The Lincoln delegates at the Massachusetts Democratic Convention. Top row left to right: Peggy Schmertzler, Lorraine Fiore, Barbara Slayter and Peter Pease. Second row: Al Schmertzler, Marcie Black, Mari Haas and John Santa.
Six Lincoln residents attended the State Democratic Convention on June 14, and four of them—Barbara Slayter, Lorraine Fiore, Al Schmertzler and Peggy Schmertzler—wrote this first-hand account with their impressions of the candidates.
The convention endorsed the following candidates: Steve Grossman for governor (though he trails Attorney General Martha Coakley in voter polls), Steve Kerrigan for lieutenant governor, Warren Tolman for attorney general and Deb Goldberg for treasurer. Voting results from the Lincoln delegates appear at the end of this article.
Candidates for governor
Juliette Kayyem—Her presentation was confident and dynamic. We thought she had greatly improved in both substance and style over the time last January when all the candidates spoke at Bemis Hall. Then, she seemed to focus on her personal story and experiences; this time she focused on Massachusetts issues. Her mantra along the lines of “be bold now for a better future” was compelling. She is young; we hope to see more of her in Massachusetts politics, and some among us are disappointed that she didn’t get the 15 percent required to appear on the September primary ballot.
Don Berwick—This presentation was dynamic and impassioned. He did the best job of all the candidates, in our view, of framing the issues. He talked about “saving Isaiah” but he placed his medical concern in the broad context of poverty and social injustice. We found this very effective. Berwick has a bold vision and valuable experience dealing with large bureaucracies. He does not have a lot of experience in Massachusetts politics. We hope that will not be a handicap for him. His logo “All Means All” is effective and to the point.
Martha Coakley—Martha opened her talk with reference to the U.S. Senate race she lost to Scott Brown in 2010. For us, the way she handled it was a little curious and not fully adequate. She did not explain the outcome of the race. She did not apologize for it; she did not accept responsibility for it. She did acknowledge the pain it caused her and others. She also indicated that no one would work harder than she intended to if she were the Democratic candidate, so we suppose she came close to a mea culpa but it didn’t seem quite sufficient. We all agreed that she has been a very strong attorney general and has excellent prosecutorial skills. We wondered about political savvy and the need, as governor, to be able to deal effectively with the legislature. A high point was her humorous statement about Deval Patrick’s “big shoes to fill, so isn’t it about time to switch to high heels?”
Steve Grossman—Grossman is clearly a political pro. He has done an excellent job as treasurer. He is progressive along all the dimensions that matter to the four of us. He is smart, savvy, a good speaker, and has long experience in Massachusetts Democratic politics. While he might not be our first choice for governor, we all agreed that we could get behind him if he were the candidate.
Joe Avellone—We all expressed concern that Avellone is a one-issue candidate. He is focused on fighting addiction. While this is extremely important, we felt that a candidate for governor needs to cast a broader net around the issues that are important to him and the leadership he would offer for addressing them.
Candidates for lieutenant governor
Leland Cheung—It was our collective view that Cheung gave a very strong speech. He really enabled the audience to see the world of Massachusetts and the U.S. through the eyes of an immigrant family. His accomplishments are evident and he is clearly a very smart individual. He is also relatively new to Massachusetts politics and had not organized the introductory sponsor or the supporting fans the way other candidates had. We’re pleased that he made the 15 percent cut by a percentage point and hope that he’s a newcomer to Massachusetts Democratic politics who will continue to be engaged. How delightful it was to see his joyful parents on stage—they were elated!
Mike Lake—Lake is clearly a highly experienced candidate with a strong track record in many public and civil society organizations. His diverse experience, excellent speaking skills and political know-how make him a leading candidate.
James Arena-DeRosa—This presentation seemed more like a college lecture than a speech intended to rouse the audience to enthusiastic support. Arena-DeRosa’s credentials are strong—Peace Corps, Oxfam America, the U.S. government on hunger and poverty policies. He seemed inexperienced politically and perhaps by nature more reserved than the other candidates.
Steve Kerrigan—In contrast, Steve Kerrigan gave a rousing speech in which he emphasized his long political experience as a member of Ted Kennedy’s staff. He also emphasized his concern for the military and military families.
Candidates for attorney general
Maura Healey—She clearly gave a thoughtful and impassioned speech and had strong support among the four of us. She emphasized her long track record on civil rights issues and, in particular, her fight for marriage equality and her opposition to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Her seven years in the Attorney General’s Office would clearly have prepared her well for the responsibilities of attorney general. She presented herself as both strong and determined.
Warren Tolman—Tolman got high marks for a humorous video in which he made fun of himself and offered a light touch when most of the “life stories” were highly serious. Where Healey came across as determined, Tolman seemed almost pugnacious. However, he scored with some of us on two items. He identified the National Rifle Association by name several times and indicated he was absolutely committed to standing up to the NRA. Healey merely indicated a willingness to “get illegal guns off the streets.” There seems to be quite a difference in their approaches to gun violence. Tolman also identified gender violence as an important concern and one that he would address vigorously.
Candidates for treasurer
Tom Conroy—We all agreed that Conroy is a very strong candidate, widely experienced, principled, and hard-working. He is involved in Wayland politics and has previous experience in progressive politics in Washington. (We also loved his triplets and sympathized with having three daughters heading off to college this year!) His focus on helping small businesses, raising the minimum wage and reducing income inequality, among others items, were noted by all of us.
Deb Goldberg—Goldberg has a strong marketing background and business and law graduate degrees as well as political experience in Brookline. She spoke effectively of various ways she has helped less fortunate people in the course of her career and emphasized her overall business expertise in learning the ropes through her family’s Stop & Shop enterprise and in her varied experience in the nonprofit world.
Barry Feingold—Feingold also seems to be a strong candidate, though he does not have an education specifically related to finances or business as the other candidates do.
In sum, we are very pleased that there is a three-way race for governor and delighted that Berwick made the cut. We hope to see more of both Kayyem and Cheung in Massachusetts politics in the future. To us, Mike Lake looks like an especially strong candidate for lieutenant governor. Some of us will take another close look at the Healey-Tolman race for the reasons identified. All three candidates for treasurer made a strong showing, but we four lean toward Conroy.
The Lincoln delegates voted as follows:
- Governor: Kayyem: 2; Berwick: 2; Coakley: 2.
- Lieutenant governor: Cheung: 1; Lake: 2; Arena-DeRosa: 1; Kerrigan: 2.
- Attorney general: Healey: 6.
- Treasurer: Conley: 5; Goldberg: 1.