Anne Gobi takes the Worcester, Hampden, Hampshire and Middlesex Senatorial District.

SPENCER — It came down to a few hundred votes, but it was enough for Republican Michael Valanzola to call Democrat Anne Gobi at 12:15 a.m. on Wednesday to concede the race for the Central Massachusetts senate seat. 

In a true nail-biter, neither Valanzola nor Gobi would declare victory or defeat throughout Tuesday night, as both campaigns waited for numbers from some of the smaller towns in the vast district, which stretches from the Connecticut to the New Hampshire borders. The candidates said the results from towns such as Ashby, Oakham, Petersham, New Braintreet and Brimfield could sway the vote either way.  

By early Wednesday, Valanzola said that by his count -- with one town, Petersham, outstanding -- he was about 300 votes shy of taking the Worcester, Hampden, Hampshire and Middlesex District seat, which has been held by longtime Democratic Sen. Stephen M. Brewer.

In a Wednesday-morning phone call, Valanzola, who ran a campaign that championed greater communication between private businesses and state legislators, said he is proud of the campaign he ran and the issues that he raised.  He also wished Gobi well in the Senate. 

According to the Associated Press, as of 1:20 a.m., Gobi had 27,006 votes to Valanzola's 26,800. 

For Gobi, 11 of the 28 towns that she will represent as a senator are the same ones she's been representing in the Massachusetts House of Representatives since she won a special election in 2001 for the 5th Worcester District.

Gathered with supporters at the Spencer Fish and Game Club, Gobi was cheered by the two dozen or so people who remained deep into the morning when she announced that Valanzola had conceded in a voicemail left on her cellphone.

"I missed his call!" she said, almost in disbelief. 

The senator-elect had spent the better part of the night behind closed doors with her family and campaign workers waiting for numbers to come in from the 55 precincts in the district. She emerged a handful of times to update the nearly 50 people who gathered at the club, waiting to hear whether Gobi would be their next senator. 

In a brief victory speech, Gobi thanked Brewer for his support and pledged to continue the work that he has undertaken in the Senate for the past three decades. She then announced that the first bill she will champion as a new state senator will be one in recognition of Trish McCleary, a Sturbridge woman with Lyme Disease and the founder of Sturbridge Lyme Awareness of Massachusetts, or SLAM, which focuses on treatment guidelines.

"I promised you I would, and I will," Gobi said. 

But, before then, Gobi reminded her supporters to start collecting campaign signs after the sun rises, and invited them to meet her in Templeton, where she will attend a town meeting with Brewer. 

"It's the best job in the whole world. Monson means a lot to me and to be able to contribute to the community and families, it doesn't get any better," Monson Free Library Director Hope Bodwell said about her position.

MONSON – When Hope Bodwell moved back to the area last year, people would tease her about returning to Monson Free Library, where she was director for six years.

Then this spring, Katie Krol resigned as director, leaving for a position at the Williamsburg Libraries.

“When it came up, I said, ‘I guess I could talk to them.’ I didn’t know if I wanted it or not. Then, after the first interview, I so wanted it,” Bodwell said.

Jeffrey D. Roberts, president of the library’s board, said after an extensive search and interviews with four finalists, it was clear to the members that Bodwell was the best choice for the job, which pays approximately $50,000. Her first official day on the job was July 22.

“We’re very excited to be working with her again,” Roberts said.
Roberts said her experience with community relations, fundraising and her prior work as Monson’s library director were all pluses.

"She clearly was the best candidate for the position,” Roberts said.

Bodwell, 49, left the position in Monson in 2010 because her boyfriend, Peter Ross, got a job in New York City. A year later, a tornado hit Monson, bringing her back to town again. Three days after it struck, she returned to help, and ended up working as the town’s disaster recovery assistant for several months. She said it was rewarding to help people in that role.
“I had to come back,” she said.

In New York City, she worked for the American Folk Art Museum as its manager of special events.

While she enjoyed the “energy, the culture and the food” in New York City, Bodwell said she “is a country girl” and wouldn’t want to live there long-term.

Now that she’s back at the library, Bodwell said she’s starting from a different perspective. She worked for the library for 10 years previously.

She’s overseeing a staff of nine and a $275,748 budget. She recently promoted library technician Sandra Courtney to youth services librarian.

“I have some long range plans that I’d like to work on and we’re really keen on updating some technology,” Bodwell said.

Bodwell, who’s worked or volunteered in libraries since she was 13, is a New Jersey native. She was living across the line in Stafford, Conn. when she went to breakfast one day in Monson and saw a sign for volunteers at the Monson Free Library.

"The rest is history,” she said.

“I love being back,” Bodwell added. “It’s the best job in the whole world. Monson means a lot to me and to be able to contribute to the community and families, it doesn’t get any better.”

