After more than two decades as representative for the 10^th Bristol District, Bill Straus (D-Mattapoisett) is asking voters to choose him for another term in the Nov. 4 election.

Straus, who was first elected in 1992, said many factors played into his decision to run again, but one overrides them all.

“I still have a tremendous desire to help the district and the individuals themselves who are in the district,” he said. “On a number of issues – education, healthcare, transportation, the economy ­– I’ve been able to be effective.”

Straus, who holds a degree in law from Georgetown University and a masters in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School, was first elected as representative in 1992 after serving as an assistant district attorney in Bristol County. Straus, a New Jersey native, said positions on the Mattapoisett Conservation Commission and the Massachusetts Hazardous Waste Facility Site Safety Council “piqued” his interest in local issues.

One of those issues, transportation, has been a key focus for Straus, the house chairman of the Joint Committee on Transportation.

“I was able to use my role as the house chair of the transportation committee to make sure that South Coast Rail was included, both when we provide financing for transportation and when we passed separate legislation authorizing the project,” Straus said. “Those two pieces of legislation, which are now law, are probably the most significant thing I did this term that benefits the district and the region.”

During his tenure, Straus has also focused on privacy issues for Massachusetts residents. He helped to get a “do not call” law passed at the state level before a nationwide law was written. Additionally, he said he pushed a bill through the legislature that protects primary and secondary students from having their school Internet activities stored by companies.

If reelected on Nov. 4, Straus anticipates revisiting healthcare issues and funding for public education. He also plans to continue focusing on agriculture and fishery issues.

Straus is on an oversight board for a University of Massachusetts cranberry research station in Wareham, and is active in coastal issues.

“I like to keep a hand in research issues that ultimately lead to protection of the ocean resources that are ital to our economy,” Straus said.

Straus knows these issues are important to his constituency, he said, because he makes a point of staying at eye level with voters.

“I make a very determined effort to be at local events, whether it’s Boy Scout events, award ceremonies, local meetings or charitable groups,” he said. “It’s as simple as if I run into someone at the supermarket, I view that as their opportunity to interact with me. I expect that kind of contact with the people I represent.”