American politician
Carolyn (Coyne) Dykema (born December 26, 1967, Charlottesville, Virginia) was the Massachusetts state representative from the Massachusetts House of Representatives' 8th Middlesex district from 2009 until her resignation to take a private sector job in 2022.
For 2012 and subsequent elections, the Eighth Middlesex is made up of Holliston, Hopkinton, Southborough, and precinct 2 of Westborough. Holliston and Hopkinton are in Middlesex County while Southborough and Westborough are in Worcester County. When Dykema was first elected, the Eighth Middlesex comprised the towns of Holliston and Hopkinton and precincts in Medway (Norfolk County), Southborough and Westborough.
Public service.
Dykema was elected to the Holliston Planning Board in 2003. In 2007, she was elected chair. She stepped down in April 2008 to run for state representative. As a member of the Planning Board, she was also on numerous related local and regional boards, notably the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, the MetroWest Growth Management Committee and the SuAsCo Community Watershed Council.
Governor Deval Patrick appointed Dykema to the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board in 2007.
In 2006, the American Legion awarded Dykema, one of the "Katrina Ladies", the Citation for Meritorious Service for spearheading hurricane relief through Operation Help &amp; Hope.
The Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women named her the 2007 Holliston Unsung Heroine of the Year.
Dykema was elected to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts General Court in 2008 and has been re-elected to office in each biennial election since. Her most recent opponent was Republican Patricia Vanaria in 2014.
Political platform.
In 2008, Dykema won against Ed Mills (D-Hopkinton) in the Democratic primary and against Dan Haley (R-Holliston) in the general election on a platform of:
On social issues, she supported:
In 2010, Dykema faced opposition from Jonathan Loya, also from Holliston. Loya ran as an independent but identified his party affiliation on the general election ballot as the Liberty Party, a small Libertarian group. Dykema won re-election easily with 71% of the vote. Her 2010 platform emphasized:
Voters re-elected Dykema in 2012, choosing her in a landslide over Marty Lamb (R-Holliston), who had run unsuccessfully for Congress in 2010 against Jim McGovern. Dykema took 61% of the vote in a hotly contested election.
Committee assignments.
For the previous legislative session, Dykema sat on these legislative committees:
Notable past assignments include:
Awards as a legislator.
For her service as a legislator, Dykema has been honored by the following awards:
Personal life.
Dykema grew up in Wellesley. She and her husband Bill live in Holliston. Their three children attended and graduated from the Holliston Public Schools.
Education.
Dykema graduated from Wellesley High School in 1985. She attended Wellesley College, where she majored in French, graduating in 1989. She graduated with an MBA from the Kelley School of Business at the Indiana University in 1994.
Business career.
Dykema worked at Fidelity Investments between 1989 and 1998, with a break for business school at Indiana University. At the time of her departure, she was senior communications manager in Marlborough and Boston.
During 1998 and 1999, Dykema was a marketing consultant for Pamet River Partners in Boston.
Between 2004 and her election to the legislature, Dykema was the marketing and business development manager at Norfolk Ram, an environmental consulting firm in Milford.
References.
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