A male in his early teens, one of three victims allegedly hit by a drunk driver in the North End Monday night, remains in critical condition at Baystate Medical Center, police said.

These were the most read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

1) Massachusetts election results 2014 Photo gallery above

2) Whately strip bar owner verbally, physically abused female employees, former bartender tells jury [Jack Flynn]

3) Springfield police: Male in early teens, 1 of 3 pedestrians hit by drunk driver in North End, in critical condition; suspect arrested [George Graham]

4) Mercy Medical Group announces new doctors from Hampden County Physician Associates [Jim Kinney]

5) Hampden Bank acquired by Berkshire Bank for $109 million [Ray Kelly]

Republican Governor-elect Charlie Baker had the thinnest of needles to thread on his path to the governor's office but somehow he made it work. Here's the three things he did that made the difference:

Republican Governor-elect Charlie Baker had the thinnest of needles to thread on his path to the governor's office but somehow he made it work. Here's the three things he did that made the difference:

1. Focus on urban areas and communities of color

Any Republican with an eye on the future of their political party knows that the changing demographics of the United States do not bode well for them over the long haul and Baker was no exception. Republicans can no longer run a game plan based on an America stuck in 1980 and run out the clock on the white vote. Baker recognized this early on and did everything he could to address it by campaigning extensively in urban Massachusetts. Baker made more than 200 campaign stops in Boston alone and worked hard to build relationships in these crucial communities by connecting with various leaders.

Baker did not win any major urban areas but he did enough to put a dent in the massive margins that Democrats typically run up in the cities. The challenge for Baker and Republicans now is building on their meager gains in urban areas for the 2016 and 2018 elections. Coakley won Boston by the smallest margin of victory for a Democrat this decade with just +35 percent.

2. An improved get out the vote operation and relationship with activists

Baker's 2010 effort was antiquated and out of touch with modern campaigning. 

You couldn't just carpetbomb the state with TV ads and run phone banks, you had to get out there and knock on doors. Umpteen successful local Democratic efforts proved that the best way to sway voters, particularly in dense voter rich areas, is to contact them personally. Repeatedly.

Republicans, learning from their endless series of mistakes post-Romney, went about building infrastructure to enable them to run a door-to-door GOTV effort and in a coordinated manner. The party and Baker opened 27 victory offices across the commonwealth that were staffed by 2,500 volunteers. Those volunteers made more than 2,500,000 phone calls and knocked on more than 400,000 doors across the state, those numbers may seem low for Massachusetts but for state Republicans they are high.

Rank and file Republican activists speaking privately throughout the campaign said that they thought the party did a much better job this time around distributing resources to down ballot races across the commonwealth, particularly at the legislative level. These comments from activists are striking given the uproar the party was for the last four years. Things were so bad that Baker lost his spot at the Republican National Convention to a Ron Paul activist straight out of college, Evan Kenny.

Baker later helped that activist in his bid for a local school committee race and even donated to his campaign. Kenny is now a school committee member in Wakefield.

3. He was himself
One of Baker's biggest problems in 2010 was that he came across frequently as angry. Baker fed off the national rage that birthed the Tea Party movement and that ultimately put damaged his standing with Massachusetts voters.

The Tea Party thing that worked in some parts of the state for the likes of State Rep. Shaunna O'Connell ultimately damaged Baker. His campaign slogan then "Had Enough?" was aimed more at placating bombastic talk radio listeners than it was swing voters in Framingham.

He had to recast himself and be who he is: a dorky dad that happens to be really, really smart and somewhat funny. 

Baker, like his opponent Attorney General Martha Coakley, had a real image problem going into this election but ultimately he did a better job of correcting it

Humason beat Leahy 57 percent to 43 percent.

HOLYOKE -- Patrick T. Leahy said Tuesday after his defeat that he ran the race that was necessary, hammering at what he considered an ineffective record compiled by Republican state Sen. Donald R. Humason.

Having conceded just moments before to Humason, Leahy, a Democrat from Holyoke, said it was too soon for him to assess whether his aggressive approach with the likable Humason backfired and cost him votes in the race to lead the 2nd Hampden-Hampshire District.

"I don't know. I know we had to talk about his voting record," said Leahy, a Holyoke police officer.

The approach was echoed earlier in the night by James M. Leahy, the candidate's brother, who said that Humason, of Westfield, was a friend but that the district deserved a scrutiny of his record.

"Don Humason is a good guy. But my brother showed time and again there were holes in his record," said James Leahy, a Holyoke city councilor at large.

Humason defeated Leahy 57 percent to 43 percent, or 27,802 votes to 21,268 votes.

Humason, a former state representative for 11 years, has been in the seat since winning a special election Nov. 5, 2013. The win Tuesday gives him a full two-year term beginning in January.

