News : Unpacking Lesser's loss

Friday, September 9, 2022

Unpacking Lesser's loss

Sep 09, 2022

THE ROAD LESSER TRAVELED — Eric Lesser and his allies started signaling that he might run for statewide office back in 2020. He entered the race for lieutenant governor in January of this year with a sizable war chest and an enviable network of donors and Obama White House alums.

Lesser finished second in the Democratic primary, coming in 14 points behind Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll and 12 points ahead of state Rep. Tami Gouveia.

A silver-medal finish in an oft-overlooked down-ballot race doesn't usually garner so much attention. But the Longmeadow state senator has been considered a rising star in the Democratic Party and a potential contender for Rep. Richard Neal's congressional seat when he eventually retires. That Lesser was unable to turn his name recognition and significant cash advantage into a win in the lieutenant governor race could spell trouble for his political future. It won't help that he'll be out of a job in the Legislature — and therefore out of the spotlight that sometimes comes with it — in January.

"For someone who so many of us have such high regard for his political acumen, this is a loss that makes us go: 'Holy smokes,'" Springfield-based Democratic strategist Tony Cignoli, a member of Lesser's finance team, told Playbook.

Consultants say Lesser's core messages of bringing regional balance to a ticket led by Attorney General Maura Healey of Boston and connecting the two halves of the state with high-speed rail were a tough sell to voters who mainly live in eastern Massachusetts. Emphasizing their point: Lesser ran up the score in western Massachusetts, but fell short in the Worcester area and points east.

Some of Lesser's colleagues in the Legislature say he could have done more to leverage their endorsements. Some political observers wonder why former President Barack Obama, Lesser's frequently mentioned former boss, didn't campaign on his behalf. And it may just be that Driscoll, a well-regarded and well-connected five-term mayor, made a compelling argument.

State Sen. Eric Lesser in Salem

State Sen. Eric Lesser campaigns for lieutenant governor in Salem, Massachusetts, on Sept. 4, 2022. | Lisa Kashinsky/POLITICO

Lesser's third-place finish at the state Democratic Party convention in June was an early sign of trouble; insiders generally expected him to finish second. He proved unable to consolidate support in the 413 after the convention culled his western Massachusetts competition, state Sen. Adam Hinds. Driscoll then swooped in and picked up some key endorsements.

Lesser still had a sizable cash advantage. But he didn't spend the bulk of his $1 million war chest until August, campaign finance records show, at which point a super PAC evened the playing field by shelling out $1.2 million on Driscoll's behalf. Lesser went negative, putting up a television ad trying to tie Driscoll to the super PAC and its Republican-linked donors. He then campaigned in Salem 48 hours before the primary — drawing just one reporter and questions about he didn't do it earlier. Lesser didn't respond to a request for comment.

Former state Democratic Party Chair Phil Johnston, a Lesser supporter, attributed his loss to the struggles western Massachusetts candidates often face running statewide and to "the year of the woman" — the only man to win a Democratic primary on Tuesday was Secretary of State Bill Galvin.

Lesser is out of this race, but his supporters say he'll be back: "He can clearly raise money and he clearly did well in Neal's district," Lenox state Rep. Smitty Pignatelli, who endorsed Lesser after Hinds was out, told Playbook. "I don't think Eric Lesser's dead by any means."

GOOD FRIDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Lesser will be at Springfield's Union Station with Healey, Driscoll, Hinds, Neal and other local officials for a 12:15 p.m. media availability on western Massachusetts transportation.

TODAY — Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito announces grants at the Massachusetts Maritime Academy at 9 a.m. Sen. Ed Markey joins striking workers at the 874 Commonwealth Ave. Starbucks at 10:30 a.m.

THIS WEEKEND — State Sen. Lydia Edwards and I are on WBZ's "Keller @ Large" at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. GOP gubernatorial nominee Geoff Diehl is on WCVB's "On the Record" at 11 a.m. Sunday.

Tips? Scoops? Email me: lkashinsky@politico.com.

