Daniel Gessen, 25, of Falmouth, said he got involved in local government because he saw that his "generation of Cape Codders is getting squeezed out of our communities."

Gessen, the Falmouth representative and Deputy Speaker of the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates, is one of four candidates seeking the open seat on the Barnstable County Board of Regional Commissioners.

Gessen said the median home price on Cape Cod has risen from $193,000 when he was born to $800,000 today, while the median age of Cape residents has increased from 43 to 57, he said. Three quarters or more of his graduating class at Falmouth High School "can no longer live on the Cape and have been pushed off," he said.

All of this "threatens the existence of a year-round community on Cape Cod," said Gessen.

Gessen is running against fellow Democrats Eric Schwaab and Ronald Bergstrom, the incumbent, and Republican Adam Hogue. The primary is Sept. 1 and the general election is Nov. 3. The last day to register to vote in the primary is Saturday, Aug. 22.

"It's not just about the young people, even though they're the first and most affected, which is why I got involved as a young person myself because we're woefully underrepresented in our local government," said Gessen. "But it's also about everyone who benefits from having a year-round community."

The three-member Board of Regional Commissioners holds the executive powers of Cape Cod's county government, which comprises all 15 towns. The Assembly of Delegates adopts new legislation and maintains checks and balances over the executive branch.

The Board of Regional Commissioners is a partisan office, and it will appear on the Sept. 1 primary ballot so parties can nominate candidates, according to Debra O'Malley, director of communications for the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Born and raised in Falmouth, Gessen said his parents came to the U.S. as refugees from the former Soviet Union. He joined the National Guard at 17, later serving as an infantry platoon leader and earning a Bronze Star for service during combat operations in Iraq.

He also studied political science and public policy at University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Gessen said one of his priorities will be reintroducing an income-based wastewater loan forgiveness program for year-round residents. He also said he wants to continue advocating for year-round housing by helping towns use the tools available through the state's Seasonal Communities designation including purchasing deed restrictions, supporting workforce housing and providing tax breaks for year-round residents.

He also proposes encouraging towns to offer financial incentives to property owners who rent homes year-round instead of seasonally, as well as introducing a child care matching program.

"Currently half the towns on the Cape offer some sort of child care subsidy, but none of the five towns with the most kids do. So, I would introduce a program that incentivizes our communities to step up," said Gessen.

Gessen also said he wants the county to take a stronger leadership role on regional infrastructure, including broadband and the electrical grid. As part of that effort, he said he would propose a county program offering zero-interest loans to help homeowners purchase backup generators.

"The power of the county is to regionally address challenges by enlisting our towns to work together because they want to work together and because things make sense at scale," said Gessen. "And the role of county commissioner is to be at the forefront of that ... your job as county commissioner is to inspire our communities to work together and that's what I want to be doing."

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Gessen seeks seat on Barnstable County Board of Regional Commissioners