actions have outraged many, but this is far from the first time he has acted so deranged. I felt compelled to run against Quattrocchi in 2018 to represent my home town honorably after returning from serving in the Navy. I feared his rhetoric would escalate the longer he stayed in office. It has.

Quattrocchi doubled down on conspiracy theories regarding the United Nations, including during the House floor debate on the Reproductive Privacy Act in 2019. Scituate was in contention, post WWII, to be host of the United Nations. It’s sad that Scituate’s sole representative is unaware of the Town’s history. Or, is it possible that he simply doesn’t care about history and chooses to highlight the opinions of conspiracy theorists more?

In 2020, when voting by mail was a choice many voters asked for in April’s Presidential Preference Primary, Quattrocchi made a lofty claim. On Facebook he remarked that “…this is conditioning the populace to accept this type of voting as “normal.”” Quattrocchi failed to include in his 2020 thoughts about potential voter fraud that his campaign sent out mail ballot applications in 2018. One of the reasons he felt voting by mail could be a good idea then included not being able to predict bad weather at the November polls. Of note, voting by mail has been normal for members of our military for decades. I voted by mail in 2021’s Senate District 3 special election while serving in the Navy during Operation Allies Refuge in Bahrain.

His comments on St. Patrick’s Day included allusions to the Satanic Panic of the 1980’s, and incorrect assumptions about pedophilia and members of the LGBTQ+ community. LGBTQ+ people are not groomers, and simply want to live their lives with the same freedoms afforded to their cisgender, heterosexual neighbors. The Satanic Temple has consistently advocated for Americans’ First Amendment rights, including freedom of speech and freedom of religion. They have never advocated for the abduction or abuse of children. But, here we go again, another slew of articles in the local news about Representative Quattrocchi and his conspiracy theories.

Some have asked me to opine on the Boston Globe’s recent article regarding James Safford, who ran against Quattrocchi in 2022. Safford ran in a three way race as a Democrat in 2018, coming in third to Gordon Rogers. I supported Dr. Michael Fine (I) in that race, as Dr. Fine has been a wonderful member of the Scituate community for decades. Safford decided to spend much of his campaign discussing conspiracy theories about Gina Raimondo and Interstate 84 expansion. After taking 2020 off, Safford put his hat in the ring again this last year, running against Quattrocchi. I must say, Safford and Quattrocchi must have something in common, as they both enjoy wasting time on conspiracy theories, and both supported Donald Trump in 2020. As to my opinion: If Safford chooses to run again, I will not support his candidacy. He is going down the same path that Quattrocchi went, albeit several miles behind him. Scituate and Western Cranston deserve better representation than them both. 

Quattrocchi should take a seat and observe how he is harming his constituents with his outbursts that place conspiracy theories above all else. Since 2018 Representative Quattrocchi has only felt emboldened to dog whistle and parrot these theories. At what point is enough enough?

Michael C Steiner was the 2018 Democratic candidate for House District 41, Scituate/Cranston.