He’s not Charlie Baker. He’s not Donald Trump. He’s Darius Mitchell, and he describes himself as a “Hip-Hop Republican.”
Mitchell, who supported former President Trump in 2016, is the first Republican to announce a run for governor in Massachusetts in 2022. The Lowell resident told NewBostonPost he is running for several reasons, including to bring hope to families in Gateway Cities and to bring diversity to the Republican Party.
“Too many times we Republicans aren’t properly represented in Massachusetts,” Mitchell said in a telephone interview. “We’re a party with great American stories that aren’t talked about and meanwhile, the Democratic Party gives us nothing year after year but doom and gloom. Massachusetts needs a governor candidate that is diverse, that is a Republican, not just to be a Republican, but someone with skin in the game with the Republican Party.”
If Mitchell’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he spoke at the Massachusetts Republican Party convention in 2018, invoking both Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln, two of his favorite Republicans. Mitchell could not continue his run for U.S. Senate after the convention, however, since he got hurt while doing day labor shortly after the convention; he says he was in a coma for a week.
On the issues, Mitchell said he wants to invest in public transportation and supports criminal justice reform. He described three tenets of his platform: entrepreneurship, homeownership, and father’s rights. He said the latter is not about being anti-women but rather about allowing fathers to be a part of their children’s lives after a breakup.
Mitchell uses his personal experiences to guide his agenda.
He says he got his driver’s license suspended in Delaware in December 1994 for possessing 10 grams of marijuana and relied on public transportation for years as a result. It’s that kind of experience that makes him want to expand the MBTA from Lowell to southern New Hampshire cities like Nashua and Manchester.
Since the governor of Massachusetts has the power to pardon people, Mitchell said he would like to pardon those who have marijuana convictions on their record.
“That’s where my opportunity is because it’s impacted my life so much,” he said. “When I first got involved with politics 20 years ago, it wasn’t cool to talk about. But now, criminal justice reform is a hot topic — and so is marijuana.
“Recently, Chuck Schumer said in the Senate that he was ready to do something about it, and Joe Biden goes, ‘I need to read more about it’,” he continued. “No, he doesn’t need to read more about it. He’s had 50 years in Washington D.C. to study marijuana and mass incarceration. Jail should be for dangerous people in our community, not for people caught with pot.”
In Massachusetts, the Parole Board holds hearings and makes recommendations for pardons, and the governor of the state has the final say on the matter. The Parole Board “views evidence, including support for the petitioner in the institution and community, their accomplishments and achievements, and the nature and extent of opposition to the petition,” according to the state’s web site.
Mitchell said he last saw his 15-year-old son on his 10th birthday, and that he can’t do anything about it because the mother of his child has full custody. He also noted that he is not the only father he knows who wants to see his child but cannot.
“We need a governor that stands up for families and fathers,” he said. “I have a friend now who is going through it with Cambridge family court and his son is so sad, but the mother doesn’t care because she knows they’ll rule in favor of her. I know his pain and I’ve felt that pain. Someone who believes in justice and fairness, that’s what we need from a governor.”
Mitchell also said he is an advocate for democracy. He said that he wants to see Republicans on the ballot across the state and opposes cities skipping out on special elections.
“If I’m governor, we’ll have elections,” he said. “In the first 100 days of this year, the governor has canceled two elections and there’s a third one coming, but everyone’s worried about Georgia.”
He also said he wants to care about those who he sees politicians neglecting in Massachusetts including the homeless and residents of Gateway Cities, including places like Lynn and Lawrence.
Mitchell touts his experience commenting on politics. He said he runs a media company called Embargo Incorporated.
“I share my almost 20 years of Political Experience with my diverse audience! I filter political moments thru my HIP-HOP PERSPECTIVE!” he wrote in an email message. “We’ve done 2016 REPUBLICAN CONVENTION IN CLEVELAND. I WAS ARRESTED THERE FOR TRESPASSING ON DONALD TRUMP’S rehearsal. 2018 WORCESTER MASS REPUBLICAN CONVENTION. 2020 CHARLOTTE CONVENTION. THE 1ST PRESIDENT DEBATE 2020 in Cleveland. That’s just the last 4 years. Instagram @hiphoprepublicans tweeter @lowellcouncilor & many more.”
