I was watching CNN coverage of the Presidential caucuses in Minnesota and Colorado this past week, and the announcers were somewhat amazed at the crude nature of the proceedings. Votes made on paper, tallies counted by hand, and oftentimes results written on a chalkboard. CNN rushed to deliver the counts from the inside of the caucus room: Romney 9, Santorum 8. Early momentum!
I have helped lug poster board to local political caucuses for a few years now, so the low-tech nature of these gatherings is not a shock to me. And yesterday, all across Massachusetts, Democrats began to gather in local caucuses to conduct business with sharpies and easels.
In American politics, caucuses are where the process comes closest to the people. While those who help organize the caucuses-- myself included-- typically have an agenda and course of events in mind, the reality is a caucus is run by the people who attend. It's an opportunity on the most local level for voters to influence the course of their party.
The Massachusetts Democratic Party identifies a window of a few weeks this time of year for the party's most local bodies-- ward committees and city and town committees- to host caucuses. That window opened yesterday and continues through February. My local committee, the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee, hosts its caucus on Saturday, February 18 at 10 a.m. at the First Church in Boston in the Back Bay.
Within the party organization, the caucus serves at least one very important function, selecting delegates to represent the local committee at the state party convention, which is typically held the first Saturday in June. Most don't know this, but the state convention is where candidates for state-wide office are selected. This year, Elizabeth Warren and Marisa DeFranco are vying to become the party's nominee in the U.S. Senate race against Senator Scott Brown. If both candidates do not earn at least 15-percent of the delegate vote at the state convention, then only one of them will move on, and there will be no need for a primary in the race. So those delegates are important.
There are a lot of intricacies to the process, but the reality is, it all does start with the caucuses, with individual party members (aka registered Democrats) getting their chance in a public forum to influence party business. For all the talk of insider baseball and party favors, we often lose sight of the fact that fundamentally, the Democratic party must return to the people each year and organize the local caucuses.
If you are a registered Democrat, I encourage you to find your local caucus and participate. Those who live in Beacon Hill, Back Bay, Fenway, Bay Village, and the part of Chinatown in Ward 5, I will see you on the 18th.
Downtown Boston Democrats ahead of a neighborhood canvass.
Beacon Hill, Boston
November 5, 2011
What a beautiful weekend to go door to door encouraging voters to go to the polls this Tuesday. I joined more than a dozen fellow Democrats yesterday to support three candidates for Boston City Council at-large: Felix Arroyo, John Connolly and AyannaPressley; as well as Suzanne Lee and Mike Ross in their respective district City Council races. The event was organized by the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee.
It was the latest in a series of activities, organized by the committee, to support candidates that the group has endorsed.
If you look at elections as happening in four year cycles, this year's election should be a sleeper. There are no federal or even state elections on the ballot. The only elected officials voters will choose this fall are the city councilors who will represent them in the City of Boston.
Then former City Councilor Michael Flaherty decided to run, and the race suddenly got interesting. Flaherty was an at-large Boston City Councilor, and then two years ago he decided to run for Mayor (and got trounced by Mayor Tom Menino). Now, Flaherty wants his old job back.
Who am I kidding? In reality, this year's election is still a sleeper. The Flaherty vote provides the only real drama. Truth be told, most people don't care about local elections, which is sad, since the local officials tend to have the most impact on issues that people actually care about: crime, education, and affordable housing, to name a few. The people who do vote this year will be special; not many will go to the polls. If you say you are voting, I guarantee you will get special attention from those running for city council in Boston.
Certainly this election season really matters for the four incumbent at-large city councilors, who would like to keep their jobs despite Flaherty's decision to run. For that reason and for those candidates, this Tuesday's "First in the City" City Council candidates' forum is very, very important.
My ward committee, the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee, has a history of hosting the first city council candidates' forum for at-large candidates every two years. This year's forum promises to upstage the event's all-ready significant legacy. David Bernstein of the Boston Phoenix will be the moderator. Boston Neighborhood Network will tape the event to broadcast it at a later date on COMCAST cable. Reporters from the Beacon Hill/Back Bay Patch, Universal Hub and the Dorchester Reporter, among other outlets, are poised to cover the event.
If you would like to go, the forum starts this Tuesday, June 21 at about 7 p.m. at the First Church in Boston, which is at 66 Marlborough Street (corner of Marlborough and Berkeley Streets) in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston. The forum will be an hour long. All seven of the presumed candidates for at-large city council have confirmed to the committee that they will be there: John Connolly, AyannaPressley, Felix Arroyo, Stephen Murphy, Will Dorcena, the previously mentioned Michael Flaherty, and Sean Ryan.
I have been a member of my ward committee for three years now, so I have some free advice for the candidates. Two simple suggestions:
1) Show up. Certainly the members of my ward committee have their quirks, but the group assembled Tuesday will be comprised of very motivated, active voters. If you impress, you will earn volunteers and donors... maybe even an endorsement by the committee, which brings other benefits given the committee's sizable bank account. As State Treasurer Steve Grossman reminded me last weekend, it was Woody Allen who said, "Ninety percent of life is just showing up." That could not be more true on Tuesday. I know there are members of my committee who will literally write off candidates that don't bother to appear at events like this.
