News: Some not-so-sleepy primary results

Wednesday, September 4, 2024

Some not-so-sleepy primary results

Sep 04, 2024

ON TO NOVEMBER — Sniping in statements and a back and forth over debates — the general election for Senate is officially underway in Massachusetts.

Attorney and Marine veteran John Deaton sailed to an early victory last night, handily defeating Bob Antonellis and Quincy City Council President Ian Cain in a win for the wing of the state’s Republican party fighting to put forward candidates that can draw the necessary support from Massachusetts’ independent majority they need to win a statewide contest.

Now comes the hard part: taking on Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who crushed her most recent Republican opponent, Geoff Diehl, in 2018.

Democrats don’t seem to be taking the race for granted. Warren’s team threw down the debate gauntlet moments after the race was called, challenging Deaton to two televised debates in October. Deaton shot back during his victory speech that he wants five “single-issue” debates against the incumbent.

In a statement alongside the challenge, Warren’s campaign manager Janice Rottenberg blasted Deaton’s support from crypto executives who poured a couple million dollars into a PAC to boost his primary bid. And in a press release reviewed by Playbook they’re sending out this morning, the Massachusetts Democratic Party is knocking Deaton for his crypto ties and over his recent residency change (he moved from Rhode Island to Massachusetts in January to take on Warren).

Deaton’s “billionaire crypto friends are trying to buy this Senate seat and win Republican control of the Senate to protect their pocketbooks,” Massachusetts Democratic Party Chair Steve Kerrigan said in a statement this morning. “Senator Warren has a long history of standing up for ordinary Americans and winning big fights, and Bay Staters know whose side she is on. They also know a scam when they see it. John Deaton might have better luck back home in Rhode Island.”

The early attacks over the crypto cash that flowed into the primary underscore one point Deaton’s repeated on the campaign trail: while he has connections to cryptocurrency, Warren, he says, is the “crypto candidate” for turning the conversation in that direction (though Deaton hasn’t been shy in touting support from high-profile people intertwined in the industry).

Beating Warren — whose standing in her party was recently highlighted by the minutes-long standing ovation she received at the Democratic National Convention last month that left her visibly emotional — during a presidential election year with a Democratic majority in the Senate on the line is a longshot. But it’s worth keeping an eye on the three major crypto-backed PACs that are playing in some tight races. If they do play in this contest, it could give Deaton, whose own campaign cash pales in comparison to Warren’s war chest, a significant boost.

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Even with little competition, last night held some surprises.

The biggest apparent upset came in Cambridge, where progressive challenger Evan MacKay declared victory last night over Democratic state Rep. Marjorie Decker in a race that came to be viewed as sort of a referendum on the Legislature’s lack of transparency and recent inaction.

As of this morning, Associated Press results put Decker behind by a handful of votes, though the race hasn’t been officially called.

MacKay, a graduate student at Harvard, claimed victory over Decker after campaigning on the Legislature’s shortcomings, including the recent chaotic end to formal sessions –- something Decker, even as co-chair of the Public Health Committee, had minimal control over in negotiations that were controlled by top Legislative leaders.

Decker wasn’t the only incumbent surprised by a challenger last night. Republican state Rep. Susan Williams Gifford lost her primary to John Gaskey, a veteran who ran to the right of the incumbent with support from former MassGOP Chair Jim Lyons.

In Boston’s proxy-battle, the Wu train rolled to its latest victory. Allison Cartwright, a political newcomer, declared victory over Boston City Councilor Erin Murphy in the race for Supreme Judicial Court clerk in Suffolk County.

It’s a warning shot for would-be and the increasingly-likely-to-be challengers for Wu in 2025. The mayor’s operation (with a big boost from other prominent politicians in the city) took a candidate with no campaign cash and no name recognition and swept her to victory against an opponent who entered the race with both.

Not to be ignored: the behind-the-scenes influence from state Sen. Lydia Edwards, increasingly one of the city’s most influential power players, who got Cartwright’s campaign up and running.

TODAY — Vice President Kamala Harris campaigns in New Hampshire. Gov. Maura Healey has no public events. Lt. Kim Driscoll chairs a Governor’s Council meeting at noon at the State House. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and Superintendent Mary Skipper knock doors to encourage students with a history of chronic absenteeism to return to school at noon in Roxbury. Rep. Jake Auchincloss hosts a press conference on his new bipartisan transit benefits bill at 12:30 p.m. in Brookline.

WINNERS & LOSERS

— “Pires wins GOP primary in 10th Bristol, will face Sylvia in November,” by Colin Hogan, The New Bedford Light: “Joe Pires won the Republican primary for Bristol’s 10th state representative district, the seat that Bill Straus will vacate after 32 years of service. Pires, the three-term School Committee member in the Old Rochester Regional district, won 63% of the tallied votes with almost three-quarters of ballots counted — enough for the Associated Press to call the race in his favor. Pires will face Democrat Mark Sylvia in the November general election.”

