As of 10 AM today, Jake Auchincloss had a lead of more than a thousand votes over Jesse Mermell in the race for Congress in the Fourth District (thank you, Boston Globe). With almost 95% of votes counted, he had 32,640 votes to Mermell’s 31,488. As most of the remaining votes will come from the southern sections of the district, where Jake is strong, overcoming that lead seems unlikely. His strength there doesn’t surprise me. At the Newton Democratic Committee’s first forum for the candidates way back when, most of the candidates present spoke in generalities. Jake, in contrast, offered a stream of policy ideas he had discussed with leaders in Fall River and the southern section. This young man had done his homework.
Though I supported Jake, I believed that any of the front-runners- Jake, Jesse, and Becky Grossman- would provide outstanding representation and leadership in Congress. It disappointed me, therefore, to witness the venomous tone turned towards Jake in the last month. That’s our democratic system, I suppose. But the same thing could be said about the Kennedy-Markey race for Senate. Who wasn’t shocked when Markey, supporter of the Green New Deal, was supposedly “outed” online for being pro-Global Warming? The reason? He is a longstanding anti-Nuke campaigner, and nuclear power, however dangerous, is carbon-neutral.
The question remaining for most of us concerning representative Kennedy’s campaign is why he ran. Ambition seems the obvious answer, with a side of entitlement. Again, I am certain that Joe Kennedy would have been a fine senator had he triumphed. But he sought to defeat one of the best legislators in Congress, and without a single issue against Markey that resonated, Kennedy went down to defeat.
I just saw this: https://www.businessinsider.com/massachusetts-4th-congressional-district-primary-live-results-updates-2020-8 — is this official?
I’m disappointed. I voted for Jesse, and honestly I think Jake will be okay-ish, but I’m disappointed. Mostly I’m disappointed that the field was too crowded. The low polling candidates should have backed out. Now we’ll be stuck with someone who only about 22% wanted. We really need RCV. Crowded fields benefit nobody. It’s how Trump became the nominee in 2016.
@Bob Jampol, you are troubled by “white men in pickup trucks with American flags waving,” but you somehow aren’t troubled when your beloved city councilor inappropriately intervenes on behalf of Confederate flag wavers, and then overwhelmingly wins over those same voters in towns like Taunton and Dighton in a textbook example of dogwhistle politics?
This was a referendum on basic decency – what kind of person could support Auchincloss after reading a heartbreaking (and by no means unique) quote like this?
https://newton.wickedlocal.com/news/20200627/column-as-black-student-from-newton-i-wont-vote-for-jake-auchincloss
I agree with Mary Mary and Michael.
I agree that it’s ridiculous that there is a winner with 22% of the vote; particularly when the remainder of the vote was split by candidates with similar (progressive) politics. I would strongly encourage Mermell to consider a write-in campaign for the general election. Not an easy path and rarely successful, but worth a tough two month push. Am guessing she would find quite a lot of support.
I supported Jake and hope he maintains his lead. I was also disappointed to see the campaign turn so venomous. Not cool.
I voted for Joe for Senate. While I saw no difference between him and Markey as far as policy positions were concerned, I am very concerned about our aging Senate. Senate or a state governorship are the traditional stepping stones to running for presidency, and keeping younger leaders out, particularly those who may have presidential ambitions, is short-sighted. Age was a concern in this year’s race for the Dem presidential nomination, and is a concern now (at least it’s being exploited by Republicans). But nevertheless, I don’t think anyone should stay in Congress for 40 years – that’s too long. I get the value of experience, but at some point you need to step aside. Kennedy ran because of a personal ambition, no doubt, but I don’t view it as a negative. I also think that no one should expect to be unchallenged in the primaries. If anything, it keeps politicians in tune with their districts and makes them remind their constituents who they are and why they should get reelected.
@ANP, that’s the worst idea I have read in some time. I have zero interest in being represented by some knucklehead from the Trump party because of rampant dysfunction among Democrats. If she has indeed lost, Jesse should push for the instant-runoff ballot initiative this year, and consolidate support and take Jake on in the primaries in two short years. She’d have a good chance in that case, but if she follows your advice, she will kill her career.