The district consists of, in Hampden County, Holyoke, Westfield, Agawam, Granville, Montgomery, Russell, Southwick, Tolland and Chicopee's Ward 7, Ward 8A and Ward 9A, and in Hampshire County, Easthampton and Southampton.

During debates, Leahy said Humason failed to distinguish himself in the Senate by being lead sponsor on only four pieces of legislation. He voted with the extreme wing of the Republican Party in areas like opposing same-sex marriage, the increase in the minimum wage and a gun control law in August, Leahy said.

"I think we had the right message and the right organization. I think we just didn't get it to the right people," Leahy said.

Humason replied in debates that Leahy didn't understand how legislation worked. It was a collaborative effort aimed at helping the different communities in districts regardless of which lawmaker's name topped a bill. The key was knowing legislators and state officials who could help accomplish improvements, said Humason, who said he had such standing.

On same-sex marriage, Humason said, he voted his conscience on an issue the atmosphere around which has changed drastically in the past decade.

The state has established a law to increase the minimum wage to $11 an hour from the current $8 an hour over three years.

Leahy said such a wage increase was necessary to help struggling families.

Humason said he spoke with small business owners, corporate officials and chambers of commerce in the district about the minimum wage plan. Many of them felt the increase would stifle the very thing struggling families need, which is creation of jobs, he said.

After Leahy criticized him for voting against the new gun law that includes an additional way to keep violent offenders locked up, Humason said his law-and-order record was strong. He has long supported "strict punishments" of street-gang members, child abusers, repeat drunk drivers and juvenile murderers, he said.

Humason said the law that Gov. Deval L. Patrick signed into law from the Legislature in August contained too many gun-ownership restrictions for him to support, especially given the problems gun owners cited with the then-proposed law as Humason discussed the proposal around the district, he said.

Leahy said he appreciated that Humason debated him numerous times around the district.

"I tip my cap to Don Humason," Leahy said.

PITTSFIELD -- A Rhode Island man prosecutors say caused a fatal car crash in western Massachusetts last year has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to time already served. William Lowe of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, was sentenced in Berkshire Superior Court on Tuesday to two years in jail, with one year suspended, and then given credit for the year he has...

PITTSFIELD -- A Rhode Island man prosecutors say caused a fatal car crash in western Massachusetts last year has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to time already served.

William Lowe of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, was sentenced in Berkshire Superior Court on Tuesday to two years in jail, with one year suspended, and then given credit for the year he has already spent behind bars awaiting trial.

Police say the 35-year-old Lowe was driving 70 miles per hour in a 45 zone in Williamstown on Nov. 24 when his SUV crossed the centerline and struck a car driven by 64-year-old Lawrence George of Pownal, Vermont. The 65-year-old George died at the scene.

Voters in Springfield on Tuesday overwhelmingly wanted to keep the Massachusetts gaming law and would have preferred Martha Coakley win the governor's office.

SPRINGFIELD — Voters in Springfield on Tuesday overwhelmingly wanted to keep the Massachusetts gaming law and would have preferred Martha Coakley win the governor's office.

With 100 percent of the city's 64 precincts reporting, 21,056 voters cast "No" ballots to 11,969 for "Yes" on Question 3, signifying they preferred to keep in place the 2011 Expanded Gaming Act that allows for up to three resort casinos and one slots parlor in designated regions across the state.

With the stakes high in Springfield, where MGM Springfield is planning an $800 million resort casino project, voter turnout was 33 percent.

The City of Homes is one of three locations in Massachusetts where a gaming license has been awarded under the 2011 law. In June, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission awarded the West region license to MGM Springfield, whose "outward looking" casino complex design will transform an area of the city's South End neighborhood that was largely wrecked by the June 1, 2011 tornado.

In July 2013, Springfield voters approved a referendum on the MGM proposal by a 58-42 margin. Tuesday's vote to keep the gaming law in place produced a 64-36 pro-casinos difference.

Meanwhile, Coakley garnered 19,236 Springfield votes on Tuesday to Governor-elect Charlie Baker's 10,211 votes, a 58-31 percentage point margin. In the 2010 special U.S. Senate election, Coakley was the city's choice by a 61-37 percentage point spread against Scott Brown despite also losing statewide.

Coakley attended an Election Day get-out-the-vote rally in Springfield.

In other races, voters in the city, a Democratic stronghold, gave broad support to Democratic candidates. In contested races, Democrats had at least 70 percent of the vote, with three exceptions:

• Coakley;
• State Senator-elect Eric Lesser, who had a 58-37 percentage point advantage over Republican Debra Boronski in Springfield precincts that are part of the 1st Hampden and Hampshire District;
• Outgoing state Sen. Gale Candaras, who enjoyed the support of 65 percent of voters to independent Suzanne Seguin's 35 percent in the race for Hampden County register of probate. Seguin won a tight contest after the last ballots were counted early Wednesday morning.

