Other winners included Laura Gentile in a 4-way Hampden County Clerk of Courts Democratic primary.
U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, celebrates his re-election Thursday night at the Community Music School of Springfield. Behind him from left: Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, State Rep.Stephen Kulik, Pittsfield Mayor Daniel L. Bianchi and State Sen. Gale Candaras.Two former Springfield mayors were winners in Thursday’s Democratic Primary.
While President Barack Obama was preparing to deliver his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C., town clerks across Massachusetts were tabulating primary results.
U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, a former Springfield mayor, won election to the newly created 1st Congressional District in Thursday’s Democratic primary, beating Berkshire Middle District Register of Deeds Andrea Nuciforo Jr. of Pittsfield and Bill Shein, a writer and activist from Alford.
With no Republican or Green-Rainbow candidates in the race, Neal should be the winner of the seat in the Nov. 6 general election.
Following his 19th victory for the seat that he first won in 1988, Neal said, “Tell them what you’re for, and tell them what you’re against. You don’t have to disparage a person’s character.”
A three-way race for the Democratic nomination for the open Western Massachusetts seat on the Governor’s Council – the Colonial-era panel that votes whether to confirm a governor’s judicial nominations – was narrowly won by former Springfield Mayor Michael J. Albano of Longmeadow. He defeated lawyer Kevin J. Sullivan from Westfield and Chicopee City Councilor Gerry Roy.
In the Republican primary for the same seat on the Governor’s Council, Michael Franco defeated Michael Case.
U.S. Rep. James P. McGovern handily won election to the newly redrawn 2nd Congressional District, which covers central Massachusetts and 63 towns extending as far west as Northampton and east to Westborough, including parts of the Pioneer Valley, Quabbin, north Worcester County and the Blackstone Valley.
McGovern fended off a challenge from William B. Feegbeh, a substitute teacher at Sullivan Middle School in Worcester.
State legislators overhauled the 1st Congressional seat as part of redistricting based on the 2010 census, eliminating one of the two current seats based in Western Massachusetts. The new seat, comprising 87 cities and towns, now includes roughly 60 percent of the district of U.S. Rep. John W. Olver, an Amherst Democrat, who is retiring after 20 years in Washington, and 40 percent of the old district of Neal.
The unusual Thursday primary election was scheduled to prevent conflict with Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year that begins Sept. 16, and the fact that many polling places involve schools and religious facilities, state Secretary of State William F. Galvin said. State primary elections are normally scheduled on the third Tuesday of September. Also, state election officials wanted to avoid conflict with the Democratic National Convention that began Tuesday.
Longmeadow Republican Marie Angelides trounced opponent Enrico “Jack” Villamaino III, a former East Longmeadow selectman for the 2nd Hampden state representative seat, after Villamaino became embroiled in a voter fraud investigation and literally disappeared from the political landscape, although not from the ballot.
Since Villamaino became the focus of a state investigation into alleged voter fraud, he resigned from the East Longmeadow Board of Selectmen and appeared to stop actively campaigning.
Angelides, a juvenile court lawyer, will face incumbent Brian Ashe, D-Longmeadow, in the November election.
Despite several crucial races, election officials predicted a dismal voter turnout, which is typical for a state primary. Galvin predicted that turnout statewide would be less than 15 percent. Springfield Election Commissioner Gladys Oyola also predicted a low voter turnout, possibly 10 percent of registered voters.
In Springfield, voter turnout was 15.05 percent, compared to 11.44 percent in the 2010 primary.
The race for Hampden Superior Court clerk was won by Laura S. Gentile of Springfield, an assistant Hampden Superior Court clerk. In a close race she defeated Thomas M. Ashe, a Springfield city councilor as well as Linda A. Stec DiSanti, a legal administrator from Chicopee and John P. DaCruz, a Ludlow lawyer and former Ludlow selectman.
Ashe took Springfield, while Gentile had the most votes in Agawam, Chester, Holland, Montgomery, Palmer, Southwick, Wilbraham and Wales.
Reached by phone, Ashe said he had conceded the race.
With no Republican candidates for the Hampden County clerk of courts, she is on target to claim the job in January.
The Hampden clerk of courts position is being vacated after one term by Brian P. Lees, an East Longmeadow Republican and former Senate Minority leader who has been one of the best known political figures in Hampden County for the past two decades.
In the contest for the Hampden District state Senate seat, State Sen. James T. Welch, D-West Springfield, fended off a challenge from Springfield City Councilor Melvin A. Edwards.
The newly redrawn Hampden District consists of West Springfield as well as numerous wards in Chicopee and Springfield.
In the 9th Hampden Distrct, state Rep. Sean M. Curran, D-Springfield, seeking re-election to a fifth term, fended off a challenge from Joseph R. Fountain, a substitute teacher in the Springfield public schools. Fountain, who ran unsuccessfully last year for an at-large seat on the Springfield City Council, received 26 percent of the vote Thursday compared to 74 percent of the vote taken by Curran.
In Hampshire county, a three-way Democratic primary for register of deeds was won by Mary Olberding, a human resources manager from Belchertown. She eked out a victory over Bonnie MacCracken, an Amherst title examiner and Timothy O’Leary, a Southampton real estate lawyer.
She will compete against Northampton Treasurer George R. Zimmerman who is running as an independent in the November election.
In a Democratic faceoff for Franklin County register of deeds, lawyer Scott A. Cote of Greenfield pulled an upset, defeating incumbent Joseph A. Gochinski of Greenfield.
Also in Franklin county, in the Democratic primary for Superior Court clerk Susan K. Emond of Bernardston, the current first assistant clerk of the court, defeated David R. Roulston of Greenfield.
For the 5th Hampden District state representative seat Ward 5 Councilor Linda L. Vacon succeeded in getting her name on the Nov. 6 ballot for state representative as the Republcian Party nominee.
Vacon, a two-term councilor, will face Councilor at Large Aaron M. Vega who won big to be the Democratic nominee in the Nov. 6 election.
For a 2nd Franklin District state representative seat, incumbent Rep. Denise Andrews, D-Orange, fended off a challenge by Genevieve C. Fraser of Orange, Jim White of Phillipston and Rebecca J. Bialecki of Orange.