BAY STATE DEMS UNITE, TAKE AIM AT GOV SEAT
Party leaders throw support behind nominee Gonzalez
Ayanna Pressley — fresh from unseating incumbent U.S. Rep. Michael E. Capuano — took aim at widely popular GOP Gov. Charlie Baker, urging Democrats to work to oust him from the Corner Office by strongly backing their own party’s nominee, Jay Gonzalez.
“We know elections have consequences. We’re living that,” Pressley said yesterday at a post-primary Democratic Unity breakfast.
“We’re doing everything by making sure this ticket is elected from the top starting with Jay and Quentin,” she said, referring to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Gonzalez and lieutenant governor candidate Quentin Palfrey.
Democrats are hoping that Pressley’s upset of Capuano will be a harbinger of energy on the left that could propel them to win in November, particularly in the gubernatorial race — in which Baker is seen as favored, as someone who has taken numerous centrist and even leftleaning positions, while working cooperatively with top Democrats. Polling has found Baker to be the most popular governor in the nation, even as a Republican in a heavily blue state.
Mayor Martin J. Walsh and Attorney General Maura Healey echoed the call.
“We need bold vision on transportation, on inequality, on education. We need 21st century leadership in the Corner Office,” Walsh said. “We need to be forward-looking, not looking behind us, and we need to make sure, Democrats, as we get out there for the next nine weeks, that we elect Jay Gonzalez as the next governor of Massachusetts.”
“I look forward to the work we’re going to do over the next 62 days together to ensure that Jay Gonzalez and Quentin Palfrey take over the Corner Office,” Healey said. “Make no mistake about it, now in this time in our country we need leadership at the local and the state level — that’s where the action is at.”
Gonzalez challenged Baker to pledge to restrict “dark money” and super PAC spending from their race.
“Incumbency and money and special interest and pundits don’t decide elections. People do. People decide elections,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez beat Bob Massie in the primary, 63 to 36 percent.
The party leaders were gathered at U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign headquarters in Dorchester yesterday to present the slate that will compete into November. In her speech, Pressley took another jab at President Trump, calling for a “movement” against him.
“The hate coming out of this White House will never be defeated singularly by any one vote, it can only be defeated by a movement,” Pressley said. “This is our opportunity to build it. We are at crossroads. This can be darkest hour or it can be our finest. I’m betting on it being our finest.”
Capuano did not show at yesterday’s breakfast. Neither did Josh Zakim, who
lost his bid to unseat Secretary of State William Galvin. But Massie and Jimmy Tingle, who lost to lieutenant governor nominee to Quentin Palfrey, were seated in the front row.
The Baker-Polito campaign yesterday announced the appointment of its chairman, Jack Connors, a philanthropist and driving force behind many civic campaigns, including co-founding Camp Harbor View.
“Governor Baker and Lt. Governor Polito are proud to have strong working relationships with their state and local colleagues across the aisle and an accomplished bipartisan record that continues to deliver results for the people of Massachusetts, including 180K new jobs, historic funding for education and nationleading reforms to curb the opioid epidemic,” Baker campaign spokesman Terry MacCormack said in a statement.