Emma Mulvaney-Stanak, who formerly served as both a Burlington city councilor and as chair of the Vermont Progressive Party, has announced her candidacy for the Vermont House.

Mulvaney-Stanak will run in the Chittenden 6-2 House district, where Rep. Jean O’Sullivan (D-Burlington) currently holds the sole seat. It includes parts of Burlington’s Old North End and New North End neighborhoods. Mulvaney-Stanak said she plans to seek the Democratic nomination, as well as the Progressive endorsement.

"Now more than ever, we really need voices in the Statehouse that are clearly and laser-focused on economic justice issues," she told Seven Days, including decent wages and workers' rights. The mother of two said she'd also focus on equity and education, and added that Vermont should do more for young families.

"I have a front-row seat to the struggles of finding affordable, high-quality childcare," she said. "That is a real-life struggle for thousands of Vermonters. It matters when you have people in the Statehouse who are actually living that."

Mulvaney-Stanak worked for more than 10 years for the Vermont-National Education Association teachers' union, where she led organizing and leadership development efforts. In 2018, she launched a consulting business, EMStrategies, through which, she said, she supports social change and equity issues for clients such as unions and school districts. She also coaches political candidates.

O'Sullivan, a businesswoman who established a financial services company,  was appointed to the seat in 2012 and has been reelected four times since. She, too, formerly served as a Burlington city councilor.

O'Sullivan did not respond to requests for comment.