On the other ballot questions, Springfield voters also agreed with statewide voters on Question 2, voting down expanding the bottle bill by 75-25 percentage points, and Question 4, voting to OK earned sick time for workers, 72-28.

But on Question 1, Springfielders, who soon will see much-need repairs to Interstate 91 and are well familiar with bumpy roads in town, voted to keep the portion of the 2013 law increasing the state tax on gasoline sales that would automatically adjust the tax every year by the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index to help pay for infrastructure improvements. Springfield voted 15,135 "No" – to keep the indexing intact – to 14,700 "Yes," which will repeal automatic annual increases in the gas tax. But statewide, Question 1 passed, and automatic gas tax indexing was repealed.

Complete Springfield results on the city's website »

 

Patrick launched a public transition website, which contains detailed information about each of the state agencies.

Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, has launched a public transition website with information for incoming Republican Gov. Charlie Baker.

"We stand ready to help with a smooth transition and wish you all the best for a successful administration," Patrick wrote in a message on the site.

Baker appeared to have narrowly defeated Attorney General Martha Coakley Tuesday night to win the corner office, although with just 1 percent of voters separating the candidates, Coakley had not yet conceded. Patrick was a strong supporter of Coakley.

In his message, Patrick touted the accomplishments of his administration – reforming the state pension system, merging transportation agencies, tightening ethics rules, ending the use of state police on construction details, reforming the municipal health care system, and cracking down on fraud at the Department of Transitional Assistance. The state, he said, dealt with unexpected events such as the Boston Marathon bombings and a tornado in Western Massachusetts.

"Not everything has gone as planned, of course. But in the same spirit of generational responsibility, we have found, faced and fixed problems rather than papered them over and kicked them down the road," Patrick wrote.

The website includes video introductions from senior cabinet members discussing their agency's roles and responsibilities, with links to budget resources, relevant laws, information about ongoing initiatives and other news and publications from that agency.

The new governor will be inaugurated on Jan. 8, 2015. The new legislature will be sworn in Jan. 7.

The point of having a variety of officials at the neighborhood meeting is to be able to address whatever concerns residents raise, an official said.

HOLYOKE -- Public safety, littering and other concerns will be discussed at a neighborhood meeting Wednesday (Nov. 5) at 6:30 p.m. at 43 Canal St.arranged by Ward 1 Councilor Gladys Lebron-Martinez and the Historical Commission.

"I want to make it open so if anybody has any concerns," Lebron-Martinez said Monday.

The Historical Commission is involved because some of the concerns involved the Hadley Mills Worker Housing buildings on Center, Glover, Lyman and Canal streets, which are on the National Register of Historic Places, commission Chairwoman Olivia Mausel said.

Lebron-Martinez and Mausel have cast a wide net in terms of inviting a variety of representatives of city and other agencies. That includes the Police and Public Works departments, along with Olde Holyoke Development Corp. and other area property owners, they said.

The Greek revival-style row houses that were the Hadley Falls Company worker housing were built in 1848. They were residences for the employees of the company established at the Connecticut River dam that became known as Holyoke Water Power Co. Men and women who worked at paper and textile mills that sprang up in relation to the dam also lived in that housing. The housing was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972, according to the Massachusetts Cultural Resource Information System, a data base of the Massachusetts Historical Commission.

WASHINGTON -- With sweeping victories that exceeded their own sky-high expectations, the GOP has dealt President Barack Obama and Democrats the most devastating electoral defeat of his presidency. Their prize is full control of Congress, and with it, the power to shape the direction of America's government in the next two years. Both parties talked Tuesday about need to compromise,...

WASHINGTON -- With sweeping victories that exceeded their own sky-high expectations, the GOP has dealt President Barack Obama and Democrats the most devastating electoral defeat of his presidency. Their prize is full control of Congress, and with it, the power to shape the direction of America's government in the next two years.

Both parties talked Tuesday about need to compromise, but they will face tough obstacles in following through. The list is long: the already looming 2016 elections, persistent divisions within the Republican Party, and the frosty relationship between Obama and Sen. Mitch McConnell, who won re-election in Kentucky and is likely to ascend to majority leader.

"I don't expect the president to wake up tomorrow and view the world any differently than he did this morning," McConnell said at his victory party Tuesday night. "He knows I won't either."

The election puts Republicans back in power in the Senate for the first time in eight years, and alongside a GOP-led House, the party will set a legislative agenda unlike anything that would come from Obama's White House. The president's top advisers have spent weeks planning for how to deal with a Republican-led Senate. Obama will hold a press conference Wednesday afternoon, and plans to meet with congressional leaders Friday at the White House.

