All signs go for Joe

By DAVID S. BERNSTEIN | February 29, 2012

They are more excited about the North Shore, where former state senator (and Charlie Baker's 2010 running mate) Richard Tisei is off to an impressive fundraising start in his challenge to Congressman John Tierney. He also avoided an ugly primary fight, when 2010 GOP nominee Bill Hudak dropped out. (Hudak then raised eyebrows by announcing his new venture — selling an obscure miracle drug for a Utah company.)

Elsewhere in the state, incumbents appear to be in danger more from other Democrats than from Republicans. Andrea Nuciforo, who has been campaigning since before the 2010 election in anticipation of challenging Olver, is taking on Richard Neal in a dramatically redrawn First Congressional District. And Bristol County District Attorney Sam Sutter has just launched a challenge to Bill Keating.

Many figured that a strong Republican would have a good chance in that race, where the Ninth District has been significantly redrawn. But no solid GOP candidate has come forward. The same is true in Niki Tsongas's district, where the challenger will likely again be Jon Golnik, who lost badly in 2010.

Until they see some evidence of weakness in Kennedy, establishment Republicans in the state seem ready to shrug off Frank's district. The Kennedy mystique is capable of working both for and against Joe, but for now it's been all to the good.

To read the Talking Politics blog, go to thePhoenix.com/talkingpolitics. David S. Bernstein can be reached at dbernstein@phx.com. Follow him on Twitter @dbernstein.

< prev 1 | 2 | 3 |

Topics: Talking Politics , Massachusetts, Politics, Congress, More

| More

Most Popular

The Current Issue

Table of Contents

Cover Archive

Masthead | Authors | Contact us

Blogs

Where To Follow Me
Talking Politics | March 24, 2013 at 11:09 AM

Mo Takes His Turn
March 21, 2013 at 12:59 PM

[Q&A] KMFDM's Sascha Konietzko on art, Columbine and having balls
On The Download | March 18, 2013 at 3:22 PM

See this film series: The Belmont World Film Series @ Studio Cinema in Belmont
Outside The Frame | March 18, 2013 at 11:00 AM

See this film: This is Spinal Tap [with post-film talk by expert from Acoustical Society of America] @ the Coolidge
March 17, 2013 at 12:00 PM

ARTICLES BY DAVID S. BERNSTEIN

MRS. WARREN GOES TO WASHINGTON | March 21, 2013
Elizabeth Warren was the only senator on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, aside from the chair and ranking minority, to show up at last Thursday's hearing on indexing the minimum wage to inflation.

MARCH MADNESS | March 12, 2013
It's no surprise that the coming weekend's Saint Patrick's Day celebrations have become politically charged, given the extraordinary convergence of electoral events visiting South Boston.

LABOR'S LOVE LOST | March 08, 2013
Steve Lynch is winning back much of the union support that left him in 2009.

AFTER MARKEY, GET SET, GO | February 20, 2013
It's a matter of political decorum: when an officeholder is running for higher office, you wait until the election has been won before publicly coveting the resulting vacancy.

RED BLUES: SCOTT BROWN EXPOSES THE EMPTY MASSACHUSETTS GOP BENCH | February 15, 2013
It wasn't just that Scott Brown announced he was not running in the special US Senate election — it was that it quickly became evident that he was not handing the job off to another Republican.