Agree with John, a write in campaign is a very silly idea.
Presuming Jake wins, I hope Tarik Lucas runs for his open seat on the Council. He’s run city-wide before and would be an excellent member.
Congratulations to Councilor Auchincloss! No matter how you voted, you have to respect the way Auchincloss stayed cool and respectful and positive in facing the unprecedented (and in most cases misleading) negative attacks aimed at him.
@ Paul Levy: presuming Jake beats his Republican opponent in November, I hope Bryan Barash runs for that Ward 2 at-large seat. I respect Tarik Lucas’s activism and civic involvement, but the NIMBY attitudes he displayed in his past losing effort are disqualifying for me. Barash would be far more open-minded and unifying as Newton’s ongoing development drama plays out.
Run Tarik run!
People whine when there is no competition in an election and then whine some more when too many people run. A foolish consistency seems to be the hobgoblin of Newtonian minds.
Well, at least in this case the right (in both senses of the word) person ran and seems to have won.
Hoping Bryan Barash will run as well. He is obviously very well known in Ward 2!
I honestly hadn’t considered what happened if Jake won. But whatever the Charter says, we should do. After all there was a vote to change the charter, and it didn’t pass. So…special election here we come.
It’s not over yet. All of the ballots still need to be counted. I’m hoping that Jesse will consider running as an Independent in November and the other progressive candidates will endorse her.
Tarik should definitely run!
My nightmare would be to see Bryon Barash run (and god forbid win).
While I didn’t vote for Jake, I have felt he has added a nice balance on the City Council especially on some zoning related issue. On zoning, in my opinion, he skews more towards the pro-development direction but not as ideological as some. I have found him thoughtful and pragmatic. I would prefer he remain on the CC but we will have to see how the votes fall out.
I think Tarik would add a helpful voice and some much needed diversity. It would also be welcome to see some completely fresh faces/voices .
But my dream replacement for the Ward Two at Large Seat would be Scott Lennon!! I would love to see Scott return to the City Council and having Susan, Scott and Emily would be an amazing balance!!
@Claire: It’d be great to see Scott on the City Council again, but he lives in Ward One!
I tend to agree with Bryan ideologically but I find his tone a turnoff. I always get the impression that he’s talking down to people. I don’t need another white guy trying to tell me that he knows best about everything.
Yeh I had a brain freeze. Was thinking at large could live in any ward
I do not think Jake won in Southern towns due to some old thoughts on the Confederate flag. That is a sinister view of MA local politics if you think that dragging up some bad episodes from years ago in Jake’s past (Koran, Flag, Republican stint for Baker) helped and not hurt Jake. He won because local officials and voters in Fall River and similar towns liked that he engaged with them on issues, and a more moderate and cooperative approach maybe appealed to the voters more than others’. I’ve seen a lot of progressives bummed by this loss, similarly to how they’re bummed by Biden/Harris, resistant to Baker and so on. Ultimately, there is lot of echo chamber for these thoughts, but a large swath of Democrats is more in the center and is more powerful than their voice may dictate on social media. We can all agree it is better for everyone to channel dissatisfaction with that into moving the party left than withdrawing/engaging in divisive tactics.
@Gail Spector- Scott Lennon can purchase a home in Ward 2 and be eligible.
@Peter Karg he could also rent an apartment and be eligible.
@Chuck Tanowitz – Scott could move in with relatives and become eligible. He could also run for Mayor next year.
I wonder if Scott Lennon knows about all these plans to uproot him and his family. 🙂
I am not a particularly centrist Democrat at all, and I am disappointed that some of my friends on the City Council are only lukewarm towards “progressive” causes dear to me like safe cycling and better maintenance of our green spaces. But we can be allies on other issues, and perhaps I can win them over to my perspective through dialogue.
For me it’s a matter of evaluating issues one at a time and not classifying individuals as “progressive” or “centrist.” If I am skeptical about certain housing or zoning proposals, it’s not that I am a NIMBY but that I fear that instead of helping those with modest income to live in Newton, those plans will only enrich the realtors and provide housing mostly for the wealthy and privileged. We should all challenge city leaders to ensure that the results match the rhetoric.
