Get Your Vote On! Primary Results Round Up

Get Your Vote On! Primary Results Round Up

The results are in and we now know who in the Republican and Democratic parties will be working to earn our votes for the Nov. 4th General Election.

MALC would like to thank everyone who took the time to vote on Sept. 9th. The turn out was indeed low (around 20 percent turned out). However, those who voted had a clear impact on who moved forward to have their name on the Nov. 4th ballot in the state-wide races.

We would also like to thank everyone who helped share our Get Your Vote On! blog series – all the individuals and organizations who shared it on FB, via email, via their websites, their newsletters, etc. A shout out goes to the following for their help in highlighting the series: Massachusetts Cultural Council’s (MCC) ArtSake Blog, the Boston Musicians’ Association, StageSource, ArtMorpheus, South Asian Arts Council, Photographic Resource Center, Grub Street, FPAC, Future Boston Alliance, and so many others…*

MALC does not endorse candidates for office, but seeks to provide needed and timely information about candidates’ platforms and policies that impact artists of all disciplines, the arts, and cultural and creative economies. In February of this year, MALC released its policy recommendations and advocacy challenge http://artistsunderthedome.org/malc/news/the-malc-challenge-for-the-next-governor-be-a-champion-of-arts-culture-and-the-creative-economy/ for the candidates running for Governor. Members of the MALC Steering Committee met with almost all of those running for Governor earlier this year and we shared our policy vision for our sector with them. http://artistsunderthedome.org/malc/news/massachusetts-governors-race-update/

We urge everyone in our community to take the time to become informed about those running for elected office. Stay tuned as our Get Your Vote On! blog series shifts focus to the Nov. 4th General Election and Ballot Questions!

The Republican and Democratic primary winners (in alphabetical order):

Primary Winners for Governor:

MALC did not send questionnaires to the Republican or Democratic candidates for Governor. Instead, MALC reached out and will continue to reach out to the Republican and Democratic candidates for Governor to urge them to post their policy platforms for our sector on their websites. MALC feels strongly that any candidate seeking to be Governor needs to have a specific policy platform for our sector.

Charlie Baker (R) — does not currently have a specific platform for art, culture and the creative economy. Link to campaign website: www.charliebaker2014.com/

Martha Coakley (D) — does not currently have a specific platform for art, culture and the creative economy. Link to campaign website: http://www.marthacoakley.com/
Link to her policy on Education which mentions our sector: http://www.marthacoakley.com/issues/education (“Expand learning time to allow for more one-on-one instruction, enrichment programs like art and music, and professional development. And reduce the singular emphasis on teaching to the test, so that educators are empowered to help every child succeed.“)

NOTE: Three independent candidates will join them on the ballot: Evan Falchuk, Scott Lively, and Jeff McCormick. Independent candidates do not run as nominees of registered political parties and thus do not have primary elections.

Primary Winners for Lt. Governor:

Steve Kerrigan (D) Link to answered MALC questionnaire (PDF): http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Kerrigan.pdf
Link to campaign website: http://www.stevekerrigan.org/

Karyn Polito (R) Link to answered MALC questionnaire (PDF): http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Polito.pdf
Link to campaign website: https://www.karynpolitoforlg.com/

NOTE: Polito will now run on the ticket with Baker, while Kerrigan runs on the ticket with Coakley. The independent candidates may choose their running mate for Lt. Governor. Angus Jennings will run on the ticket with Falchuk, Tracy Post will run on the ticket with McCormick, and Sherry Saunders will run on the ticket with Lively.

Primary Winners for Attorney General:

The Attorney General’s office oversees and crafts policy that directly impacts artists of all disciplines. Such key issues as labor law and the protection of intellectual property fall under this Office’s watch. These are critical issues to our community and it is of the greatest importance that artists have a place at this particular policy table.

Maura Healey (D) Link to answered MALC questionnaire:
(PDF)- http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Healey.pdf
Link to campaign website: http://www.maurahealey.com/

John Miller (R) No MALC questionnaire was returned.
Link to campaign website: http://millerforag.com/

Primary Winners for State Treasurer

One of the co-founders of the Annual Artists Under the Dome event at the Massachusetts State House was the State Treasurer’s Office. We are the only state in the country to have such an event. MALC has had a great working relationship with the current and last Treasurers’ administrations and we have every hope of continuing this collaboration with the next Treasurer. (Save the Date: This Year’s AUD is scheduled for Wednesday, November 12! http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/annualevent.html).

Deb Goldberg (D) Link to answered MALC questionnaire (PDF): http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Goldberg.pdf
Link to campaign website: http://www.debgoldberg.com/

Mike Heffernan (R) Link to answered MALC questionnaire (PDF): http://www.artistsunderthedome.org/Heffernan.pdf
Link to campaign website: https://www.mikeheffernan2014.com/

NOTE: Ian Jackson will be on the ballot under the political designation of Green/Rainbow.

*Please let us know if your organization helped spread the word about MALC’s Get Your Vote On Blog Series!

Sources:
Politics1
Secretary of The Commonwealth’s Election Division