Preceded by Modesto Maldonado Website www.kendrysvasquez.com Role Politician Political party Democratic Party | Alma mater Merrimack College Name Kendrys Vasquez Education Merrimack College | |
Born February 18, 1987 (age 37)
Tamboril, Santiago, Dominican Republic ( 1987-02-18 ) Residence Lawrence, Massachusetts, United States | ||
Kendrys Vásquez - 2017 El Mundo Boston Latino 30 Under 30
Kendrys R. Vasquez (Born February 18, 1987) is a Dominican-American politician. He was elected City Councilor of the City of Lawrence, Massachusetts representing District C (Arlington and Towerhill Neighborhoods) on November 8, 2011 becoming the youngest Dominican-American elected official and the youngest member of the incoming Lawrence City Council.
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Personal life
Kendrys is the second of three children and was raised by a single mother and grandmother in Tamboril, Dominican Republic. At the age of 13 he immigrated to the City of Lawrence where he attended the public schools and in 2004 graduated from Lawrence High School. He attended Merrimack College and graduated with bachelor's degrees in Political Science and Communications Studies with a minor in Woman's Studies.
Political career
Prior to running for office Vasquez ran/coordinated multiple campaigns including but not limited to Niki Tsongas' Congressional Campaign in Lawrence (2007), Marcos Devers state representative campaign (2010), and his predecessor Modesto Maldonado's campaign for city council (2009).
Lawrence City Council
In 2011 incumbent city councilor Modesto Maldonado declined to run for re-election prompting Vasquez to run. In September 2011, Vasquez won the primary election against two former District C councilors with 61% of the vote. In the general election in November 2011, he defeated his opponent and former District C councilor and school committee member Jorge Gonzalez with 69% of the popular vote.
Massachusetts Democratic State Committee
Two months after being sworn in as a freshman city councilor on March 6, 2012, Vasquez went on to win a seat on the Massachusetts Democratic State Committee, unseating William Lantigua incumbent Lawrence mayor and sitting Democratic State Committeeman. Vasquez won three out of four municipalities (Andover, Dracut and Tewksbury) and only lost against Lantigua in Lawrence by only 180 votes, giving Lantigua his first election loss.
Recognitions and awards
Kendrys has received several awards including: "Young Leader of Today" by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, "Outstanding Leader of the Class of 2008" by Merrimack College, and "Joven Dominicano Destacado en el Exterior"