vote if you're not a democrat, too

[jadelennox]

(crossposted to somervillemass)

Here's a frequently misunderstood part of Massachusetts election law: if you are registered to vote with a party affiliation, you can only vote in that party's primary.  But if you're registered to vote without a party affiliation (unaffiliated or independent), you can vote in any party's primary.  This means that if you consider yourself Green, Libertarian, or Republican but happen to be registered as an unaffiliated voter, you can still vote in the Democratic primary tomorrow.

Most of the contested races are in the Democratic primary.  And be aware of the political realities of living in Massachusetts: the Democratic primary is the election which will really decide who ends up in the State House.  Don't like any of the Democratic candidates in your district and want to vote your conscience?  Great!  Vote for the least of all the evils in the Democratic primary, and then vote for your favorite candidate in the November election.  At no point are you voting against your conscience.

And after that public service announcement, here are some endorsements:

The Boston Phoenix endorses Carl Sciortino for the 34th Middlesex District, which comprises neighborhoods in West Somerville and South Medford; and Avi Green for the  26th Middlesex District, which takes in parts of Cambridge and Somerville.  Read the editorial for their reasons.  Note that Avi Green has pledged not to vote for Finneran, so if that's an issue for you, he's a good candidate (or a bad one, I suppose, if you like Finneran).

Robert Reich endorses the same two candidates.  His complete list of endorsements:

• Melissa Murgo, challenger, 16th Worcester House District -- http://www.MelissaMurgo.com/
  
• Carl Sciortino, challenger, 34th Middlesex House District (Somerville/Medford) -- http://www.ElectCarl.org
  
• Avi Green, challenger, 26th Middlesex House District (Cambridge/Somerville) -- http://www.AviGreen.org
  
• Paul McGeary, for State Senate, First Essex and Middlesex -- http://McGeary2004.com/
  
• Peter Vickery, Candidate for Governor's Council -- http://www.VoteVickery.com/
  
• Ed Augustus, open seat, 2nd Worcester Senate District -- http://www.EdAugustus.com/
  
• Katherine Clark, challenger, Middlesex & Essex Senate District -- http://www.ClarkForSenate.com/
  
• Monica Palacios-Boyce, open seat, 1st Hamden House District -- http://www.MonicaForStateRep.com
  
• Sen. Pam Resor, incumbent, Middlesex & Worcester Senate District -- http://www.PamResor.com/
  

Comments

[georgy.livejournal.com]

It's all about Carl Sciortino.

Thanks for posting this!

[jadelennox]

Sure! It's frustrating seeing all these important races and not living in a district where I can affect them. Then again, it's good that my representatives are already awesome. ;)