On Monday during Charlestown Pride Week, State Rep. Dan Ryan of Charlestown announced he is endorsing his State House colleague, Evandro Carvalho of Dorchester, for District Attorney in the race to fill the seat being vacated by Dan Conley.
“Evandro and I were sworn-in within weeks of each other,” Ryan said. “We hit it off immediately. Evandro came to the State House having served in the District Attorney’s office. He hit the ground running on issues important to our neighborhoods. The legislature has passed landmark criminal justice reform and has updated our gun laws since the two of us were sworn in. Evandro campaigned on these issues and knew them walking in the door.”
Carvalho has been serving as State Representative since 2014, representing the communities of Dorchester and Roxbury. As an Assistant District Attorney prosecuting gun crimes, Carvalho saw the cycles of poverty and violence that put young men and women in the system. He has led the fight in the legislature to repeal mandatory minimum sentencing for non-violent drug offenses, to raise the age of criminal responsibility, and allow for the expungement of juvenile records. He served on the board of Teen Empowerment and volunteered for the Massachusetts Affordable Housing Alliance.
“Evandro has a compelling life story,” Ryan said. “Through tough work and focus he has overcome great hardship to fulfill the American Dream; only to come back to the same neighborhood that adopted him and serve as an Assistant DA, State Representative, role model, father and husband.”
Evandro C. Carvalho, born in Cape Verde, immigrated to Dorchester at the age of 15 after a car accident took his dad’s life. His mother worked three jobs to support the family and he worked after school as a janitor and factory worker. Carvalho graduated at the top of his class at Madison Park High, and went to earn degrees from UMass Amherst and Howard University School of Law. Carvalho’s story of overcoming obstacles and people giving him second chances has been the story of many people of Suffolk County.
He, his wife, Ashley, and their daughter, Eliana, live in their home in Uphams Corner Dorchester.