According to the Twitter-universe -- actually the Watertown TAB's Twitter feed -- the unofficial vote totals for the special senate primary election for the full district are:
William Brownsberger 4958
Jonathan Hecht 3849
Robert McCarthy 3436
Timothy Schofield 2887
Showing posts with label State Senate. Show all posts
Showing posts with label State Senate. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Schofield Wins Big in Allston-Brighton
Tim Schofield has taken a big lead in the special senate primary election results today, winning the 28 Boston precincts (mostly in Allston-Brighton) with nearly 64% of the vote:
Allston-Brighton's historically low turnout, however, means that Schofield will have difficulty holding onto this lead. While Boston's total number of votes cast was 3203, Belmont already 2858 votes cast as of 3 pm -- with around 4400 expected by the time the polls closed at 8 pm.
State representative Will Brownsberger of Belmont is the favorite to get the lion's share of those Belmont votes.
| NAME | Votes | Percent | |
| TIMOTHY N SCHOFIELD | 2061 | 63.79% | |
| ROBERT B McCARTHY | 602 | 18.63% | |
| WILLIAM BROWNSBERGER | 370 | 11.45% | |
| JONATHAN HECHT | 181 | 5.60% | |
| Write-in Votes | 17 | 0.53% |
Allston-Brighton's historically low turnout, however, means that Schofield will have difficulty holding onto this lead. While Boston's total number of votes cast was 3203, Belmont already 2858 votes cast as of 3 pm -- with around 4400 expected by the time the polls closed at 8 pm.
State representative Will Brownsberger of Belmont is the favorite to get the lion's share of those Belmont votes.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Other Links for Background on Senate Candidates
Boston Globe has profiles of all four candidates through a questionnaire:
Boston Globe stories on 11/30 candidates forum, 12/8 candidates forum, and a more general story.
Watertown Patch and Belmont Patch stories on the same 11/30 candidates forum.
Patch also has questionnaire reponses:
WickedLocal Watertown analyzes campaign finances reports from the candidates and has stories on the 11/30 candidates forum and 12/6 candidates forum.
Boston Globe and Boston Herald endorsements both of Brownsberger.
BNN had a video camera at the Brighton candidates forum, which they were supposed to start streaming online over the weekend -- but which I don't yet see posted.
And BlueMassGroup has an open thread on the race.
Boston Globe stories on 11/30 candidates forum, 12/8 candidates forum, and a more general story.
Watertown Patch and Belmont Patch stories on the same 11/30 candidates forum.
Patch also has questionnaire reponses:
WickedLocal Watertown analyzes campaign finances reports from the candidates and has stories on the 11/30 candidates forum and 12/6 candidates forum.
Boston Globe and Boston Herald endorsements both of Brownsberger.
BNN had a video camera at the Brighton candidates forum, which they were supposed to start streaming online over the weekend -- but which I don't yet see posted.
And BlueMassGroup has an open thread on the race.
Friday, December 09, 2011
State Senate Candidates Websites
It was a pleasure to hear from all four candidates at last night's candidates forum, sponsored by the Brighton Allston Improvement Association.
It is encouraging when we hear from a slate of candidates for a particular office where every single person has an interesting background, understands many of the varied issues before our community and state, and can speak eloquently on the issues.
Many thanks go out to the BAIA for sponsoring the candidates forum, and especially to those in the organizing committee who put it on: Ruth Scheer, Joanne Laplant, Mary Cronin, Abigail Furey, Lauren Mattison, and BAIA president Anabela Gomes.
Unfortunately, we appear to have had such strong attendance that we ran out of handouts at the forum. Here are links to the four candidates websites, information that appeared on the handouts:
It is encouraging when we hear from a slate of candidates for a particular office where every single person has an interesting background, understands many of the varied issues before our community and state, and can speak eloquently on the issues.
Many thanks go out to the BAIA for sponsoring the candidates forum, and especially to those in the organizing committee who put it on: Ruth Scheer, Joanne Laplant, Mary Cronin, Abigail Furey, Lauren Mattison, and BAIA president Anabela Gomes.