In the rosiest of scenarios, McConnell and Obama can look for common ground in areas where their parties have overlapping interests: overhauling the nation's complicated tax code, repairing crumbling roads and bridges, and inking free-trade agreements with the European Union and Asia-Pacific nations.

"This is a new chapter in the presidency and it doesn't have to be a defeated one," said Bill Burton, a former Obama White House and campaign adviser. "We lost in a lot of places, but the truth is this could open up some real opportunity to actually get some things done."

For Obama, who has grown resentful of his diminished political standing, the prospect of reaching accords with a GOP-led Congress is a consolation prize that could help salvage his flailing second term. Republican Senate leaders may also see something to gain by showing Americans they can govern effectively, given that voters expressed dissatisfaction with their party as well with Obama, according to exit polls conducted for The Associated Press and television networks.

But McConnell and Republicans are likely to have plenty on their to-do list that doesn't match Obama's plans for his final years in office, including cutting budget deficits, making changes to Obama's signature health care law and approving construction of the contentious Keystone XL pipeline from Canada.

"We will send the president bill after bill until he wearies of it," said Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul, a tea party favorite and potential 2016 presidential candidate.

That fast-approaching campaign likely leaves McConnell and Obama a short window in which to make progress on any compromise legislation.

McConnell will be fending off pressure from prospective White House hopefuls, including Paul and Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, who see little incentive to compromise with a Democratic White House as they appeal to the conservative voters who decide GOP primaries. Republican opposition to the president is likely to only deepen if the president accelerates his use of executive actions, including presidential directives on immigration that are expected before the end of the year.

Obama, too, will be battling internal party politics. He may no longer be able to count on full support from Democrats who are unlikely to want to help the GOP look effective in governing during the lead-up to a presidential contest. Tuesday's elections also strip him of some of the more moderate members of his caucus, such as Sen. Mark Pryor of Arkansas and Sen. Kay Hagan of North Carolina, leaving him with more liberal members who have fewer overlapping priorities with Republicans.

The White House was silent as Republicans racked up one win after another Tuesday and won control of the Senate hours -- if not days -- before almost anyone expected. Privately, there was frustration among some advisers that Democrats wary of being associated with Obama largely sidelined the increasingly unpopular president throughout the campaign. That strategy did little to stem losses in places where Obama showed prowess in his runs for president, including Colorado, Iowa and Florida.

For Democrats, the one silver lining in Tuesday's elections is that they are now over. Attention can now turn to 2016, when the Senate contests will largely take place in states that are traditionally more favorable to Democrats.

And while they may still fret about being saddled with an unpopular president at their party's helm, many are already prepared to move on. An announcement from Hillary Rodham Clinton, the political juggernaut who appears poised to run to replace Obama, is expected around the end of the year.

A soil sampling crew began testing the structural integrity of the land behind the old Howard Street School Tuesday morning.

Rail travelers would be able to speed from Washington, D.C. to Boston at 220 mph and people on Long Island would take a tunnel straight to Connecticut and points north rather than go through New York City under some of the more ambitious long-range plans described by federal rail officials Wednesday to remake the beleaguered Northeast Corridor.

By DAVID PORTER

NEW YORK — Rail travelers would be able to speed from Washington, D.C. to Boston at 220 mph and people on Long Island would take a tunnel straight to Connecticut and points north rather than go through New York City under some of the more ambitious long-range plans described by federal rail officials Wednesday to remake the beleaguered Northeast Corridor.

The 457-mile corridor is the busiest commuter rail line in the country and the site of regular and often lengthy delays on Amtrak and regional lines such as New Jersey Transit, due to 100-year-old infrastructure and crowded tracks.

At Wednesday's open house, the Federal Railroad Administration laid out its vision for expanding service and making existing service more efficient. The three groups of projects presented, contained in a report released this month, were culled from an original list of 98 individual proposals that was then winnowed down to 15.

All three scenarios factor in new rail tunnels under the Hudson River between New Jersey and New York, a contentious issue that reached a boiling point four years ago when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie pulled the plug on a $9 billion tunnel project, citing potential cost overruns. Amtrak, which owns the tracks along the Northeast Corridor, is seeking funding for a new tunnel project that is at least 10 years away.

While work on aging infrastructure up and down the corridor would proceed regardless of the fate of a new tunnel, the expanded capacity it would provide would be crucial to any of the major projects, said Rebecca Reyes-Alicea, FRA project manager for the Northeast Corridor.

"What we can do is account for the immediate infrastructure needs in this process, so that it all fits together," she said. "Building tunnels is not an easy task, but at least if we can all kind of shepherd around the same goal, we can get there. It's going to a take a while, but if we can at least get the groundwork through this and through the environmental work that has to be done for the tunnels, we can at least start to get the wheels turning."