A WOMEN RULE CONVERSATION ON LEADING FROM THE GROUND UP: Join POLITICO's Women Rule on Sept. 15 for conversations focused on creating and leading sustainable, healthy and inclusive communities. The program will feature a Member Exchange panel followed by a keynote discussion exploring the most pressing issues facing women in their communities and women in leadership roles who are best positioned to solve these problems. REGISTER HERE.

CAMPAIGN ROUNDUP

— POLLING TIME: The first post-primary poll of the governor's race shows Democratic nominee Maura Healey, the attorney general, leading Republican nominee Geoff Diehl 52 percent to 34 percent. While the economy is the central focus of Healey's campaign, Diehl leads Healey, 49 percent to 33 percent, among the 41 percent of likely voters who picked the economy as their top issue in the 7News/Emerson College poll. The survey of 708 voters conducted Sept. 7 and 8 has a margin of error of 3.6 percentage points.

— ON TO NOVEMBER: Democratic Rep. Bill Keating will face Republican Jesse Brown in MA-09 general election. The Associated Press called the race Thursday morning.

Anthony Amore (left) and Jane Swift (right)

Former Acting Gov. Jane Swift (right) endorses Republican Anthony Amore for auditor on Sept. 8, 2022 in Boston. | Lisa Kashinsky/POLITICO

— AMORE THE MERRIER: Former Acting Gov. Jane Swift returned to Beacon Hill on Thursday to endorse fellow Republican Anthony Amore for auditor. That puts two governors in Amore's corner: Swift and Gov. Charlie Baker. Swift said she hopes that will draw more attention to an oft-overlooked down-ballot race.

Swift is also following Baker's lead by not endorsing in the governor's race in which their party's nominee is a conservative backed by former President Donald Trump. Asked whether she'd endorse any other Republican candidates, Swift said "no." Pressed on the matter, Swift said Amore, who's more moderate, "shares my general views of the future of the Republican Party and where it should head." More on Swift's endorsement from MassLive's Alison Kuznitz.

— "Abortion rights groups oppose Diehl's candidacy," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "Women's reproductive rights groups are lining up in opposition of Republican Geoff Diehl's bid for Massachusetts governor over his stance on abortion. … Not surprisingly, the groups have endorsed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Maura Healey, calling her 'a national leader in protecting access to reproductive health care.'"

— "Maura Healey in New Bedford: 'Every region deserves support'," by Ted Nesi, WPRI: "Attorney General Maura Healey made her first campaign stop in Southeastern Massachusetts as the Democratic nominee for governor on Thursday, promising that she won't overlook the region if she secures Beacon Hill's top job."

YOU'VE GOT MAIL

— "Mass. voters solidly embrace mail balloting," by Christian M. Wade, Eagle-Tribune: "Nearly 529,000 ballots were cast by mail or dropped off at city and town halls before polls closed at 8 p.m. Tuesday, according to the Secretary of State's office. Another 48,800 ballots were cast during an early voting period from Aug. 27 to Sept. 2, which along with mail voting was authorized by a new state law. Combined, that's a sizable chunk of the 1.1 million voters that were expected to cast ballots in Tuesday's Democratic and Republican contests."

YAHD SIGNS AND BUMPAH STICKAHS

— FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Former Rep. Joe Kennedy III's Groundwork Project is launching the pilot run of its "Keep Paying Your Organizer Fund" to help groups doing civic engagement work in Gateway Cities keep paying for organizers after Election Day. Groundwork Project is inviting advocacy organizations in Springfield, Lawrence, New Bedford, Chelsea, Holyoke, Lowell, Fall River, Southbridge, Brockton and Lynn to apply.

"A lack of sustained investment in year-round organizing in communities of color and working class cities and towns is one of the most chronic barriers to an equitable political system in Massachusetts," Kennedy said in a statement.

FROM THE HUB

— "Suffolk DA race: Candidates spent big in last month — as did Charlie Baker-aligned PAC backing Hayden," by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "The Suffolk district attorney candidates ramped up their spending in the final nasty month of the race — but political action committees accounted for about a third of the money over the past few weeks. In particular, the PAC aligned with Gov. Charlie Baker dumped more than half of the cash it spent this primary cycle to boost District Attorney Kevin Hayden. The Massachusetts Majority Independent Expenditure PAC put $97,176 of its total spending of $171,432 toward Hayden — nearly seven times the amount it spent on any other candidate, according to the committee."

