The Ward 19 Democratic Committee will meet Monday, April 7, at 7:00 PM at the Farnsworth House in JP. The Committee welcomes any voters registered as Democrats in Ward 19 who are interested in participating in Committee events, and contributing to our mission, to attend our meetings. Check here to see if you live in Ward 19.
The Farnsworth House is located at 90 South Street in Jamaica Plain, and is accessible by the #39 bus. On-street parking is available.

(Originally appeared at www.bostonbastard.com. This post reflects the opinion of the Boston Bastard and not that of UHub and Adam G.)

In September, Suzanne Lee had one thing that Bill Linehan didn’t – the element of surprise. No one expected a first-time candidate from Chinatown to give much trouble to an incumbent South Bostonian in “South Boston’s District.”

That all changed when Lee smacked Linehan across the face in the polls, Sept. 27, taking the top spot in the preliminary election.

All of a sudden, what was not expected to be a difficult battle for Linehan, has turned into one of two hotly-contested district races this year.

It remains to be seen how much support Linehan was able to drum up since coming in second, but it’s clear the race would not be a cake walk.

As far as campaign financing goes, both Linehan and Lee reported roughly the same amount of total campaign donations for the year at the time of the election, September 27. But on the Friday following the election, Linehan’s campaign deposited $23,630 in donations.

Linehan didn’t actually report any receipts in the first two weeks of October, but in that time, he did sink $ 17,936.18 into his campaign, predominately in local media advertising.

(Originally appeared at www.bostonbastard.com)
I can remember watching Steve Murphy speaking over a year ago to the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO). Murphy was still in the midst of his failed run at the State Treasurer’s office, and was asked to speak along with fellow candidate Steve Grossman and then-Treasurer Tim Cahill.

The GBIO had been campaigning against banks that are not headquartered in Massachusetts, and thus have no legal obligation to loan money at less than 18 percent interest – the state mandated usury limit.

The GBIO asked the candidates about their willingness to move state funds out of any banks that do not recognize that 18 percent interest usury limit.

While Grossman came off as a polished politician giving lip service, and Cahill was just full of shit in general, Murphy easily stole the show, speaking about growing up around churches that are now a part of the GBIO and the importance of social justice that was instilled in him as a youth.

You can check your voter registration and polling place here if you live in Boston. The registration deadline was Wednesday August 27, 2008.

To be eligible to vote in the general election Tuesday November 4, 2008 the registration deadline is Wednesday October 15, 2008. Register and vote. This election will set all time voting records and you can be counted. Using this on-line tool, you can 1) Register to vote, 2) Request to vote absentee and 3) Find your polling location in about 3 minutes!

Specimen ballots are now available and can be requested by email
election at sec.state.ma.us