The three proposals include features such as a tunnel to connect stations on Long Island to the Connecticut coastline for service to Providence and Boston; a "second spine" alongside the current Northeast Corridor tracks that would carry high-speed rail at speeds of 220 mph, and new service between New York and Boston that would serve Hartford, Springfield and Worcester, Massachusetts.

Currently, Amtrak lines split in New Haven, with Boston-bound trains heading up the coast and inland trains terminating at Springfield.

Also, new tracks would bypass several movable bridges between southeastern Connecticut and Rhode Island that currently contribute to slowdowns due to capacity and speed restrictions.

A fourth proposal, called "no action," calls for maintaining service at current levels through 2040.

The plans are in the very preliminary stages. Within the next year, more public comment will be solicited on the proposals and a draft environmental impact study on proposals will be released in fall 2015.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's Northern Shrimp Section voted to cancel the upcoming season, a year after the section closed this year's season for the first time in more than 30 years.

By PATRICK WHITTLE

PORTLAND, Maine — Federal regulators shut down the commercial fishing season for northern shrimp in the Gulf of Maine for a second straight year on Wednesday, citing concerns about the declining population and warmer ocean temperatures.

The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission's Northern Shrimp Section voted to cancel the upcoming season, a year after the section closed this year's season for the first time in more than 30 years. A technical committee that advises the section recommended extending the moratorium for another year.

The "depleted condition of the resource and poor prospects for the near future" warrant another closure, the committee reported, adding that "long term trends in environmental conditions" for the little pink shrimp are unfavorable. The amount of the shrimp's population that can be fished is at an all-time low, regulators said.

The section set aside 25 metric ton quota of northern shrimp for research purposes. Maine Department of Marine Resources Commissioner Patrick Keliher said the quota "strikes a balance between the critical need for annual biologic updates and the need to continue the resource rebuilding effort" of the stock.

The shutdown will hopefully give the shrimp a chance to rebuild population, said Ben Martens, executive director of the Maine Coast Fishermen's Association.

"It's disappointing for our fishermen who really could have used even a small season this year," Martens said. "The long-term goal is to have a robust fishery and this will hopefully get us closer to that."

Fishermen from Maine, New Hampshire and Massachusetts fish for the shrimp, which are prized for their sweet, tender meat, and are a popular item at restaurants in the region when they are available. The fishing season is typically in the early part of the year.

Fishermen's catch of the shrimp has declined dramatically in recent years. The three states caught more than 5,000 metric tons of northern shrimp in 2011, with the vast majority landed in Maine. That number fell to less than 2,500 metric tons in 2012 and collapsed to slightly more than 300 metric tons in 2013.

Some fishermen have opposed closure of the fishery because shrimp are a source of winter money. Ben Martens said the shutdown was "probably the only action the section could take" because of the poor stock status.

Malloy won by about 27,000 votes with nearly 1.1 million ballots cast.

HARTFORD - Dannel P. Malloy won reelection as governor of Connecticut after Republican opponent Thomas C. Foley on Wednesday conceded defeat in a rematch of their first contest four years ago.

With 97 percent of the precincts reporting, Malloy was leading Foley by 2 percentage points, according to the Hartfort Courant.

Several polling stations in the capital city failed to open at the legally mandated time of 6 a.m. Tuesday because voter registration lists were not ready as required by law. Malloy's campaign said the problems led many people to leave without voting and caused voting delays of up to 90 minutes for those who waited, according to the Associated Press.

After listening to lawyers and witnesses, Superior Court Judge Carl Schuman in Hartford ruled that two polling places should stay open until 8:30 p.m. to allow voters affected by the morning problems to return.

"We should remember that people fought and died for the right to vote and it ought not be denied when it is possible to grant it. In this case, it is possible to grant it," the judge said.

Because the race was so close, Foley did not concede to Malloy until Wednesday.

"We will have a full legislative agenda ready to go by Jan. 7," the Courant quoted Malloy as saying a state capitol press conference. "I don't sit around a whole lot and I have things I want to get done and I know that this state needs to get done."

By the end of the day, the numbers released by the secretary of state's office showed Malloy winning by 27,348 out of 1,078,493 votes cast. Malloy end up with 50.7 percent of the vote to 48.2 percent for Foley. A write in petition candidate, Joe Visconti, got 11,295 votes or about 1 percent.

The New Haven Register reported that Foley called Malloy around 12:30 p.m. to concede.

"Thank you for your support. We came very close,” Foley said in a letter to his supporters. “Our appeal for change in Connecticut — pro-growth policies including lower taxes, more responsible spending, and more support for job creators — was endorsed by more than 48% of Connecticut voters."

The New York Times pointed out that it took three days for the returns to be counted in the first Malloy-Foley match in 2010.