Unfortunately, we appear to have had such strong attendance that we ran out of handouts at the forum. Here are links to the four candidates websites, information that appeared on the handouts:
- Rep. Will Brownsberger: www.mywillbrownsberger.com, (617) 771-8274
- Rep. Jon Hecht: www.electhecht.com, (617) 393-3501
- Bob McCarthy: www.bobmccarthy.org, (617) 612-5262
- Tim Schofield: www.timschofield.org, (617) 453-8683
Boston Globe Endorses Brownsberger for State Senate
The Boston Globe's editorial page has endorsed state representative William Brownsberger (D-Belmont) for the special election to replace Steven Tolman in the state senate's 2nd Suffolk and Middlesex seat.Tolman stepped down in October after he was elected as president of AFL-CLO in Massachusetts.
In their endorsement, the Globe's editorial board wrote:
[S]tate Representative Will Brownsberger of Belmont has a progressive record on social and environmental matters — but also a history of creative thinking about making government more effective, honest, and transparent.In making their endorsement, the Globe seems to have given an honorable mention to state representative Jonathan Hecht (D-Watertown):
[Hecht] shares Brownsberger’s emphasis on open, efficient government... He and Brownsberger have voted in similar ways.But the Globe criticized the other two candidates in the race, Timothy Schofield (D-Brighton) and Robert McCarthy (D-Watertown), for their positions on paying for health care for employees of local government:
[Schofield and McCarthy] have criticized recent efforts to help cities and towns save on spiraling employee health costs. Digging in to defend unsustainable costs shouldn’t be mistaken for progressive government; if anything, it leads to more layoffs of public workers and worse services for citizens.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
State Senate Candidates Forum Thursday, 12/8 at 6:30 pm
The Brighton Allston Improvement Association will be hosting a candidates forum for the special election for state senator in the Second Suffolk and Middlesex district seat recently vacated by Steven Tolman.
The special primary election will be on Tuesday, December 13th. Since all four candidates for the seat are Democrats, the winner of the December 13th primary will be unopposed in the January special election.
State Senate Candidates Forum
Thursday, December 8th
Meet-and-Greet: 6:00 pm; light refreshments contributed by Athan's
Candidates Forum: 6:30 - 8:00 pm
Brighton Elks Lodge
326 Washington Street, Brighton Center
Parking at rear of building (enter lot from Winship Street)
Sponsor: Brighton Allston Improvement Association
Candidates: State Rep. Will Brownsberger, State Rep. Jon Hecht, Bob McCarthy, Tim Schofield
Moderator: Michael Pahre, editor, Brighton Centered Blog
To check if you live in this district, visit www.wheredoivotema.com
The special primary election will be on Tuesday, December 13th. Since all four candidates for the seat are Democrats, the winner of the December 13th primary will be unopposed in the January special election.
State Senate Candidates Forum
Thursday, December 8th
Meet-and-Greet: 6:00 pm; light refreshments contributed by Athan's
Candidates Forum: 6:30 - 8:00 pm
Brighton Elks Lodge
326 Washington Street, Brighton Center
Parking at rear of building (enter lot from Winship Street)
Sponsor: Brighton Allston Improvement Association
Candidates: State Rep. Will Brownsberger, State Rep. Jon Hecht, Bob McCarthy, Tim Schofield
Moderator: Michael Pahre, editor, Brighton Centered Blog
To check if you live in this district, visit www.wheredoivotema.com
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
State Senate Special Election in Allston-Brighton in Early 2012?
The Boston Globe reported earlier today that Steven Tolman, state senator from Brighton, appears likely to step down from his position in order to become the next president of AFL-CIO of Massachusetts.
Tolman's new job would mean that Allston-Brighton -- as well as Belmont, Watertown, the South End, and part of Cambridge -- would probably have a special election in early 2012 to fill his seat. Tolman has told the paper that he would resign his seat if named president of the labor organization.
Tolman's path to its presidency was cleared when his only opponent for the position, lobbyist Tim Sullivan, dropped out of the running.
I will venture to guess that among the names from Allston-Brighton likely to run for the senate seat would likely by state representative Michael Moran, who has been accumulating campaign cash of late concident with his role as head of the legislative redistricting committee. Also, I expect that District 9 City Councilor Mark Ciommo will likely take a pass, because he is running for reelection in November (albeit unopposed).
