More big names have been coming out campaigning for Congressman Ed Markey (D. MA) in his bid to fill Secretary of State John Kerry's (D. MA) Senate seat. Former Congressman Barney Frank (D. MA) hit the campaign trail for his old colleague:
http://www.tauntongazette.com/...
Frank was at the Elks Lodge rallying a room full of campaign volunteers behind Ed Markey, who is running for in a special U.S. Senate election to fill the seat of now-Secretary of State John Kerry. Frank said that the election is very important to the makeup of the Senate, and that losing ground to the Republican Party would lead to more “obstructionist” politics in on Capitol Hill.
“It could not be more important, what you are doing now,” said Frank, who at one point invoked the election of former Republican Senator Scott Brown, as an example where Democrats have fallen short. “It’s very important for us to get people out there to vote. This is not just about Ed won, but by what margin? This is about making national news on June 25.”
Markey, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 1976, is the chairman of the House Energy Independence and Global Warming Committee. He is a native of Malden.
During his speech, Frank took aim at Markey’s opponent Gabriel Gomez, a private equity investor, former U.S. Navy SEAL and political newcomer. Frank said that Gomez, a Los Angeles-native and Cohasset resident, “is hard to pin down” because he has been campaigning as a centrist and tells people what they want to hear.
But Frank said he is sure Gomez would be another vote for the policies promoted by the national Republican leadership, including Republican Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell. - Taunton Daily Gazette, 6/9/13
Frank recently made an appearance at the Boston Gay Pride Parade:
http://www.ontopmag.com/...
NBA free agent Jason Collins, former Congressman Barney Frank and Congressman Joe Kennedy III were among the thousands who joined the Boston Gay Pride parade on Saturday.
Collins is the basketball star who came out in a Sports Illustrated cover story in April.
Collins, wearing a Nike #BETRUE t-shirt, and Kennedy marched in the parade and posed for pictures with Frank, the first openly gay member of Congress and the first to enter a marriage with a member of the same sex.
“It's an opportunity to celebrate with my community and celebrate acceptance and tolerance with good friends,” Collins said. - On Top magazine, 6/9/13
DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D. FL) also came out to help out on Markey's campaign:
http://www.wwlp.com/...
Ed Markey supporters rallied in Springfield where they heard from Florida congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. She heads up the Democratic National committee.
Wasserman Schultz told 22News she came to Western Massachusetts because Markey can't be everywhere at once, “Ed Markey is somewhere else doing the work he's been doing as a candidate. We're making sure we leave nothing on the field that we don't take anything for granted.”
Markey was campaigning in his home district in Arlington, Massachusetts. - WWLP 22, 6/9/13
Markey's opponent, Gabriel Gomez (R. MA), has been trying to get the Latino vote out for him as his secret weapon:
http://www.bostonmagazine.com/...
Gabriel Gomez’s frequent self-introductions en Español and references to his Colombian-immigrant parents are not just a cute way of signalling to independent voters that he is not one of those harsh, old-white-guy Republicans. Although Massachusetts Hispanics have been voting and identifying strongly as Democrats, the Gomez campaign has been targeting them through campaign stops, house parties (sometimes with the candidate himself, often with surrogates), and Spanish-language interviews. At his second public appearance as a US Senate candidate, in Shrewsbury in late February, Gomez put off the hungry press corps, myself included, until after he gave an extended one-on-one interview to the local Univision reporter.
On a purely anecdotal and gut-feeling level, several Hispanic Bay Staters I’ve spoken with think it’s working—particularly among professional-class second- and third-generation citizens, who see Gomez as one of their own, and to a lesser extent the working-class urbanites who see in him an aspirational figure for their children.
And some Democratic insiders suspect that Gomez’s Hispanic support might not be showing up in polls. Hispanic voters, who have increased their participation in the state in recent big elections—particularly for President Barack Obama—are assumed to vote in small numbers in a relatively low-key special election. But, previous special elections have not included a candidate with a Hispanic surname.
But the real secret weapon for Markey could be Obama himself, who comes to Boston on Markey’s behalf next week. The president enjoys enormous popularity among Hispanics—83 percent favorability according to a March ABC News/Washington Post poll. We’ll see how much of Gomez’s inroads get undone by Obama’s arrival. - Boston Magazine, 6/7/13
The Special Election is Tuesday, June 25th. If you would like to donate or get involved with the Markey campaign, you can do so here:
http://www.edmarkey.com/