"It was hardly the coronation that Mr. Malloy may have hoped for as he overcame stiff economic headwinds to enact one of the country’s most ambitious liberal agendas," the Times reported. "But despite getting banged up in another razor-thin and acrid race, he endured, and in so doing emerged as an unlikely national spokesman for the pragmatic left."

The MSNBC television network called Malloy's Malloy’s reelection a victory for gun control, which the governor advocated for since the December 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown.

"In the months following the massacre, Malloy signed into law a historic gun bill that requires universal background checks for all purchasers, and added more than 100 firearms to the state’s existing ban on assault weapons. The measure also prohibited the sale and purchase of high-capacity magazines," according to MSNBC

The man who fled from the traffic stop, 38-year-old Ras Bucklin of Salisbury, was wanted on two active arrest warrants, police said.

Rex, the police K-9 dogMASSACHUSETTS STATE POLICE 

Ras Bucklin, 38, of Salisbury, had two active arrest warrants when fled the scene of a traffic stop on Interstate 495 shortly before 6 p.m., according to Massachusetts State Police officials.

Trooper Patrick McCrave, of the Newbury barracks, stopped the southbound vehicle for an alleged violation. Bucklin, one of the vehicle's four occupants, exited the car, jumped a guardrail, and ran down an embankment into the woods. Backup units from the Newbury and Andover barracks responded, as did two K-9 teams and a State Police Air Wing unit.

Sgt. James Bigelow and his German shepherd, Rex, began tracking Bucklin, who led police on a half-mile slog through knee-deep mud and water, reeds and tall grass. The search ended when Rex located Bucklin "lying prone on the ground in thick brush," police said.

Bucklin was taken into custody on the outstanding warrants and was issued a citation for failure to wear a seatbelt, police said. Authorities did not indicate the underlying charges that prompted the warrants, which were issued by Newbury District Court.

The three other vehicle occupants also were issued citations for failure to wear seatbelts. The driver was charged with a marked-lanes violation, police said.

Arraignment information wasn't immediately available.

According to the Associated Press, Shumlin was ahead to 2,095 votes.

BURLINGTON, Vt. - Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin declared victory in his race for reelection, even though observers were calling the race too close to call.

Scott Milne 

Unofficial results from the Associated Press showed Shumlin, a Democrat, with 46 percent ov the vote, or 89,874 to 45 percent for Republican challenger Scott Milne with 87,786 votes, according to WCAX-TV, CBS3, in Burlington. Libertarian Dan Feliciano got 4 percent, or 8,468 votes. Later, the Associated Press said Shumlin was ahead by 2,095 votes, although the vote totals were not revised.

For his part, Milne refused to admit defeat, despite initially scheduling a morning press press conference.

"In a very tough election cycle, we got the most votes," WCAX quoted Shumlin as saying. "I'm grateful for that, I'm grateful that we won. I'm looking forward to another two years of really trying, to make a difference for Vermonters."

While the Burlington Free Press quoted the Associated Press as saying Shumlin was ahead by 2,095 votes, it said the race would be decided by the Legislature next year.

"What is clear is that the majority of Vermonters do not agree with the path that we are on," the Free Press quoted Milne as saying. "We are going to wait for the final numbers."

The Times Argus in Montpelier reported, too, that the election appears headed for the Legislature.

"Under Vermont's Constitution, if no candidate for governor, lieutenant governor or treasurer gets an outright majority, the election goes to the Legislature," the Associated Press reported. "Democrats are expected to maintain control of both houses, but the Legislature nearly always chooses the plurality winner in a gubernatorial election — the last time it didn't was in 1853. "

WCAX-TV, CBS3, Burlington, Vt.

Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. the Korean War Veterans Bridge will be dedicated.

EASTHAMPTON -- A section of sidewalk on Cottage Street will be closed to pedestrians starting Thursday, Nov. 5. Construction is beginning on the Nashawannuck Pond promenade park project, and pedestrians will be asked to use the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street until further notice, city officials said Wednesday.

The $950,000 boardwalk project is expected to be completed by next spring. The construction is not expected to interfere with motor vehicle traffic.

On Saturday, two temporary street closures are planned -- one in the wee hours, and another at lunch time.

Union Street (Rt. 141) and Liberty Street will be closed from 1 to 4 a.m. for electric system upgrades by Western Massachusetts Electric Co. Officials said the work is planned after midnight to minimize the impact on commuters.

On Saturday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m., Northampton Street (Rt. 10) from the downtown Main Street rotary to West Street will be closed for the dedication of the Korean War Veterans Bridge. The reconstructed $3.75 million bridge opened in October 2013.

Motorists are asked to find alternate routes.

McDonough, now 21, was sentenced in July 2013 to 1 1/2 to three years in prison for lying to police after Seth Mazzaglia strangled and raped 19-year-old Elizabeth "Lizzi" Marriott, of Westborough, Massachusetts,

CONCORD, N.H. -- A woman who admitted she lured a University of New Hampshire student to her apartment as a sex offering for her domineering boyfriend and then helped dispose of the woman's body after he killed and raped her could be paroled following a hearing.