Outside Allston-Brighton, I can imagine that Rachel Kaprelian of Watertown, who runs the Registry of Motor Vehicles and is a former state representative, might be looking closely at this race.
Any other names out there? Drop suggestions in the comments field below.
Update: David Bernstein at the Phoenix's Talking Politics blog has more names for consideration.
Friday, September 14, 2007
State Senate Race: Ballots Cast By 6% of Allston-Brighton, 15% of Charlestown Registered Voters
In last Tuesday's special election for the State Senate seat vacated by Jarrett Barrios, only the northwestern-most region of Allston-Brighton (basically Allston but not Brighton) lay within the district and went to the polls. Also voting were portions of Cambridge, Somerville, Everett, Revere, Saugus, Chelsea, and the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston.
Between Charlestown and Allston-Brighton, 2176 of 19,502 registered voters cast a ballot, or 11.16%, according to the Boston Elections Department. But in just Allston-Brighton, 524 of 8156 registered voters in those six precincts cast ballots, just 6.4%, according to information collected by the Allston-Brighton TAB from the Boston Elections Department. That means 1652 of 11,346 registered voters in Charlestown voted, or 14.6%.
Why did Allston-Brighton registered voters show up at the polls at less than half the rate of Charlestown voters?
Some speculated on low voter turnout due to the bad weather that day... but there weren't thunderstorms in Allston alongside sunny skies in Charlestown.
Harry Mattison, who lives in Allston in the Senate district (unlike me over here in Brighton), wrote that Tim Flaherty visited Allston for a house party once to his knowledge, and the other candidates didn't at all. Ouch. I didn't personally see former Senator Barrios at any events in Allston in the last year -- but my attendance in Allston ain't all that good, either, so I could've missed his appearances. People just weren't excited about a race where the candidates and former elected official stay out of town. I didn't cover the race because the election district barely skirts one corner of Brighton. And I've never seen any of the four candidates around town.
An alternative explanation that I find more likely for the low voter turnout is a structural one. It is related to the transient nature of the households in Allston-Brighton, which includes the middle class flight to the suburbs. Here, I think that U.S. Census data can provide us with some insight, comparing the average length of time each household has been at a particular address between Allston and Charlestown. The 2000 census reported that 45.8% of Allston-Brighton households moved into their March 2000 address after January 1, 1999, while only 26.2% of Charlestown households did. That is one whopping difference between the two neighborhoods!
When people move, they may lose their voter registration. According to the League of Women's Voters's website:
How many people re-register to vote within a few days after moving in? Very few. I've gotten whacked by this myself when I was young, and I'm sure a lot of the "transient," young population living in A-B are similarly affected every year. An enterprising reporter could probably dig up some people to quote in less than an hour. A few questions posed to the Secretary of the Commonwealth's office might offer the scenario of how elections officials respond on election day to a changed address, and how often this has occurred in recent elections.
People who move, but realize they haven't updated their voter registration, are likely not to show up at the polls at all. This problem of low voter turnout in Allston-Brighton could very well be a structural one -- hidden below the surface -- a sad result of the low rate of family and long-term households in our neighborhood.
Between Charlestown and Allston-Brighton, 2176 of 19,502 registered voters cast a ballot, or 11.16%, according to the Boston Elections Department. But in just Allston-Brighton, 524 of 8156 registered voters in those six precincts cast ballots, just 6.4%, according to information collected by the Allston-Brighton TAB from the Boston Elections Department. That means 1652 of 11,346 registered voters in Charlestown voted, or 14.6%.
Why did Allston-Brighton registered voters show up at the polls at less than half the rate of Charlestown voters?
Some speculated on low voter turnout due to the bad weather that day... but there weren't thunderstorms in Allston alongside sunny skies in Charlestown.
Harry Mattison, who lives in Allston in the Senate district (unlike me over here in Brighton), wrote that Tim Flaherty visited Allston for a house party once to his knowledge, and the other candidates didn't at all. Ouch. I didn't personally see former Senator Barrios at any events in Allston in the last year -- but my attendance in Allston ain't all that good, either, so I could've missed his appearances. People just weren't excited about a race where the candidates and former elected official stay out of town. I didn't cover the race because the election district barely skirts one corner of Brighton. And I've never seen any of the four candidates around town.
