Olivia Mathews, Newton School Committee candidate from Ward 6, appears in this week’s Newton Tab, in the front page article War chests vs. change purses in fall elections, by Dan Atkinson. Unlike some of the other candidates in the race, Olivia is hoping to reach beyond traditional fundraising approaches and connect with her constituents through her web site and email.

Connecting with voters over the Internet isn’t just about raising money in a tough economy, either. She’s inspired by the recent example in national politics:

“It’s amazing how [Obama] used the Internet and technology to reach people in a way that’s never been done before,” Mathews said… “We’ll keep in touch with people and get their opinion on the city when I’m in office.”

Here on the campaign site, you can participate in the campaign by posting your comments, by volunteering for the campaign, or by making a donation through the secure terminal. Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay in touch, or sign up for our email newsletter.

Thanks to everyone who worked so hard to help prepare Olivia’s new campaign site for the launch yesterday! Like the rest of her campaign, this site is the result of lots of people working together to help get her message out.

One of the goals of the campaign is to reach out to voters and listen to your concerns, ideas and suggestions. This site was designed from the ground up with that purpose in mind. We encourage you to post your comments right here on the site.

Also, if you’d like to get involved in the campaign in any way, we’ve set up a convenient system where you can volunteer or participate in the campaign just by providing your email address. Click this link to volunteer to help the campaign, or just enter your email in the box on the top of the right column on every page. We’ll contact you with information on how you can help out.