Talking politics

Hidden gains

by Seth Gitell

WAS IT Bush's appeal or Gore's weakness?

In an odd but very definite way, Massachusetts is more Republican today than it was four years ago. Gore won the popular vote, but Bush took more towns and cities than GOP presidential candidate Bob Dole did four years ago.

In 1996, Dole won five towns -- Boxford, Chatham, Duxbury, Hamilton, and Wenham. In 2000, George W. Bush won 23, including Blandford, Chester, Cohasset, Duxbury, East Brookfield, Granville, Huntington, Montgomery, New Braintree, Norfolk, Norwell, Oakham, Rowe, West Bridgewater, and Wilbraham. It's true that, in some cases, the vote was as evenly split as it was in Florida. Bush won Otis 286 to 283 and Southwick 1851 to 1737. And the Bush factor seemed to matter (though not enough) in Andover, where George W. attended the exclusive Phillips Academy. Dole lost Andover by 1280 votes; Bush, by only 569.

The GOP gains in Massachusetts are surprising given the weak performance of Governor Paul Cellucci and Lieutenant Governor Jane Swift in recent months. But these numbers reflect the national pattern, showing urban areas going Democratic and the hinterlands voting Republican. Cape Cod (though more diverse in recent years) and Western Massachusetts appear to be the most conservative parts of the state. Among the suburbs, the South Shore towns (Cohasset, Norwell) shade more to the right than do other suburban communities -- a fact underlined by the re-election of Republican state senator Robert Hedlund of Weymouth.