2nd suffolk
Latest results, also show Obama winning Boston, Question 1 losing in the city, Question 2 winning, Question 3 winning, but not by much.
Dianne Wilkerson HQ1062 Tremont St.
Roxbury,
MAUnited States
42° 20' 9.294" N, 71° 5' 11.7708" W
See map:
Google MapsMike Ball reports he visited Dianne Wilkerson's campaign headquarters today - and found a couple of wistful "diehards" still handing out stickers - and then took a trip to Sonia Chang-Diaz's headquarters, where he found the candidate herself doing some desk work:
... While several workers used the phones or recorded poll-worker assignments, she was calm. You'd expect that of an almost certain winner, but I have never seen her otherwise. The closest to flustered I've seen her was in her happiness at the post-primary party at the Alchemist in September. ...
Ann Withorn is a professor of social policy and welfare rights at UMass-Boston. She writes how, as a long-time supporter and fan of Dianne Wilkerson, she now feels like an enabler, but adds:
I don't know if it is addiction, depression, or the effects of past trauma that kept our brave beautiful Dianne from asking for help. She will have to face the consequences. But she should not face them alone. We in the Massachusetts Left and the multi-racial progressive movements who knew her (and used her) in the struggles cannot abandon her and pile on as if we couldn't see it coming. She needs help, probably treatment and certainly lots of love - because of the mess she is in, not in spite of it.
And we need to pay more attention to our comrades, to warn them away from their own demons, to pitch in and not wait for the train to go off the track. Let's all learn from this.
She promises another announcement on Nov. 5 about her position as a state senator. Her term runs out in January.
The Globe reports she made the statement after a meeting with black clergymen, a number of whom called on her to resign yesterday.
From Boston.com: The state Senate passed a unanimous resolution this afternoon asking Democratic Senator Dianne Wilkerson to resign immediately.
(And yet they've let Jim Marzilli keep his seat until his term expires in December.)
Will make U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan, who brought the charges against her, an issue, the Globe reports.
Boston Daily gets ahold of Councilor Turner, who tells the media to look up what Jesus said about juries or something and leave poor Wilkerson alone, judge not and all that. He also says he wouldn't support Sonia Chang-Diaz because she lives in a white neighborhood:
She's not part of our district.
Now what about Rep. Byron "Z" Rushing?
And will city councilors Charles Yancey, Sam Yoon, Stephen Murphy, and John Connolly do likewise? You may recall they made a point of not endorsing anybody in the 2nd Suffolk state-senate race after their horse lost by a nose in September. Now that said horse has made them look like, at best, tools, you think they might make the best of a bad situation and endorse their fellow Democrat?
I wonder if Sandy Tennant wants his money back? According to state campaign records, on Oct. 15, the Republican fundraiser and former executive director of the Massachusetts Republican Party donated $500 to Wilkerson. His wife, Cynthia, donated another $303.
On federal corruption charges, PolitickerMA reports.
The Globe reports the federal government alleges Wilkerson was caught on tape taking bribes.
UPDATE: Read the FBI affidavit. Or take a look at photos allegedly showing Wilkerson putting cash in her bra (including the one above - the entire collection is a 1.2M PDF file).
Innocent, etc.
Michael Jonas makes the case.
The Phoenix reports on two more issues involving Wilkerson:
One involves a questionable personal loan from a powerful developer who has dealings with the State Senate, and the other involves, yet again, failure to file tax returns, this time for a nonprofit she has run.
Dianne Wilkerson's campaign Web site is now www.diannedelivers08.com instead of www.diannedelivers2008.com, so don't even think of going to the latter, especially since the campaign simply pulled the plug on it, rather than doing anything so radical and risky as redirecting people who click there to the new site.
On Monday, the Herald reported the old site still listed endorsements from pols who no longer back Wilkerson, now that she's no longer the Democratic nominee for the 2nd Suffolk State Senate seat. The new site lost the endorsement list, along with the "20" in the URL.
Via PolitickerMA.
Sonia Chang-Diaz, could be on her way as the first Latina-American to become a state senator, representing the 2nd Suffolk District of Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan, Jamaica Plain, Mission Hill and others.
Meanwhile, Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner (African-American) blasted the "Soon-To-Be" first ever Latina on her way to becoming the next State Senator; calling Chang-Diaz "A Non-Latina" with no kind of Latino blood background in her whatsoever. Read more
Saturday, October 18th, hundreds of residents "spotted" the duo knocking on doors in Roxbury and Dorchester. Is that Sonia whatever-her-name-is? And is that MC Spice? The conversation is sparked, and the pitch to get support at the polls is made. Residents are wowed to have Ms. Diaz at their front door showing her normality and human side. Most were especially glad to see an old friend of the community supporting the Democratic nominee for state senate. Read more
Chris Faraone reports on the "Hip-Hop Voter Registration Rally" at the Reggie Lewis Center yesterday:
... There were two women on stage at the Reggie Lewis Center who were heavy-handedly boosting the senator. One even taught the teens where to write "Wilkerson" on the ballot in case they are not given stickers. ...
In case you missed it, Yvonne Abraham yesterday had an interesting piece that raises the question of whose campaign is really for sale: Sonia Chang-Diaz, who took $500 from some woman in Cambridge, or Dianne Wilkerson, who took $7,000 from the management companiy at the Roxse Homes project (from which Wilkerson rents her campaign office)?
The Globe reports the state Bar Counsel wants state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson disbarred, saying she lied under oath during a 2005 court hearing involving her nephew:
In both the court appearance and in the affidavit, Wilkerson falsely claimed that she was present at a Boston police station when two homicide detectives interviewed another relative, Isaac Wilkerson, about the 1994 stabbing death of Hazel Mack, the petition said.
The complaint now goes before the state Supreme Judicial Court.
The office was acting on a complaint brought by the Boston Police Detectives Benevolent Society against Wilkerson. Wilkerson has long had a stormy relationship with Boston police.
Councilor Turner tells PoltickerMA that he doubts Sonia Chang-Diaz is really Latina and that her support really comes from white women who can't stand the idea that a black man could get into the White House instead of Hillary Clinton.
Needless to say, Turner is backing incumbent Dianne Wilkerson in her sticker campaign, calling her "a treasured resource" the 2nd Suffolk District - or rather, real blacks and Latinos in the district - can't afford to give up.
Ross Levanto will be posting Twitter updates from today's recount of those 2nd Suffolk precincts.
I am volunteering for Sonia Chang-Diaz as a monitor during the recount Saturday at City Hall.
I plan to post updates via my Twitter account during the day, updating as much as I can.
PolitickerMA reports that should the state Senator lose her recount, she'll run a sticker campaign in November:
"If it not successful," Wilkerson said referring to the recount, "I am prepared to run as a Democrat in a sticker write in campaign on the ballot in November."
If the convicted tax evader does lose the recount, she can't run as a Democrat, of course. Just ask Joe Lieberman.
Is anyone surprised? Wilkerson and Chang-Diaz have sought paperwork for a re-count.
Interesting to see how Wilkerson can master that recount paperwork, but not actually filing for elections or campaign finance reporting (twice.)
More