Primary Day? What Primary Day?


While the Brown-Warren Senate race captures headlines state-wide and the national media focuses on the Presidential contest, some of the Boston area’s more obscure offices will be hotly contested on Primary Day. What? When’s that? It’s Thursday, so get out and vote.

In an all-East Boston affair, current District 1 City Councilor Sal LaMattina is taking on Patricia Campatelli for the Register of Probate position. The seat opened up when Richard Ianella resigned in 2011 and the interim appointment declined to run. Ianella was unopposed in the 2008 election, so this is the first competitive race in some time.

Next, the Governor’s Council race in the Second District is very competitive. After the passing of the incumbent, Kelly Timilty, four candidates have entered the race. There’s Timilty’s brother, Bart Timilty, as well as Brian Clinton, Patrick McCabe (whose tuxedo is his signature look), and repeat candidate Robert Jubinville (no stranger to bruising Governor’s Council races). These four are all running hard, doing visibilities, mail drops, and door knocking at a rate not seen in this type of race for many years—if ever.

Finally, the nastiest race is undoubtedly Suffolk County Clerk of Courts, a rematch between incumbent Maura Hennigan and challenger (and former employee of the clerk’s office) Robert Dello Russo, who’ve been trading jabs and accusations.

While primary day may not be too interesting at the top of the ballot, there is a cast of characters working hard for votes in many of the obscure, down-ballot races. Get out there and vote.