— Related: "Super PAC with ties to Baker backed 15 winners," by Bruce Mohl, CommonWealth Magazine: "The Massachusetts Majority PAC spent $171,432 supporting 12 Democrats and three Republicans in their respective primaries – and all 15 emerged victorious. Nine of them were essentially elected because they face no opponent in the final election. Gregg Lisciotti, the chairman of the super PAC, said he was proud of the effort to help elect or re-elect what he called 'a bipartisan slate of political centrists.' 'Massachusetts Majority has more than $1.4 million in cash on hand heading towards the general election'..."

— "As DA, Kevin Hayden says his office will focus on building trust, engaging with Suffolk County residents," by Alexi Cohan, GBH News: "Interim Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden, fresh off a primary victory against challenger Ricardo Arroyo after a controversy-filled campaign, said the number one priority of his office will be building trust, and connecting and engaging with the community."

— "Boston approves residency requirement waivers for future hires for certain jobs," by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: "Boston is temporarily lifting the residency requirements for some hard-to-hire for city jobs. The Residency Compliance Commission agreed to a three-year dropping of the requirement that new hires for the following jobs would have to live in the city: bus monitors and cafeteria workers at Boston Public Schools, 911 dispatchers and call-takers at Boston Police and arborists in the parks department."

THE LATEST NUMBERS

— "Massachusetts reports 30 new monkeypox cases, 99.4% of reported cases have been male; The state has reported 347 total infections," by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: "State health officials reported 30 new monkeypox cases on Thursday. … It brings the total number of monkeypox cases in the state to 347 since the state's first case was announced in mid-May."

— "Boston-area COVID wastewater data on the rise, Massachusetts reports 6,623 new COVID cases; 57 COVID deaths were reported in the last week," by Rick Sobey, Boston Herald: "State health officials on Thursday reported 6,623 confirmed COVID cases from the last week. ... The Boston-area virus sewage data has been on the rise in the last week. The south-of-Boston daily average is now 632 copies per milliliter, which is a 36% increase from 465 copies a week ago. The north of the city daily average is up to 613 copies, a 57% spike from 391 copies last week."

— "Town-by-town COVID-19 data in Massachusetts," by Ryan Huddle and Peter Bailey-Wells, Boston Globe.

DATELINE BEACON HILL

— "Massachusetts Lottery needs protections from sports betting, treasurer says," by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: "Treasurer Deborah Goldberg urged the Gaming Commission to ensure sports wagering regulations protect the Lottery, which provides hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to cities and towns each year."

— "Sports betting in Massachusetts took a step forward Thursday when regulators discussed and adopted initial regulations," by Chris Van Buskirk, MassLive: "Massachusetts sports betting regulators on Thursday made their first foray into approving and debating regulations for the emerging industry, taking an initial look at companies that will certify betting devices and the house rules they will need to have in place before accepting bets."

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PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES

— "MBTA's East Boston ferry returns to mitigate traffic from Sumner Tunnel closures," by Gayla Cawley, Boston Herald: "The MBTA's pilot ferry program will operate between East Boston at Lewis Mall and downtown Boston at Long Wharf, beginning Monday and extending through Nov. 30. The boat will then be anchored for the winter before taking to the sea again on March 1, service that will continue through at least the spring of 2023."

PARTY POLITICS

— "MassGOP embroiled in court battle over finances," by Christian M. Wade, Daily News of Newburyport: "The state's Republican Party remains embroiled in a costly court fight with its treasurer over control of the party's finances as it struggles with fundraising efforts ahead of the November elections. The lawsuit, filed by MassGOP Chairman Jim Lyons in February in Middlesex Superior Court, alleges that elected Treasurer Patrick Crowley was part of a 'plot' to disrupt the party's business operations over a political disagreement with the party's chairman. … Since the litigation was filed, however, lawyers for both sides have been wrangling in court over access to the party's files and bank statements and depositions."

