Carl Sciortino Wins!!!

[boywonder.livejournal.com]

From the Somerville News:

Trane concedes, Sciortino wins on stickers

By George P. Hassett

Carl Sciortino's name was not on the ballot yet he still managed to hold onto his state rep. seat today, defeating challenger Bob Trane on a sticker campaign.

A few minutes ago at the Sons of Italy in Medford, Trane conceded the race and told cheering supporters, "We went up against a machine and fought the good fight."

   

Early unofficial returns point to a Sciortino victory. With seven precincts reporting, he led Trane 1,780 votes to 1,472, according to unofficial results.

Comments

[on-reserve.livejournal.com]

one or two special interests

You mean like teachers and nurses and service workers and queers?

Look, Carl had great organization - and you're going to hold that against him? Personally, someone who can run a tight and organized campaign like that gets my vote over someone who does nothing but put a negative/smear flyer in my mail slot every 6-8 days and then throw a veritable hissy fit via suing a local newspaper. Do you think Carl should have run a weaker, less organized campaign?

I don't like the way "machine" is used in this context. On the one hand - "working like a machine" means working efficiently, tirelessly - that's a good thing and Carl definitely did that. But Trane is clearly implying that Carl is part of the entrenched establishment "machine" which, is a joke. Trane benefited far more from the "old boys' network" kind of machine than Carl. True, Carl has a different network but it's based more on what he's done and his political platform than who he knows. The man deserves a medal for ridding of us of Vinnie Ciampa - for me, everything else he's done has been gravy.

When you lose to a competitor who did it better than you, it's generally considered poor sportsmanship to attribute your loss to anything other than the fact that you both tried your best and that the other guy was ultimately better.

I agree. Trane uses "machine"

[nvidia99999.livejournal.com]

in a negative way. I think it's flattering, actually. It means many people worked well together and managed to achieve something that most people thought would be an unlikely goal.

[chumbolly.livejournal.com]

Okay, four special interests. But no, I don't hold it against him that he ran a heck of a campaign. Perhaps the reason I didn't find the use of the word "machine" offensive is that, even though I support Carl, I wasn't as firmly in his camp as I suspect you are. I hesitate to defend Trane in this forum, but in my view, he did more than put negative flyers in my mailbox. He also responded to every email I sent him in his capacity as Alderman in a thoughful and engaged manner, and he got pedestrian crossing signs put up on Broadway --the original one in Teele Square he paid for himself, or so he told me. This sounds like a trifling issue, but it's the sort of thing an Alderman should do, and he did it well.

The signature thing and the way Carl handled it always bothered me, and it's the reason Carl needed to make such a big push to get re-elected. So where does that leave him? Stronger or beholden?

[cos]

Hmm, what do you mean by "the way Carl handled it"?

[chumbolly.livejournal.com]

The allegation of theft, for which a judge found no evidence in support, always seemed a little far-fetched to me. But maybe Carl knew something that couldn't be presented in court due to evidentiary rules, who knows.

[cos]

Carl never made such an allegation in public. It was the most reasonable explanation for what happened, and Carl probably knows something more about it, but he never mentioned theft in public nor did his campaign.

As you may recall, Carl's public statement was:

Several steps are required for candidates' names to be printed on the ballot. Sciortino collected more than enough signatures, which were certified by the cities of Medford and Somerville. Before turning the certified signatures in to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, Sciortino left them in his office. When he returned to pick them up, they were gone.

"Leaving my signatures in an unsecured location was an error in judgment," Sciortino told voters in the mailing. "I take full responsibility for this mistake, and I apologize for the distraction it has caused. Although my name will not appear on the ballot, you will be able to vote for me either by placing a sticker on the ballot or by writing in my name. I hope that I can still count on your vote. Together, we have accomplished a lot for the families of Medford and Somerville over the past four years, and I want to continue that work. I ask for your vote in the Democratic primary on September 16."

[chumbolly.livejournal.com]

Huh. When you asked before what I meant by the way he handled it, I wanted to be sure I remembered correctly (my memory of facts gets distorted into vague recollections and opinion pretty fast) so I went back and checked the Somerville Journal articles on the matter. Here's what I found:

"Sciortino filed 114 certified nomination signatures with the state by Tuesday's 5 pm deadline, 36 short of the required 150. He says a 12-page batch of 72 certified Somerville voter signatures was stolen from his State House office sometime between April 28 and May 6. "I know exactly where they were in my office," he said. "They were not misplaced or misfiled. They were stolen."

So, he did make that allegation in public. That said, I thought his official public statement you've quoted above was smart, and it was refreshing for him to take the blame and move on.

[on-reserve.livejournal.com]

I would say he is beholden. To the community he represents. I've always felt represented with him as my rep. I do not feel represented by Trane (he is my Alderman).

Note: original comment deleted and re-posted under this one so it makes more sense.