Six Democrats vying to represent Massachusetts’ 6th Congressional District laid out competing visions for the North Shore and the country during an Aug. 6 debate in Lynn, finding common ground on problems from housing costs to health care while drawing sharper distinctions over foreign policy, political experience and how aggressively to remake government.
Bethany Andres-Beck, John Beccia, Jamie Belsito, Dan Koh, Mariah Lancaster and Tram Nguyen fielded questions about trust in government, health care, housing, national defense and engaging younger voters.
Throughout the evening, candidates repeatedly returned to two themes: the financial pressure facing working families and opposition to President Donald Trump and his administration.
Housing was one area where candidates largely agreed on the severity of the problem but offered different approaches.
Beccia called for tax credits for buyers, sellers and developers, lower construction costs and zoning reform.
“We need to redefine what is considered low-income housing to make sure more people qualify,” he said.
He also called for property-tax relief and programs to help seniors remain in their homes.
Belsito focused instead on the influence of private equity, real estate interests and campaign donors.
“When we allow private equity and real estate moguls and folks that are making money off of us to continue to have no repercussions and pay for our politicians to run for office … we’re not going to get any change,” she said.
Koh warned that proposed Trump administration cuts could threaten Section 8 vouchers, community development corporations and other affordable-housing programs. He also advocated increasing supply, pointing to his experience in Boston City Hall.
“We need somebody who’s going to be dogged about working with cities and towns, understanding how to change those zoning laws, knowing where the bureaucracy is and pushing through to increase supply,” Koh said.
Healthcare brought similar agreement that the current system is too expensive but differences over how far to go in changing it.
Lancaster and Andres-Beck backed Medicare for All. Lancaster, who described working in wildlife medicine during the COVID-19 pandemic, said the experience exposed the consequences of scarcity in the healthcare system.
“We know that our healthcare workers were lauded as heroes and then abandoned with stagnating wages, trapped by student debt and left alone,” they said.
Nguyen emphasized expanding access while controlling costs, and Koh pointed to his work in the Biden administration lowering prescription drug prices. Belsito highlighted her work in maternal health and substance-use disorder, while Beccia emphasized affordability and reform of the existing system.
Some of the clearest differences came when candidates were asked how Congress should balance national defense with domestic priorities.
Nguyen, an attorney, emphasized Congress’ constitutional authority over federal spending and decisions about war.
“Our budget is a reflection of our values,” she said. “When we have illegal wars happening without congressional voting on this, that’s literally giving up the power to the executive branch that should be with the legislative branch.”
But Nguyen, who came to the United States as a refugee from Vietnam, also rejected isolationism, saying the country must rely on diplomacy and work with other governments.
Andres-Beck argued the United States already spends enough on national security but spends it in the wrong places. They criticized the country’s overseas military footprint and the defense contracting system.
“The wars of tomorrow are not going to look the same as the wars today,” she said, arguing that the war in Ukraine has demonstrated the growing importance of inexpensive drones and other emerging technologies.
Lancaster, who said she worked at the State Department and on defense appropriations in the U.S. House, called the Pentagon budget “bloated” and urged a full audit.
“The Pentagon has never passed an audit in my lifetime,” Lancaster said. “We need to make sure that every single line item in our defense budget is only what is necessary to protect our soldiers and to take care of them when they come back home.”
Belsito offered some of the evening’s strongest criticism of U.S. support for Israel, saying American military spending was coming at the expense of domestic needs.
“Instead of investing in our schools, we’re bombing schools,” she said. “And I will not be voting to fund that type of military support.”
Koh emphasized avoiding unnecessary military deployments while providing better care for veterans, and Beccia called for greater congressional oversight, diplomacy and continued support for Ukraine.
Trump was a frequent target throughout the forum, but Nguyen used her closing statement to argue that opposition to him cannot by itself define the Democratic Party or the congressional race.
“This race is not about who’s yelling at Trump the loudest because Trump will not be here forever,” Nguyen said. “We have to do better. We have to do more. We have to give people hope.”
The candidates also used their backgrounds to make the case for why they would be most effective in Washington.
Koh highlighted his work in the Biden White House, including coordinating government agencies after the 2024 collapse of Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge.
“Whether it is the tour of the Capitol or whether a city or town needs help at 3:30 a.m., I will use those experiences and deliver,” he said.
Nguyen pointed to her record in the Massachusetts Legislature, saying she has passed 13 bipartisan bills, including legislation assisting undocumented residents.
Belsito discussed her maternal-health advocacy, saying her work helped create a national hotline that has served more than 120,000 families.
Andres-Beck, a software engineer, made technological expertise central to their pitch.
“Congress does not have the expertise to oversee how the government is using these new technologies,” they said, arguing that her background would allow her to scrutinize government uses of artificial intelligence and personal data.
Beccia, a lawyer and financial-services executive, described himself as a “get-stuff-done Democrat,” saying Democrats need to fight Trump but also “find common ground to get things done.”
The evening’s final question focused on young voters and their growing disillusionment with politics.
Lancaster, the youngest candidate in the race, connected that disengagement to housing, student debt, wages, climate change and artificial intelligence.
“If we don’t deliver for them, they will never get involved and they will never trust us again,” they said.
Belsito made a similar argument more bluntly.
“If we can’t do what we keep saying we’re going to do, not one freaking young person’s going to believe any politician,” she said.
Nguyen advocated civics education, a $20 minimum wage, paid family and medical leave and support for unions. Koh said elected officials should bring young people directly into policymaking. Andres-Beck argued young voters respond to candidates willing to challenge the Democratic establishment, while Beccia said politicians must give younger Americans a greater voice and address issues such as climate change.
By the end of the forum, the six Democrats had revealed a field largely united in its diagnosis of the pressures facing the district but with distinctly different pitches about who should be sent to Washington to address them.
Lancaster summed up one of the central questions facing voters: Who has a life that resembles theirs?
“If we want Congress to actually represent working people,” they said in their closing statement, “we have to send working people to Congress.”
Be sure to check out our Voters Guide to the 6th District race HERE.