2) Make your thoughts local. The forum is being hosted by the Ward 5 Democratic committee, so make sure you know geographically what Ward 5 includes and cater your comments to the concerns of that geography. We're talking Beacon Hill, Back Bay, Chinatown, part of the South End and part of Fenway. If you talk about trash, keep in mind that we don't have room downtown for large trash receptacles. If you talk about crime, remember that Fenway Park rests inside the ward. I know this sounds simple, and I know it sounds like I am preaching, but you don't know how many times candidates have appeared before the group and talked about their experiences in South Boston or West Roxbury. Not gonna work. As Speaker O'Neill said, "All politics is local."
To the candidates, thank you for agreeing to be at the "First in the City" City Council candidates forum. I am looking forward to it. Good luck.
It was a long night for Boston's Ward 5 Democratic Committee this past Tuesday, but in the end, the group handed out endorsements, just days ahead of the Democratic Convention in Worcester.
Following a candidates forum for those running for statewide offices, the Committee endorsed the following candidates:
Governor-- Deval Patrick (By Acclamation) Lt. Governor-- Tim Murray (By Acclamation) Attorney General-- Martha Coakley (By Acclamation) Secretary of State-- Bill Galvin (By Acclamation) Treasurer-- Steve Grossman
Steve Grossman received 19 votes from the committee, versus nine for his opponent, Boston City Councilor Steve Murphy. All 19 of those votes were needed for the endorsement, as a 2/3 vote of members eligible and present is necessary.
No endorsement was made in the race for State Auditor. Mike Lake and Suzanne Bump both received 12 votes. Guy Glodis did not attend the forum ahead of the meeting, and he was not nominated as part of the endorsement proceedings.
By the way, Lt. Governor Tim Murray addressed the forum during the night, and he was fantastic. Too bad I didn't wear by Tim Murray t-shirt!
Last night, I was picked by fellow Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee members to be the secretary of the group for a two-year term. It was part of a very peaceful transfer of power, as Rob Whitney, the only committee chairman I have known, stepped aside.
Josh Dawson, a good friend and neighbor from the Back Bay, is the new chairman. Other officers include:
Treasurer: Greg Timilty
First vice chairman: Shelia Martin
Second vice chairman: Jay Livingstone
Executive committee members (at large): Fran Burke, RajanNanda, David Greenwold
Executive committee members (ex officio): Marty Walz and KenzieBok
As secretary, I look forward to working with Dave Greenwold, the "webmaster" of the committee's website, to continue to beef up the group's web presence. Stay tuned!
Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee Chairman Rob Whitney at the podium during a regular meeting of the committee, held in Boston on Feb. 16. Attached to the podium is a list of females interested in being on the committee's slate of state convention delegate candidates. The Ward 5 Democratic Caucus is scheduled for this Saturday, Feb. 20 at the Community Church of Boston, 565 Boylston Street, at 9:30 a.m.
Get ready for a number of posts about the upcoming Boston municipal elections...
As a member of the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee, I received this email today:
Committee members and friends:
REMINDER - Please note that on Monday, September 14, 2009, the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee will be sponsoring a "Mayoral Candidates Forum" for those candidates running for Boston City Mayor. The Boston Ward 4 Democratic Committee will be co-sponsoring the event. Beginning at 7:00 pm, there will be an opportunity to "meet and greet" the candidates. At 7:30 pm, the Mayoral Candidates Forum will begin promptly, and last precisely one hour.
The Mayoral Candidates Forum will be held at the Boston Architectural College, 320 Newbury Street, Back Bay, Boston (on the corner of Newbury and Hereford Streets), on the second floor. David Bernstein of the Boston Phoenix will be moderating the event.
Please note that immediately after the conclusion of the forum, the eligible members of the Boston Ward 5 Democratic Committee will be voting on whether to endorse any of the mayoral candidates for election. Those members of the committee who are not eligible to participate in the endorsement vote will be separately contacted.
This will be a great event - I hope that you can all make it! Thanks.
It been a see-saw couple of weeks for Boston's Ward 5 Democratic Committee, which I am a member of.
Just this past week, I attended a great event hosted by Ward 5-- a fundraiser headlined by Massachusetts Lt. Governor Tim Murray (I am pictured with him on this blog at the DNC last August in Denver, by the way).
The room at Lir Restaurant in the Back Bay was crowded with candidates. Three out of the four candidates running for Mayor attended, as well as numerous individuals vying for an at-large seat on the Boston City Council.
It was a good event, and it stood as a contrast to a couple of weeks that have been not so hot for the Ward 5 Committee.