MARIJUANA IN MASSACHUSETTS

— "SJC says Boston judge erred in denying marijuana expungement," by Dan Adams, Boston Globe: "The Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruled Thursday that a Boston judge 'abused his discretion' when he denied a request by a former defendant to permanently erase legal records of two marijuana possession arrests in the early 2000s. The unanimous opinion, written by Associate Justice Serge Georges Jr., found that people previously arrested for cannabis crimes that have since been legalized are entitled to 'a strong presumption in favor of expungement.'"

FROM THE 413

— "Protesters call for Greenfield Chief Robert Haigh to resign or be fired by mayor," by Luis Fieldman, MassLive: "A group of protesters gathered in downtown Greenfield on Wednesday evening and demanded that Police Chief Robert Haigh either resign or be fired from his post by Mayor Roxann Wedegartner in a demonstration where protestors described an erosion of public trust after a jury found that Haigh discriminated against a former officer."

— "Yvonne Gittelson continues run for Hampshire County Sheriff after primary loss," by Brian Steele, Daily Hampshire Gazette: "Days after finishing second in the Democratic primary for Hampshire County sheriff, Yvonne Gittelson has announced that she will continue her campaign as a write-in or sticker candidate for the Nov. 8 general election."

THE LOCAL ANGLE

— "Two Mass. elected officials in Oath Keepers database," by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: "The ADL identified Ronald Beaty of West Barnstable, a candidate for Barnstable County commissioner, and David A. Sanders of Wilbraham, a member of the Wilbraham Republican Town Committee, as being included in the Oath Keepers database."

— "Primary wins mean changes in Salem's future," by Dustin Luca, Salem News: "Three careers were elevated on one ballot Tuesday night, with local politicians Kim Driscoll, Paul Tucker and Manny Cruz ratcheting hard-fought wins in this year's state primary elections. So there are some changes in store for Salem. Tucker is set to become the Essex County District Attorney (with no Republican opposition in November), Cruz is poised to assume Tucker's seat in the Legislature and Driscoll, the city's longtime mayor with three years still on her latest term, is now quite possibly leaving the position in less than three months. There aren't any conversations yet about transitions as Salem also hits its peak tourism season, Driscoll said Wednesday."

— "Mass. residents say they're more concerned about the cost of health care than the pandemic," by Jessica Bartlett, Boston Globe: "Massachusetts residents say their top health concern is not the COVID-19 pandemic or the quality of care they receive but the cost of health care in the state, according to a new survey."

— THERE'S ALWAYS A MASSACHUSETTS CONNECTION: "When Queen Elizabeth II came to town: 'It was a beautiful day for Boston'," by Joe Dwinell, Boston Herald.

— "Gov. Dukakis recalls day spent with Queen Elizabeth in Boston," by Ted Wayman, WCVB.

MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

— "New Hampshire Gov. Sununu endorses Chuck Morse days before Senate GOP primary," by Michael Warren, CNN: "New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu on Thursday endorsed state Senate President Chuck Morse for the US Senate, just days before Tuesday's Republican primary. … Asked by a reporter about his recent conversation with Donald Trump, who has not endorsed in the race, Sununu said he encouraged the former President to get involved."

HEARD 'ROUND THE BUBBLAH

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Michael Greenwald, managing director at Tiedemann Constantia and director at Tiedemann Advisors; Andrew Crane, Jason Denoncourt, Diedtra Henderson and Daniel Pipes.

HAPPY BIRTHWEEKEND — to Karissa Hand, the Boston Globe's Martin Finucane, Meg Wheeler and Annika Jensen, who celebrate Saturday; and to Sunday birthday-ers former state Sen. Ben Downing, Andrew Sagarin, POLITICO's Joe Schatz and Matt Giancola.

NEW HORSE RACE ALERT: ALL THINGS IN MODERATION — Hosts Jennifer Smith, Steve Koczela and Lisa Kashinsky break down Tuesday's primaries. Subscribe and listen on iTunes and SoundCloud.

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