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Primary reports
By adamg on Tue, 09/14/2010 - 7:06am
See or hear anything interesting today as you vote or wait by the phone for that special robo-call? Post here.
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Tumbleweeds in the North End
Michael Ratty reports:
In contrast, Jesse Mermell reports from Brookline:
Tumbleweeds?
You've got tumbleweeds? BPL Ward 5 Pct 7 didn't even have that. About 8:30 my wife and I were the only ones voting - even my earlybird neighbors were just heading out and chatting with our state rep as we got there - SLOWWWWW day. At least it was the library so the poll workers had lots of books available to entertain themselves. Looking forward to the day we can vote on-line. Not very productive to have several dozen people navel-gazing at the library. Granted - the only contested votes were for our State Senator and Treasurer on the Dem side and i think nothing on the Repub. side.
screw up in Medford
Poll at Ward 5, precinct 1 and 2 location in Medford (Hickls School) was not open at 7 am. The workers there claimed it was because the janitor hadn't opened the building at 6 like he was supposed to. I called City Hall and they weren't much help, nobody seemed to act like this was very urgent. Only a few people came to vote at that time, maybe as many as a dozen over 20 minutes, but they went away frustrated. I stuck around until someone would pull a ballot for me since I can't come back at night tonight, but I didn't get to stick it in the machine. Instead I gave it, uncovered and open to view, to one of the policemen doing a detail there -- I am assuming it went into the machine later, but I don't feel very convinced of it.
I like living in Medford, but our government is broken.
Polling places
Interesting...I guess a milling crowd of city and state employees in front of the polling place doesn't count as interesting...just typical.
All quiet on the western front
21-11 in Allston-Brighton was pretty quiet. About a dozen voters between the 2 wards that vote at my location.
Grossman had 2 volunteers handing out fliers on the sidewalk and then thanking people for voting as you left. Pretty annoying but not too daunting.
There were two camera crews
There were two camera crews outside of my polling place, Thomas Crane Library in Quincy. One from Channel 5. There were also Keating and Morrissey sign holders.
Very aggressive Mike Leake supporter in Roslindale
She marched up to me, grabbed my hand and proceeded to tell me to vote for Leake because he was hard-working and lost his father at a young age. Not sure how that's relevant to his qualifications to be auditor, but she was very certain about it. I still think it's funny how they moved the voting location farther into the Greek church so that the various supporters and candidates can button hole you right outside of the voting spot without being in violation of the proximity rules. I'd prefer they move the voting back to the closer spot inside and then let the voters walk into the place without getting hassled, but I can't imagine that happening.
Interesting Sign Being Held In Newton
Saw it on my drive to work, so I didn't have a chance to question the holder regarding particulars. I may be paraphrasing slightly, but I believe the sign said...
"Patrick, Baker, Cahill, All Agree
Vote NO on 2"
My first thought was that it was a person NOT in favor of Question 2.
My second thought was, "Why is someone holding a sign concerning something not on today's ballot, but only on the November ballot? Is there some Question 2 on the Newton ballot today?"
My third thought was, "Maybe it's a person IN FAVOR of Question 2, and she's trying to get contrarians, such as myself, to rally against the three leading candidates and vote for Jill Stein, but is Jill Stein in favor of Question 2? Still, what possible difference could it make today? And..."
At that point, I plowed into the car in front of me and stopped thinking.
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
(Just kidding. I made it to work without incident, although I'm still wondering just what the sign holder had in mind.)
I also saw no on 2 supporters
I also saw no on 2 supporters this morning. I think they're out because anyone who cares enough to vote today will vote in the general, making it fairly well-targeted advertising.
Who gains here?
I looked up Ballot Question #2;
http://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepip10/pip102.htm
And I'm perplexed. Can someone explain how passing this (and eliminating the law, if I'm reading this correct), would benefit anyone? I must be missing something obvious...?
Who Wins here?
NIMBY's who want to keep out lower income housing in tony suburbs. Existing law allows Habitat for Humanity or similar to get an entire development permitted in one go instead of having to fight each group of "concerned neighbors"
I agree it does seem like kind of a fringe objective to be canvassing at the primary level...
My Guess
My guess is that passing the question - and eliminating the current law - would make it more difficult to obtain permits for low-income housing, or perhaps easier to block the building of same. That would tend - I assume - to keep real estate values from plummeting in some instances, and so would benefit current property owners in certain cities and towns.
Just my guess. I'm not particularly well-versed in real estate theory or practice or much else pertaining to the subject, and I'd sure like someone who is to explain it :-)
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com
One question
Where have real estate values plummeted when affordable housing has been built? I know that there was a perception that blacks buying into a neighborhood lowered property values (cue the "but I'm not a racist I'm just protecting my property" folks), but that didn't withstand a rigorous statistical analysis.
(I know you were being theoretical, but, relative to the rest of the market, where has this happened?)
Personally, I'm baffled as to why zoning seems to mean nothing around here anyway - comprehensive permitting should be the rule for conforming projects. Don't like the idea of this or that going here or there? Change the zoning.
St. Fleur jumps into 5th Suffolk race
Dorchester Reporter has the scoop: Marie St. Fleur made an 11th-hour endorsement of Carlos Henriquez to replace her in Fifth Suffolk. Robo-call hit on Monday: http://www.dotnews.com/litdrop
That's big for Henriquez! Say bye bye Barry!
That's big for Henriquez! Say bye bye Barry!
Would a call from St. Fleur hurt or help Henriquez?
Is a call from Marie St. Fleur supposed to help Henriquez or is his opponent trying to sabotage him? Isn't St. Fleur the one who helped torpedo Tom Reilly's campaign after he picked her as a running mate and she lasted one day? Delinquent taxes, delinquent loans, husband arrested for soliciting a prostitute in Roxbury, etc.? If I got a call from her, I'd hang up and support the opponent of whoever she was endorsing. Menino's hiring of St. Fleur at City Hall is indicative of all that is wrong with Boston.
Six dozen voters at Ward 11 Precinct 1 by 1:30 pm
Ward 11 Precinct 1 is never a rollicking place in the best of times, but 72 voters by 1:30 is still lame.
Jonas Prang
I had a home visit from a human....
...from the Mac D'Alessandro campaign, asking me if I knew who Mac was and if I had voted. I told him I had voted for his candidate. Then he asked about my husband. I said, "Well, I'm not sure who he's voting for but he's voting later." The guy then asked me if my husband knows where his polling place is (where we have voted for 15 years)! I know that the "Get out the vote" folks need to ask those questions, but it offends me a great deal when people remind me to vote and ask me if I know where to go! Am I just being too sensitive??
Few voters in South End
There was no line and few voters inside at Cathedral High School this afternoon. Unlike races in the past, there was only one sign-holder on the street corner.
It was the first time I can remember that Paul Sullivan wasn't standing out for someone. I guess he has his hands full, so all's forgiven!
Sign-pimps all over a Southie
Sign-pimps all over a Southie voting place:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/12157608@N07/4990754433/
How far away are they supposed to be?
150 feet
Unfortunately, was a conference all day, so didn't get to make my usual trip over to Holy Name in West Roxbury to bust Matt O'Malley.
Watertown
At 6pm last night, I was one of two voters inside my polling place, and I was the only one voting in my district. It was the emptiest polling place I have ever been in.
Suldog
http://jimsuldog.blogspot.com