Kathryn McDonough, now 21, was sentenced in July 2013 to 1 1/2 to three years in prison for lying to police after Seth Mazzaglia strangled and raped 19-year-old Elizabeth "Lizzi" Marriott, of Westborough, Massachusetts, at the couple's Dover apartment in October 2012.

McDonough told jurors that Mazzaglia, 32, was angry at her when she left him home for two nearly weeks without a sex partner and demanded that she bring him another woman to join in their sexual escapades, which included bondage and discipline. When Marriott twice rejected his sexual advances, Mazzaglia strangled her and raped her lifeless body. The couple dumped her body off Portsmouth's Peirce Island. It has not been recovered.

McDonough for months told investigators that Marriott died during consensual rough sex between the two women that involved restraints. She admitted she helped dispose of Marriott's body then testified against Mazzaglia this summer as part of her deal for a lighter sentence.

Members of Marriott's family are expected to attend Thursday's parole hearing. Corrections officials say if parole is granted, McDonough would be released Jan. 13.

Mazzaglia was convicted of murder and is serving a life sentence without possibility of parole.

Members of Marriott's family spoke scathingly of McDonough when she was sentenced, calling her a cold, calculating woman who betrayed her friend's trust. But 13 months later, after Mazzaglia was sentenced in August, Marriott's father said he had conflicted feelings about her.

"I have a lot of reason to very much dislike her and her involvement in what happened to my daughter," Bob Marriott said. "I also have a lot of sympathy for the situation she was in and what she was put through by that person we just sent to jail."

Bob Marriott said during McDonough's sentencing that he and his family grudgingly accepted the plea deal with McDonough to further Mazzaglia's prosecution.b

Election Day 2014 offered Massachusetts voters plenty of choices for candidates in hundreds of races, including four ballot questions.

These were the most read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

1) Republican Charlie Baker defeats Democrat Martha Coakley to win Massachusetts governor's race [Shira Schoenberg] Photo gallery above

2) Suzanne Seguin declares victory, state Sen. Gale Candaras doesn't concede defeat in race for Hampden County Register of Probate

3) Massachusetts election 2014 roundup: Who won, who lost, and who's still waiting on results? [Brian Steele]

4) Anne Gobi takes Central Massachusetts Senate seat in tight race

5) Republicans surge in 2014 midterm elections to take control of US Senate [Associated Press]

Lincoln Park Towers residents consider strengths and weaknesses of their community and offer suggestions for spending priorities.

WORCESTER – City officials got an earful of complaints and suggestions from residents of Lincoln Park Towers Wednesday.

The residents felt that their neighborhood had a number of strengths, ranging from easy access to stores, transportation and medical facilities, to a quiet atmosphere away from the city’s bars and night-time hot-spots, to an inclusive atmosphere with a lot of activities for the largely elderly population.

However, there were also a number of areas the residents hope to see improved, from the most local level, like the slow elevators and slamming doors in the tall apartment buildings and the need for a dog park, to more broad concerns, such as the construction of roads and bridges and better coordination of traffic and pedestrian signals.

Some even raised concerns about “troublemakers” in the buildings and a desire for an increased police presence in the area.

The comments came during one in a series of community forums aimed at getting input from residents to inform the city’s five-year plan for spending federal Community Development Block Grants (CDBG).

The goal, said Greg Baker, the city director of Neighborhood Development, is to explore the issues of importance to residents in different parts of the city.

The comments will help the city craft its requests for federal funding and keep the government informed of the overall goals for Community Development Block Grants – which Baker said totaled some $4 million to $6 million per year.

“Your feedback is very important and we take it very seriously,” he told the group of more than 20 residents.

Ed Moynihan, chairman of the Community Development Advisory Committee, said that although the process can be cumbersome at times it really provides good, needed insights into what residents really want and need.

“That’s one of the strengths of the program,” Moynihan said of the CDBG’s requirement to solicit community involvement. “It does force people to listen and the process makes people feel involved in making improvements, which they are.”

He added, “Hopefully we’ll get a nice good cross section” from the forum and the others like it in the series. Another four more community forums are scheduled before the end of the month.

However, Moynihan noted that some of the concerns, like the complaints about the towers having only two elevators, were almost certainly outside of the scope of projects the grants are allowed to address.

“Still, it’s a concern,” he said. “But it doesn’t really make the cut.”

One resident, Randell Ormo, who lives in the towers, noted that although the facilitators were encouraging participants to think about their neighborhood, everyone present lived in the building.

“There’s 199 apartments here. That’s bigger than a lot of neighborhoods,” he said.