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It’s Eldridge! … in Lancaster
Posted on September 4, 2007 by Michael Ballway
Filed Under Elections, Lancaster, Mike's posts |
We hear that Niki Tsongas and Jim Ogonowski will be the major-party candidates in the Oct. 16 special election, but that’s not the biggest story in Lancaster. The big surprise — or is it — is Democrat James Eldridge’s showing in today’s primary election.
Here are the Lancaster Democratic results by precinct (Precinct 1 is the central and northern part of town, which Eldridge represents in the state House of Representatives, while Precinct 2 is the southern and western sides, represented by Clinton’s Harold Naughton):
| Candidate | Precinct 1 | Precinct 2 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eileen Donoghue | 20 | 41 | 61 |
| James Eldridge | 118 | 90 | 208 |
| Barry Finegold | 5 | 9 | 14 |
| James Miceli | 2 | 9 | 11 |
| Nicola Tsongas | 36 | 84 | 120 |
A couple observations:
1. Boy, does Eldridge look popular in his district! He came nowhere near competing with Tsongas in the districtwide race, but out here in Lancaster, he was untouchable. Read that Precinct 1 column again — 118 to 36, Eldridge over Tsongas. The Precinct 2 numbers are much closer, 90-84, with Eileen Donoghue also showing twice as many votes in South Lancaster versus the north.
2. I know it’s a small town, and I know it’s a rotten turnout — 11.8 percent, the town clerk said — but still, wouldn’t you be embarrassed to pull only 11 or 14 votes in an election? Just two votes in an entire precinct? Yikes.
So it’s going to be Tsongas versus Ogonowski versus the independents in October. Does the Dracut hay farmer have a chance? How about the indies? All those Eldridge voters — will they be looking for someone more progressive than Tsongas to carry their torch next month?
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One Response to “It’s Eldridge! … in Lancaster”
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I agree. Eldridge surprised a lot of people with his strong third place finish last week. The key here is this: In towns that he represents, Eldridge was the winner. This should be good news to Eldridge and his supporters. Those who know him and his work supported him taking the next step up the political ladder. Losing the primary is not the way you want to finish, but reaffirming that constituents support your efforts should be considered a win.