Voters who have settled on a Ward 6 candidate: Why are you supporting your chosen candidate?

[keithn.livejournal.com]

I'm just curious from people who are not the candidates or linked closely to any of them - how did you reach your decision? I have personally found that for the issues I care about, I can't see much of a reason to vote for one candidate as opposed to any of the others. So I'll probably end up voting based on some other reason I haven't decided on yet. They all seem like good people.

I'm wondering as to what is driving other voters. I'm probably not a typical municipal election voter (as a young and relatively recent renting resident of 4 years) but I'm willing to bet some more people like me are here on DSLJ.

Comments

[dougo.livejournal.com]

According to a mailer I got from Chisholm today, Lance Davis "has accepted five $1,000 and seventeen $500 contributions from area businessmen, attorneys, and individuals living outside of Ward 6 and the City of Somerville". There is a list of donations at the Office of Campaign & Political Finance website (http://www.ocpf.us/Filers/Index?q=16087#filer-data), though it's not clear to me that these are developers. (You seem to be right that Chisholm has entirely self-funded (http://www.ocpf.us/Filers/Index?q=12419#filer-data). I don't see that as a negative; he's no Donald Trump.)

Another mailer from Chisholm has a quote from Bernie Sanders about "dirty money". Chisholm has also mentioned Citizens United (in the SCATV interview). I suspect most or all of the other candidates would agree with him about campaign finance and corruption in general, but so far he's the only one who has actually mentioned it.

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

I skimmed the list of contributions and as far as I can tell there are "five $1000 donations" and "seventeen $500 donations" if my quick count is right. But the wording implies that he counted five outside the ward, and seventeen outside the ward, which that list does not agree with. The addresses on SOME of each of the $1000 donations and SOME of each of the $500 donations are outside of Ward 6. But many of them are from residents and/or businesses of Ward 6 (I spotted the name of Redbones owner with an address on Chester St, and I am not sure whether they reside at Chester St or only the restaurant does.)

I'd hazard a guess than many of the others whose positions are listed as counsel for various businesses are not "area developers" but "buddies from law school who are happy to kick in money for a campaign". Is he a well-to-do lawyer who knows some of the wealthier set who can afford to kick in $500 or $1000 to a political campaign? yes. Is he soliciting developers to buy influence on the BoA? I doubt it.

[ron_newman]

I believe Rob Gregory, owner of Redbones, lives a block south of the restaurant on Chester Street, corner of Orchard.

big donation rundown, not really what Chisholm implied

[pekmez.livejournal.com]

The five $1000 donations are a lawyer and his wife whose address is Quincy, MA, the owner of a plumbing company that does business in Somerville, Darcy Gregory (who I think is co owner of Redbones and Rob Gregory's wife?), and Lance himself.

The $500 contributions include many individuals whose addresses are in Ward 6, including names I recognize from being active in the Somerville Public Schools, Progress Together from Somerville, folks I see on social media promoting Somerville Homeless Coalition fundraisers, etc.