Just a few weeks ago, it surfaced that one of our own committee members, herself an elected official, passed on questions for a planned candidates' forum to one of the forum's participants. The only problem being that she only sent the questions to one candidate-- the candidate she was supporting in the election-- and the questions were sent before the forum took place.
We're not talking a major offense here. However, it doesn't smell good. And from a PR perspective (an industry I hope I know well), it looks pretty bad for the committee. The group is supposed to be a bunch of enthusiastic (one would hope innocent) democrats that want to encourage party members to run for office. Instead, with the recent controversy, we could seem to some as just a part of the old Boston political machine.
My friend and fellow Ward 5 Committee member Josh Dawson (who happens to be an elected member of the Mass. Democratic State Committee) has a good post over on his blog on this matter.
For what it's worth, I sent my own recommendations to the Chairman of the committee, Rob Whitney, and I hope they are considered promptly. They are pretty simple recommendations and involve clearly stating and following candidate forum rules and procedures (especially regarding the handling of questions). I would hate to have this issue discourage potential participants in future Ward 5 candidates forums. I am sure Rob and other members of the Ward 5 Executive Committee will rectify the situation.
****
On a related topic, I have been thinking a lot about the role of the Ward Democratic Committee in general. I joined the committee well over a year ago now, and I must say I have enjoyed the experience far more than I was expecting. I think most of the reason is the people. Committee members are pretty eclectic.
Mr. Dawson and I liken the committee meeting experience to the infamous Mos EisleyCantina scene from Star Wars. Imagine your walking into the bar in the excerpt below, except it's actually a Ward Committee meeting and you are one of the characters (I must admit we've never had a band at our meetings):
I admire the fact that on the committee, we are all committed Democrats, and I truly believe we all have the best interests of our communities in our minds as we act (and I still believe that despite the recent incident regarding the candidates' forum).
At the same time, though, does the committee really matter? We endorse candidates, and we raise money as a committee, but do we really matter? Looking at the numbers of recent Committee actions since I joined, our record from an endorsement perspective is clearly mixed.
As a group, we endorsed incumbent Senator Dianne Wilkerson last summer, and she went on to lose the state primary to Sonia Chang-Diaz -- more importantly she got trounced in Ward 5. Personally, I ended up not supporting the candidate the Ward endorsed in that race. More recently, the Ward endorsed Aaron Michlewitz in his race to the be the State Rep for the Mass. House 3rd Suffolk seat, and Aaron went on to win.
Endorsements aside, there's no question that the Ward committee members themselves are among the only people who care, non-stop, about politics. So I guess if you are an aspiring politician, they are vital. And if you are just starting your campaign, Ward committee members are a lifeline. Who else would listen to you several months ahead of an actual vote; more importantly, who else would remember you when you come back? I have come to the conclusion that for this and many other reasons, the Ward Committee clearly does matter, though we tend to put way too much emphasis on the endorsement votes. However, the endorsement votes have become a tactic for the committee to attract candidates and get them to speak, collectively, to the group.
My best reason? Ward 5 paid for and organized three bus trips to Manchester, New Hampshire last year to help Barack Obama win that state. A bus load is 60-70 people. I can tell you, as someone who had to organize those trips-- that's a lot of people. So much so that my boss in the organizing game told me at one point, "We need to do those bus trips every week." To which I responded, "Whoohoo, Ward 5!"
Yes, whoohoo Ward 5! Let's put in place procedures regarding our forums so we don't end up with egg on our face again like a few weeks ago. And then let's continue our mission and serve our important role in the political process.
This Monday marks the end of my fifth year on the Beacon Hill Civic Association board. I have told the board's officers that I would like to continue for a sixth year, and I hope they will nominate me to serve the next term (each board member serves for a term of only one year).
The final meeting for this term is going to be busy. According to the board packet I received on Friday, the board will be voting on the fate of Phillips Street Park. The City of Boston intends to refurbish the park and has allotted money to do so. Over the last year, a public process has created a compromise design for the park. It includes a playground for children and an area for common use. It's not perfect, but it meets the needs of a huge variety of people, and I intend to support it on Monday. Given that I have been to all of the Phillips Street Park meetings, I am hoping that my opinions are valid.
Also at the meeting, board members will hear the latest related to Suffolk and the university's institutional master plan (IMP) process. From the packet, it appears that the board will be voting on the IMP at the next meeting in June. The timing is important here, since in June, we will be into the next board term and will inevitably have new faces among us. The next board is formally elected at the annual meeting, which is later this month.
Separately, I am planning to attend the Ward 5 Democratic Committee meeting Thursday. Loyal readers know I was elected to that committee in February per the results of the Massachusetts primary. Senator Kerry is expected to speak, and the ward committee will decide whether to endorse a candidate in the Presidential Democratic primary race.
All told, a nice week of civic involvement for me...
A 1994 graduate of Norwich (Conn.) Free Academy and a 1997 graduate from Boston Univeristy, I live in Boston and work in Waltham, Mass. The views on this blog are my own.
