DEM CONVENTION A RISK FOR GALVIN
Zakim looks to make a good showing
He’s the longest-serving Democratic state officeholder, first elected when Bill Weld was governor and the World Wide Web barely existed.
Now Secretary of State Bill Galvin is facing a upstart challenger, and he’s fighting to avoid an embarrassing setback at tomorrow’s Democratic state convention.
Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim is hoping for a strong showing — well over the 15 percent threshold needed to get on the primary ballot — as his campaign builds momentum.
If Zakim comes close to Galvin or even beats him, it would be a devastating outcome for the longtime secretary of state, who is gunning for a seventh term and has been coasting for decades.
“I’m confident we’ll get our 15 percent and whatever we can do above that would be gravy,” Zakim said in an interview.
Zakim is intentionally low-balling his prediction, and actually has been working Democratic delegates hard over the last few months to make a good showing in Worcester. Zakim forces also are distributing letters to delegates questioning Galvin’s commitment to a woman’s right to choose abortion — which by the way has nothing to do with running the secretary of state’s office.
Zakim advisers point out that the thousands of delegates expected to attend are mostly party insiders who have known Galvin for decades, and many will probably stick with him. But other Democratic insiders expect a competitive race.
“We’re going to get in the 20s and live to fight another day,” one adviser said. “We’re running against a machine.”
But that machine has been clunking along lately, dented by an internal investigation that found that some of Galvin’s state office workers put in campaign time during workdays to file signatures.
And Zakim has been lining up some endorsements over the last few weeks — the latest is U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, the first member of the congressional delegation to endorse in the race.
Galvin countered yesterday with an endorsement from former U.S. Rep. Barney Frank, which tells you a lot about this race. Frank is a legendary party figure, but hasn’t been in office for five years.
“My opponent’s been a candidate for decades,” Zakim said.” He’s been at these (conventions) a lot.”
Which means that Galvin’s forces should be well-organized in Worcester, and know how to turn out the delegate votes.
But the question remains — will many of the delegates abandon Galvin for the fresh face? If they do, it will set up the primary as one of the most intriguing matchups on the ballot.
‘I’m confident we’ll get our 15 percent and whatever we can do above that would be gravy.’ — JOSH ZAKIM, Hub city councilor