State Roundup: Candidate Overload

With just one week to go before the primary, every news outlet, political committee, fair and parade organizer, and ice cream vendor is subject to a visit from a candidate. Here's a round up of items from late last week and the holiday weekend...

Worcester County Sheriff
The Telegram reports that Scot Bove (D-Holden) took a leave of absence from his job at the jail five weeks ago in an effort to distance himself from the appearance of a conflict of interest:

Scot J. Bove has taken a leave of absence from his job as assistant deputy sheriff while he runs for the Democratic nomination for sheriff.

Thomas J. Foley, his opponent, questioned how it is possible to be objective in supervising employees who either donated or refused to donate to his election effort. Mr. Foley, a former state police superintendent, said his policy is to not accept campaign contributions from sheriff's department employees.

Mr. Bove said he has taken a six-week leave of absence, ending with the primary Sept. 14 primary. He acknowledged that he continued working at the jail from the time he announced his candidacy in January until last month.

Bove also discusses the impact of the Sheriff's race on a tavern he owns in Worcester, saying he will recuse himself from all business operations should he be elected.

The Telegram also looks at the race from a high level, focusing on the candidates' differing views of the job description.

Second Worcester House District
All five candidates for state representative, including the two Democrats vying for the nomination next Tuesday, faced off in a debate at Mt. Wachusett Community College.

First Middlesex House District
Five challengers for this open seat also faced off last week in a forum in Townsend. There are three Democrats and two Republicans vying for their respective nominations next week.

The race is apparently so interesting that even the Globe sent a reporter outside of 495 to see what is going on out in the woods.

Second Franklin House District
Candidates for this open seat also continued their seemingly endless string of debates with two more events in Greenfield last week. Democrats faced off in a forum sponsored by the Greenfield Democratic Town Committee. The Franklin County School Committee Caucus, among others, also held a candidate forum to discuss the issue of education. Steven Adam (R-Orange) and Genevieve Fraser (U-Orange) joined the four Democrats in the discussion.

18th Worcester House District
Rep. Jennifer Callahan was in Blackstone for the first day of school, passing out backpacks to disadvantaged children.

37th Middlesex House District
Worcester and Middlesex Senate District
Rep. Jen Benson (D-Lunenburg) and Sen. Jennifer Flanagan (D-Leominster) served ice cream to and answered questions from seniors at the Pearl Brook Senior Housing Complex.

Middlesex and Worcester Senate District
Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton) spoke at a home in Marlborough that had been bought out of foreclosure by the city of Marlborough and refurbished for resale as affordable housing thanks to a state grant.

Sixth Worcester House District
Mike Jaynes (R-Southbridge) writes on SpeakOutSouthbridge.com that he is the most conservative candidate in the race for the Republican nomination.

Worcester, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin Senate District
Daniel Dubrule (R-Ashburnham) officially announced his candidacy for the seat currently held by Sen. Stephen Brewer (D-Barre).

Governor's Council
The Sentinel and Enterprise takes a look at Jen Caissie (R-Oxford) and Fran Ford (D-Paxton), the two candidates running for the open Governor's Council seat.

Press Release: Benson campaign knocks on over 1,000 doors

The following press release was sent by Rep. Jennifer Benson (D-Lunenburg) candidate for re-election in the 37th Middlesex district.

Benson campaign knocks on over 1,000 doors

State Representative believes in a personal approach to voter outreach

LUNENBURG – State Representative Jen Benson announced today that her campaign has knocked on well over 1,000 doors during the summer, and she is just getting started as the campaign season starts to heat up. While many candidates rely on mailings, automated phone calls, or advertisements to reach voters, Benson is following a more personal approach going door-to-door to meet and talk with voters one-on-one.

“Voters sometimes tune out impersonal communication like mailings and advertisements,” said Benson. “While just about everyone appreciates a personal visit and a chance to ask questions and discuss the issues.”

Benson acknowledges that going door-to-door takes a lot of time and energy. “Scheduling time for canvassing while the legislature is in session is a challenge, but the process of meeting with voters and hearing about their personal situations helps me serve them better as a their Representative,” said Benson. “Our legislative session wrapped up at the end of July, and while I still have a great deal of constituent work to do, I look forward to spending more time going door-to-door and hearing what voters have to say.”

Benson is not surprised that the top concerns of voters during her visits are the economy and job creation. “While Massachusetts is recovering from the recession faster than the rest of the country, there are still too many people out of work,” said Benson. “I have gotten positive feedback on the economic development bill and small business healthcare legislation we just passed, but people are still suffering and there is much more that needs to be done.”

Benson’s campaign has also included campaign volunteers in their canvassing efforts. “Going to someone’s door to talk about a candidate and the issues can be a daunting task for a volunteer,” said Campaign Manager Amy Burke, “but we have had some wonderful volunteers and campaign interns who have really connected with voters and added a great deal of positive energy to the process.”

Benson believes that other campaigning tools and communication strategies have their place. “My campaign will be sending mailings so voters know where I stand on the issues and I will be making phone calls with volunteers to get out the vote,” said Benson, “but I truly believe that speaking with voters one-on-one is the best campaign tool.”