Jake Auchincloss holds a variety of views, many of which coincide with mine but some of which don’t. The same goes for Scott Lennon, a loyal son of Newton if ever there was one.
And the same for Deb Crossley. All of them have made tangible contributions to our public life, however you classify their brand of politics.
It is unrealistic to expect any candidate or office holder to match your own beliefs 100%, and far better to accept a certain diversity of opinion among people of good faith.
I think NH is on to something. I didn’t vote for Jake, but I actually think he ran a very strong campaign. He had a lot of opportunities for community engagement and for example, his video sessions with Dr. Jha were nice. If I were only passively following the race and not super interested in politics, I could see the appeal.
I second Scott Lennon running for mayor. And then he doesn’t have to uproot this family 🙂 I can’t help but think how things would be different with 400 more votes
If you grew up in Massachusetts then there’s absolutely no doubt in your mind that Auchincloss’ intervention on behalf of Confederate flag wavers won him sizable support in the towns between Fall River and Norfolk. Anyone who’s able to say otherwise and keep a straight face is a giant fibber. See my comment above for links to stories about proud Confederate flag wavers in that area – or just randomly search for “‘Confederate flag [insert SE Mass. town name here].”
Beyond that, of course, the thing that won Auchincloss all those SE Mass towns was the hefty financial support of people like Needham’s own Barry Sloane (Century Bank), who, when he’s not busy donating to racist xenophobes like Sheriff Hodgson or homophobes like Karyn Polito, is busy building up a redoubtable track record as one of the top benefactors of the Republican State Committee and associated right-wing PACs like the Massachusetts Majority Independent Expenditure PAC.
Money from corporate puppeteers like Sloane and the Krafts, both directly and via Auchincloss’ parents’ million-dollar super PAC, allowed Auchincloss to spend wads more cash in the Providence DMA, and it obviously made a huge difference.
It’s delusional to believe that any more than maybe 1 out of 10 Auchincloss voters across the district would be able to recite any of his actual “priorities” if asked. Auchincloss won the southern four-fifths of the district because he discreetly managed to brand himself as an ally to the same exburb reactionaries and xenophobes who support Sheriff Hodgson, and also because his media buying agencies (wisely) sank a ton of his filthy Republican-donated money into the Providence-New Bedford market.
Maybe we could be a little more imaginative when it comes to potential candidates for city council and mayor than people who have already run and lost? Maybe some fresh blood and new ideas instead of people who already failed to garner enough votes among our community their last attempt?
And perhaps “promoting” someone from city council to mayor isn’t always the best idea, as chiming in on zoning issues and the like doesn’t necessarily prepare you for the vast administrative responsibilities of running a city and managing hundreds of employees. Maybe someone with real management and budget experience, a “CEO” type for that job vs. a politician (and I mean a real CEO, not a reality TV one). The city’s finances are in serious trouble (COVID hasn’t helped) and there are undoubtedly opportunities to make things more efficient, holding staff to higher standards and accountability while still increasing the quality of services delivered to the city’s citizens.
This is what I see happening: Biden wins. He brings Warren onto his cabinet, which opens the seat. Kennedy, who already has infrastructure and name recognition runs for her seat and we have both Markey and Kennedy and Warren is looking at the big picture.
@ Tom Sheff – I agree with you. Liz Warren would like to be named Treasury Secretary. That would give Kennedy pretty much a clear path for a second time.
Kennedy doesn’t have a clear path to anything at this point. I think he burned too many bridges.
Claire,
Not many people have run statewide and have that kind of name recognition and have quick access to the kind of money you’d need for a quick election. Kennedy is one. Former Governor Patrick could be another.
@Claire – Don’t underestimate a Kennedy in Massachusetts.
@ Paul Levy “Not many people have run statewide and have that kind of name recognition and have quick access to the kind of money you’d need for a quick election. Kennedy is one. Former Governor Patrick could be another.”
Didn’t we just get out of such a race and MA sent him packing? A Kennedy hasn’t run and lost before. But he did lose. Bigly!
Same would happen with Patrick who isn’t very popular
.
I’m not going to venture on who might run IF Warren accepts a cabinet position. Big If