Russo Endorses Craig

Craig Campaign Has Growing Momentum

Upton, MA …Today Shawn Craig, Republican candidate for State Representative and Iraq war veteran, announced that Chris Russo, the Vice Chairperson of the Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee, has endorsed his campaign for State Representative.

“I am very pleased that Chris has endorsed my candidacy. As the liaison to the Mendon-Upton Regional School District, I know first-hand the importance of school aid and how unfunded mandates can hurt the school’s budget. I look forward to working with Chris for the common goal of helping the regional school,” said Craig.

Chris Russo is the Vice Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Regional School Committee and serves on the budget subcommittee and negotiations committee. He is also the Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force. He is the President of Russo Insurance Agency.

“Shawn has the ability to cut through the red tape and the ability to lead. He has demonstrated that in Iraq and in his business as well,” said Russo. “As a family man and business owner, I look at the candidates and decide who is going to better serve my family. There is no doubt that Shawn Craig is the answer.”

Craig is the only candidate in the Republican primary with municipal experience. He is a member of the Upton Finance Committee and its liaison to the Mendon Upton Regional School District. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Mendon-Upton Multi-Board Task Force.

Professionally, Craig has 16 years of private sector experience with the majority spent within the financial services industry. He worked for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) for 8.5 years where he investigated broker-dealers for compliance with federal securities laws and FINRA rules and regulations. This included both routine as well as special investigations involving the review and discovery of money laundering, fraud, embezzlement, insider trading and unsuitable investments. One investigation of which he was the team lead resulted in the discovery of fraud and misrepresentation at a firm located in Braintree, MA. Craig drafted a referral whereby the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission became engaged along with the FBI. The firm’s owner was detained October 2, 2012 and sentenced in April 2013 to 17 years in federal prison plus 3 years supervised probation and $9 million in restitution. Craig left FINRA in 2013 to start a consulting business focused on helping small broker-dealers.

Craig earned his B.A. from Roanoke College, where he double majored in International Relations and Business, and an M.S. in Finance from Suffolk University in Boston.