Special election

[sonofabish.livejournal.com]

While looking on the city website for the library hours, I came across this notice:

Board Of Aldermen Sets Calendar For Special Election To Fill At-Large Vacancy

SOMERVILLE – Board of Election Commissioners Chairman Nicholas Salerno announced today the dates and deadlines approved by the Board of Aldermen Thursday for the City’s Special Election for Alderman at Large. The election will be held to fill the Board seat vacated when State Representative Denise Provost resigned on October 26, 2006. The Preliminary Election will be held Tuesday, April 10, 2007, and the Final Election is scheduled for Tuesday, May 15, 2007.


Anyone have any links to the candidates?

Comments

Re: more on Marty...

[foxalbers.livejournal.com]

Good lord, you mean it's possible for Somerville to be more progressive than it already is?

Isn't that like one of those mass-marrying Mormon communities in Utah getting more conservative?

Re: more on Marty...

[rollzroix.livejournal.com]

You stole my thunder....

Here's what I was going to write:


"The Board of Alderman is not notably progressive"

This is one's opinion - progressiveness is in the eye of the beholder.

Somerville is known as a liberal stronghold in the MOST liberal state in the union. The BOA is all democrats (the lone republican converted last year).

Sure, you can pick issues and say they’re not progressive enough on this or that. But on the whole this board is very much left of center. We could only wish other parts of the country had elected officials this progressive.

I’m probably going to vote for Marty, not because he’s been endorsed by the PDS or Senator Jehlen, nor because the other candidates are not progressive enough. Just because I met all 3 of them at two different candidates’ forums and came away most impressed with him.

Re: more on Marty...

[foxalbers.livejournal.com]

I wish I had a clue who I was going to vote for. It's nice of Marty's people to drop off all these postcards at my house announcing his bold vision and experience or whatever, but since the postcards never mention what his bold vision and experience is, they might as well have not bothered and saved the printing costs.

I'd really like to know more about the other two candidates before I go into the voting booth...er...wooden voting partition where you stand with a marker, or whatever.

Re: more on Marty...

[rethcir.livejournal.com]

Can someone give an executive summary of what being more or less "progressive" means in the specific context of somerville politics?

Who is going to get me less parking tickets and keep the Joshua Tree open later on the weekends?

Connolly

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

Jack Connolly is a good guy, and he conscientiously advocated for Ward 6 during his 20+ years as an alderman. This position isn't a stepping stone to higher political office for him: he just seems to want to help out his neighbors. He seems to have an adult perspective on business issues, and realizes that development isn't always necessarily evil. He's also got a good sense of humor.

This isn't meant to knock either of the other candidates. There's not-really-behind-the-scenes stuff going on based on whether or not you like the mayor, and Jack is more pro-mayor (Marty worked for the previous mayor).

Re: more on Marty...

[lena-a-mermaid.livejournal.com]

There have been several candidate forums already.

If you have specific questions on Marty's vision and experience call him and ask. The phone number and contact information is on your literature and on the website referenced above.

If you want to know more about the other candidates, call them.

Somerville is still a place where you can call the candidates directly and talk to them.

What is your criteria for voting for someone? You can find your answers before Tuesday with a little bit of effort.

Re: more on Marty...

[ron_newman]

What was Robert Daut like at the second candidates' forum you attended? I only went to one forum, the one sponsored by the Somerville News at the Independent.

Re: more on Marty...

[rollzroix.livejournal.com]

Daut is easily the best public speaker of the three, IMHO (I think he's a former prosecutor of some sort). I gave him a point for political courage at an east somerville forum. There was a question about the hypothetical jail - Martinez and Connolly said what this particular audience wanted to hear (which may well be their opinion, so they didn't lose points with me): that they would oppose it unconditionally. Daut refused to say that, and earned some hissing from the group but a little "non-pander" point from me.

The negative I have for him is that I sense he's not particularly in tune to the issues facing the city. He's selling himself as an outsider, but even outsiders have to have a firm grasp of the issues, and I'm not sure he does at this point.

Re: more on Marty...

[ron_newman]

If there's one issue that people in Somerville are nearly unanimous on, it's that a jail would bring no benefit to our city.

Re: more on Marty...

[rollzroix.livejournal.com]

nearly unanimous?

Did you take a poll?

Nobody wants higher taxes, nobody wants cuts in services, and yet the police station is said to be a "sick building". Something's gotta give.

There would be a benefit: $ not spent on building a new police station.

I don't endorse this approach for financing municipal projects, and I really don't want a new jail in Somerville either. But until we start to change our collective perspective on taxation and services, this type of short-term thinking and associated hare-brained schemes are going to continue to manifest themselves.

Re: more on Marty...

[lena-a-mermaid.livejournal.com]

Robert Daut showed up at the East Somerville forum about 55 minutes late. They even held off starting for a half hour after the posted start time waiting for him but finally had to start without him.

...it's possible for Somerville to be more progressive than it already is?

[heliograph.livejournal.com]

We're not Cambridge yet. That's the goal, right?