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Can the Dems unseat Scott Brown?
BY ADAM REILLY
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Six weeks ago, Scott Brown was the star of the Massachusetts Republican Party (see "Life of the Party," News and Features, March 19). Today he’s just another state senator hoping to be re-elected — and he’s got at least two eager Democratic challengers. Last week, Angus McQuilken, who narrowly lost to Brown in March’s special election for the Norfolk, Bristol, and Middlesex seat vacated by Cheryl Jacques, jumped in the race after receiving "dozens" of entreaties — many accompanied by cash — urging him to run again. McQuilken bristles at the suggestion, voiced by many Democratic insiders, that his last campaign showed him to be a deficient candidate. "This was an extraordinarily close election, coming down to 350 votes," he notes. For full vindication, McQuilken needs to get through the primary — and that could be difficult. The special-election Democratic primary was crowded: McQuilken, a Millis resident, won with about 4400 votes; two Needham candidates (Richard Gatto and Dan Matthews) split about 3000 votes; and Jim Klocke of Wellesley pulled in 1150. Currently, however, McQuilken faces only one challenger in the upcoming race — Jerry Wasserman, a consultant and Needham selectman who touts property-tax relief, health care, and green building practices as signature issues. Like McQuilken, he supports full civil-marriage rights for gay and lesbian couples. "The party had every opportunity to win the last election," Wasserman says. "It’s time for a different candidate." Klocke is still pondering whether to enter the race. But with Matthews and Gatto apparently out of the mix, Wasserman looks like the only candidate from Needham, the district’s undeniable center of gravity. Democratic consultant Michael Goldman says that’s a huge advantage. "This race will be determined by whether there is one or more candidates out of Needham," he predicts. "McQuilken has good name recognition, but if there’s a single candidate from Needham, it’ll be much tougher to get through that first hurdle." Last month, while downplaying the significance of McQuilken’s loss, Massachusetts Democratic Party chair Phil Johnston made much the same point. "If he had lived in Needham," Johnston said of McQuilken, "he would have won."
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