Tuesday Roundup: Rock the boat (don't rock the boat, baby)

Let's start our Tuesday spin around the region with the Congressional race in the Fifth District, where Sam Meas (R-Haverhill) rocked John Kerry over the recent controversy surrounding Kerry's yacht:

In a press release issued last week, Meas said the "nautical and tax-dodging misadventures of our aristocratic Senior Senator, John F. Kerry, firmly solidify his reputation as being total out of touch with his constituents."

Kerry, of course, has come under heavy fire for registering his new, $7 million, 76-foot yacht "Isabel," in Rhode Island instead of his home state of Massachusetts, ostensibly to avoid paying taxes on the costly craft.

At its core, this story illustrates the need to scrap our oppressive, unjust and obscenely complex tax system and replace it with something simpler and more fair..."

Of course, Kerry has been accused of docking his boat in Rhode Island to avoid paying state--not federal --taxes, so should he be elected to Congress, Meas wouldn't have any standing to change the tax system he accuses Kerry of dodging.

Poweline followed up The Weekly Standard's profile of Meas with a note from a reader touting Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) as the best challenger in the field.

Second Congressional District
Rep. Richard Neal (D-Springfield) traveled to Lee's Summit, Mo. to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Social Security at a series of town hall meetings with Missouri Congressman Emanuel Cleaver.

Third Congressional District
Robert Chipman (R-Plainville) wrote to the Attleboro Sun-Chronicle describing his side of a dispute over lawn signs in Plainville.

Michael Stopa (R-Holliston) and Brian Herr (R-Hopkinton) attended a Tea Party event in Northboro to hear arguments against granting citizenship to illegal immigrants.

Second Worcester House District
Three of the five candidates for the open seat--Rich Bastien (R-Gardner), Carolyn Kamuda (U-Gardner), and Amy Feeley-Knuuttila (D, Winchendon) were endorsed by Citizens for Limited Taxation.

13th Worcester House District
Sean Dacey at Unfashionable Sentiments takes stock of the number of lawn signs in his neighborhood.

Middlesex and Worcester Senate District
37th Middlesex House District
In a surprise to no one, the Young Democrats of Massachusetts endorsed Sen. Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton). Previously, the YDMA announced their support for Rep. Jen Benson (D-Lunenburg).

Finally, thanks to Shaun Sutner of the Telegram, who had nice things to say about this blog in his online daily ElectionNet column on telegram.com.

Tuesday roundup: Good day to spend in the hammock

Another sleepy August day came and went, with little election news to report around Central Mass. Here's what's new...

Worcester County Sheriff
Lew Evangelidis (R-Holden) spoke in support of James McKenna, a write-in candidate for Attorney General.

First Congressional District
Bill Gunn (R-Belchertown) appeared at a rally in Leominster. DaTechGuy has the video.

Ninth Worcester House District
Rep. George N. Peterson Jr. (R-Grafton) switched his vote on CORI reform from yes to no after a provision to allow for "dangerous hearings for defendants charged with felony firearm offenses" was added to the final bill.

Fifth Congressional District
Both Rep. Niki Tsongas (D-Lowell) and challenger Jon Golnik (R-Carlisle) were profiled at Yes We Will Lawrence.

37th Middlesex House District
Sponsores of the bill to allow local communities to more easily set up their own local electrical utilities--including Rep. Jen Benson (D-Lunenburg) are lamenting the legislature's inablity to pass the legislation before the end of the session.

Weekend Roundup: Lazy days of summer

As one would expect after a lazy summer weekend, there were no big stories to break over the last couple of days. But there were a couple of things of note, here they are...

Sixth Worcester House District
Rep. Geraldo Alicea (D-Charlton) reports that progress is being made in the quest to bring a Registry of Motor Vehicles office back to Southbridge.

Challenger Peter Durant (R-Spencer) has called on Alicea to file Durant's bill to prohibit the state from breaking a lease similar to the former RMV lease in Sturbridge. The press release is a proof-readers nightmare. One hopes the bill is better written than the release.

11th Worcester House District
Kevin Byrne (D-Shrewsbury) announced recently that he plans to run for the Democratic nomination to replace Rep. Karyn Polito (R-Shrewsbury). Denis Leary (D-Shrewsbury) had been the only Democratic candidate to qualify for the ballot, but he recently pulled out due to health issues.

12th Worcester House District
Rep. Harold Naughton received the endorsement of The Gun Action Owners League of Massachusetts.

Challenger James Gettens (R-Sterling) was endorsed by Citizens for Limited Taxation.

37th Middlesex House District
Rep. Jennifer Benson (D-Lunenburg) voted in favor of the sales-tax holiday. Her anti-tax opponent, Kurt Hayes (R-Boxborough), criticized her even though she voted the way he would have.

18th Worcester House District
Selectman Ryan Fattman (R-Sutton) has been under fire for literature claiming he won an award that he did not win. He is challenging Rep. Jennifer Callahan (D-Sutton).

13th Worcester District
City Councillor Joffrey Smith (D-Worcester) is balking at Worcester's newly proposed valet parking ordinance.

Second Franklin House District
Lee Chauvette (D-Athol) has been endorsed by the Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts.

First Congressional District
Bill Gunn (R-Belchertown) brings his campaign to Leominster for a candidate forum Tuesday night at 7:00.