The Davis Square Community

There are 3 people running:

Marty Martinez (I just came from a fundraiser so I make no claims to being non-biased)
Jack Connelly
Robert Daut

This is a gross over simplification of both Somerville politics and the candidates but should provide some labels at least. Marty is the progressive Democrat supported by the progressives in Somerville. Jack is the establishment Democrat supported by the establishment Democrats in Somerville. Robert is a relative unknown that doesn't seem to have any real support.

Jack use to be the ward 5 (davis square) alderman until he lost to progressive Rebekah Gewirtz (http://www.rebekahgewirtz.org/) in the last election. Marty is a long time community activist and co-founder of Progressive Democrats of Somerville.

Marty's web site is here:

http://www.martyforalderman.com/

I couldn't find any for the other folks. I trust someone else will put up a link if they find them.

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noire.livejournal.com

Marty Martinez is endorsed by both Denise Provost and Pat Jehlan. He has a great deal of experience with affordable housing and youth issues, and has been invited to serve on several city advisory boards.

Check him out, and VOTE. Please. This could be a very important election in the city. The Board of Alderman is not notably progressive, so if you are looking to make Somerville more progressive, this election will make a difference.

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surrealestate.livejournal.com

Do you think Jack isn't progressive because he is established? From what I've seen, he seems pretty progressive, but perhaps I am missing something.

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ron_newman

Jack was, and Rebekah now is, the ward 6 alderman -- not ward 5.

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*doh*

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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?

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phoenixy.livejournal.com

Maybe this is a dumb question, but what's the difference between the "preliminary election" and the "final election"? Is the prelim. a primary?

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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.

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Not really.

As I understand it it's simply because there are 3 candidates. The top 2 from this election will run head-to-head in May. Had only 2 ran there would only be a single election. I'm not sure why they do it like that.

It only happens in special elections - for the regular election the top 4 vote-getters (for alderman-at-large) win. The crazy thing is whoever wins is going to have to run again in November (the regular cycle).

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Jack isn't a conservative fundamentalist or anything. The distinction between the establishment Democrats and progressive Democrats in Somerville tend to be about openness in government and outreach to residence who haven't lived in Somerville all their lives. Nine of the current ten Alderman were born in Somerville, while only about 50% of Somerville residence were.

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Just out of curiosity, how does outreach to life-long Somervillians and outreach to new-comer Somervillians differ?

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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.

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ron_newman

No, it happens in all city elections. If more than 8 people run for alderman-at-large, the preliminary eliminates all but the top 8. Those remaining candidates then contend in the final for the 4 seats.

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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.

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I did a quick google search for Jack Connelly, and found out that his name is actually Jack Connolly.

There's a hideous looking website up, but it's for his old Ward 6 re-election campaign. http://www.aldermanjackconnolly.com/

He is also a "featured property" (http://www.somerville.com/viewprop.php?pid=78") at the real estate website Somerville.com!

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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?

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Thanks Ron

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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.

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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.

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ron_newman

Understandable -- I don't think this has happened in several years.

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heliograph.livejournal.com

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

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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).

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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.

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dominika-kretek.livejournal.com

Why is it that I only have a mailing from Robert Daut, when I have voted in every single election (and there have been many) in Davis Square since I moved here two years ago? You'd think they'd at least want my name for the GOTV operations!

Anyway, I have a hard time seeing Jack Connolly losing.

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ron_newman

I've gotten no US mail from anyone yet. (This could just mean that all three candidates know I'm supporting Marty, so they've crossed me off their junk-mail lists.)

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Ideally you want both. Even good intentioned people are likely to reach out more in their own circles. So having a good mix of life long residence and folks who moved here more recently is the ideal situation.

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