An alternative explanation that I find more likely for the low voter turnout is a structural one. It is related to the transient nature of the households in Allston-Brighton, which includes the middle class flight to the suburbs. Here, I think that U.S. Census data can provide us with some insight, comparing the average length of time each household has been at a particular address between Allston and Charlestown. The 2000 census reported that 45.8% of Allston-Brighton households moved into their March 2000 address after January 1, 1999, while only 26.2% of Charlestown households did. That is one whopping difference between the two neighborhoods!
When people move, they may lose their voter registration. According to the League of Women's Voters's website:
9. I am registered, but I've recently moved. Does this affect my registration?But since everybody moves on August 31 -- right before September primary or preliminary elections -- most are still registered voters on the voting rolls for their old address (they haven't yet been purged), even though they don't live there anymore. As long as they moved within the same city or town, they may still be legally allowed to vote, but they may not realize that. They may not know their new polling location; if they show up at the old one they may be challenged, etc. (Cases like this were to be addressed by the provisional ballot system.)
Yes. If you are registered and have moved within your current election jurisdiction, contact your local election office to update your registration and determine where you should vote. If you moved outside of your old election jurisdiction, you will have to reregister in your new jurisdiction before the registration deadline in your state.
How many people re-register to vote within a few days after moving in? Very few. I've gotten whacked by this myself when I was young, and I'm sure a lot of the "transient," young population living in A-B are similarly affected every year. An enterprising reporter could probably dig up some people to quote in less than an hour. A few questions posed to the Secretary of the Commonwealth's office might offer the scenario of how elections officials respond on election day to a changed address, and how often this has occurred in recent elections.
People who move, but realize they haven't updated their voter registration, are likely not to show up at the polls at all. This problem of low voter turnout in Allston-Brighton could very well be a structural one -- hidden below the surface -- a sad result of the low rate of family and long-term households in our neighborhood.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
State Senate Election Today
There is a special, primary election today for Jarrett Barrios's former State Senate seat. There are no Republican, Independent, Unenrolled, or Third Party candidates, so the winner of the Democratic Party primary wins the seat. The Boston Globe and Allston-Brighton TAB have both endorsed Tim Flaherty in the election.
The odd district includes a lot of Allston (and a tiny bit of North Brighton), so I've been leaving the race to Harry Mattison to follow. Nonetheless, for those undecided voters who would like to see the four candidates in a forum from 9/6/07, you can see the five parts on video at this link.
The odd district includes a lot of Allston (and a tiny bit of North Brighton), so I've been leaving the race to Harry Mattison to follow. Nonetheless, for those undecided voters who would like to see the four candidates in a forum from 9/6/07, you can see the five parts on video at this link.
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
Campaign Finance Disclosures for the Race for Barrios's Senate Seat
The financial disclosures were due Tuesday for the race for the open seat being vacated by State Senator Jarrett Barrios. The primary election is next Tuesday, September 11th. Normally, the forms are due eight days before the election, but since Labor Day is a federal holiday, I think they got an extra day to file.
The Boston Phoenix has a summary of their bounty. You can look them up yourself at the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance's website, selection "Senate" and "Middlesex, Suffolk, and Essex" for the office sought. Looks like around $235,000 raised by four candidates for the primary, plus Jeff Ross threw in $51,000 of his own money.
The A-B City Council race had nearly $200,000 raised in 2002 when it was an open seat. Four of the six candidates currently running for the seat raised $163,000 between them when they last ran for political office. I wouldn't be surprised if our City Council race raised more money than the Middlesex/Suffolk/Essex Senate race.
The Boston Phoenix has a summary of their bounty. You can look them up yourself at the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance's website, selection "Senate" and "Middlesex, Suffolk, and Essex" for the office sought. Looks like around $235,000 raised by four candidates for the primary, plus Jeff Ross threw in $51,000 of his own money.
The A-B City Council race had nearly $200,000 raised in 2002 when it was an open seat. Four of the six candidates currently running for the seat raised $163,000 between them when they last ran for political office. I wouldn't be surprised if our City Council race raised more money than the Middlesex/Suffolk/Essex Senate race.
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