— “Thomas Moakley Wins State Primary,” by Ethan Genter, The Vineyard Gazette: “Thomas Moakley won the Democratic primary for the Barnstable, Dukes and Nantucket state representative seat Tuesday, riding a wave of support in his hometown of Falmouth. Mr. Moakley, a former assistant district attorney on the Vineyard, beat out West Tisbury resident Arielle Faria in the two-way race, and is the presumptive winner with no official Republican candidates in the primary.”

— “18th Middlesex District race too close to call,” by Melanie Gilbert, The Lowell Sun: “After 13 hours of in-person voting, in addition to mail-in and early voting ballots, Tuesday’s competitive state representative race for the18th Middlesex District seat was too close to call at press time. Five-term Rady Mom, who first won his seat in 2015, was challenged by Tara Hong and Andrew Kollar.”

— “Primary election results: Schwartz wins State Rep race,” by Sam Mintz, Brookline.News: “Greg Schwartz, a doctor and former Newton City Councilor, won the Democratic primary for State Representative in Massachusetts’ 12th Middlesex District, which includes parts of Brookline and Newton. According to unofficial results from the Associated Press, Schwartz picked up 40% of the vote, while his opponents Rick Lipof and Bill Humphrey, both current Newton City Councilors, each won 30%.”

DATELINE BEACON HILL

— “Steward sale hearing today as objections pile up over hospital deals,” by Matthew Medsger, Boston Herald: “After months of delay, Steward Health Care is set to appear before a federal bankruptcy judge today to seek approval for the sale of some Massachusetts properties, even as objections pile up. The company has delayed the hearing more than a half-dozen times as it worked to secure bids on the eight hospitals it was operating in the Bay State. Six of the facilities eventually received bids, and four of them are due to be finalized on Wednesday. A further pair closed last weekend amid protests by community members and employees.”

DRINK UP — Boston is one step closer to letting the liquor flow. Lawmakers reached a deal they expect to send to Gov. Maura Healey’s desk by the end of the week that would make 225 new liquor licenses available to Boston businesses over the course of three years. More from the Boston Globe.

BALLOT BATTLES

— “Ad Buy, Endorsements Launch Union Driver Question,” by Chris Lisinski, State House News Service (paywall): “On the heels of a state settlement with Uber and Lyft, the campaign that wants to allow drivers for those platforms to unionize plans to spend big on an ad blitz and a statewide tour. Labor leaders and drivers who have been pushing a unionization ballot question for more than a year plan Wednesday to kick off the next phase of their effort with the formal launch of the ‘Yes on 3’ campaign. The campaign will be backed by what organizers say will be a seven-figure ad campaign, the News Service has learned. The campaign also plans to launch a ‘five-city driver tour,’ and suggested that a survey of drivers shows overwhelming support for the proposal.”

WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD BE READING

— “Some landlords have vacant apartments for homeless families. The paperwork required by the state is driving them away,” by Samantha J. Gross and Mike Damiano, The Boston Globe: “A key program Massachusetts uses to find long-term housing for homeless families is so backed up and laden with red tape that some applicants are missing out on vacant apartments because landlords have gotten fed up with waiting and dropped out, several advocates told the Globe. The state program, called HomeBASE, pairs homeless families with landlords who have vacant units and then subsidizes rent and other expenses for up to three years. State officials consider it a crucial pressure release valve for the overburdened shelter system, which is straining to accommodate thousands of families as new migrant families continue to arrive here.”

— “The Debt Mills: How state courts grind through consumer debt cases,” by Jenifer B. McKim, GBH News.

MEANWHILE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE

— “Party officials say New Hampshire remains battleground as Harris plans visit,” by Alanna Flood, WMUR.

MEANWHILE IN RHODE ISLAND

— “Magaziner fears Dems are ‘overconfident’ about presidential race,” by Ted Nesi, WPRI: “Rhode Island Congressman Seth Magaziner has a message for his fellow Democrats: the upbeat energy that the Kamala Harris campaign has generated so far won’t be enough to win in November. ‘Vibes don’t win elections,’ Magaziner told 12 News. ‘Hard work wins elections.’ In an interview Tuesday, Magaziner said he’s growing increasingly worried as he fails to see local Democrats’ initial excitement about their new nominee translate into campaign activity that could help her defeat former President Donald Trump in critical battleground states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Michigan.”

HEARD ‘ROUND THE BUBBLAH

TRANSITIONS — Dana-Farber CEO Laurie Glimcher will step down next month after eight years leading the company.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY — to Boston City Councilor Gabriela Coletta Zapata, Sebastian Zapata and former Boston mayoral candidate John Barros.

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