• NO ONE ROCKED THE VOTE: Primary elections are rarely the kind of affairs that get people out, especially when there are so few contested seats. True to form, voter turnout citywide was abysmal—12.95 percent of registered voters showed up overall. And even the “best” areas of the city had low turnout. The highest turnout anywhere in Worcester was in Ward 5, precincts 5 (Mass. Audubon Society) and 3 (Big Y supermarket on Southwest Cutoff), the only two precincts to top 21 percent voter turnout. Only three other precincts topped 20 percent. The lowest turnout was in Ward 8, Precinct 3 (the traditionally slow St. Peter’s Church in Main South) where 2.81 percent of the registered voters showed up.
• VOTING FOR THE PHANTOM CANDIDATE: With so many candidates running unopposed in the primary, it can be a bit hard to gauge public opinion. One very unscientific measurement is the number of blank votes or write-in votes. For example, Congressman Jim McGovern got 9,942 votes, but 11,918 were cast, giving him 83 percent of the total vote. Not all incumbents fared so well though. On the state representative side, Rep. Bob Spellane garnered 1,990 votes out of 2,887 cast (there were 839 blank ballots and 58 write-in votes), giving him 68.9 percent of every ballot cast in his district. That was the worst of any other state rep running unopposed this time around. Rep. John Binienda got 81.2 percent (1,698 of 2,091 ballots); Rep. John Fresolo secured 79.3 percent (2,193 of 2,763); Rep. Vincent Pedone got 78.3 percent (1,468 of 1,874); and Rep. Jim O’Day got 77.8 percent (1,794 of 2,303 votes). Registrar of Probate Stephen Abraham posted similar numbers running uncontested, garnering 76.2 percent of the ballots. Meanwhile, State Sen. Harriette Chandler walked away with 80.1 percent of the vote.
• LESS MOORE IN WORCESTER: Doug Belanger’s defeat at Michael Moore’s hands was seen by most political observers as a victory for Sheriff Guy Glodis, Moore’s prime backer, as much as it was a victory for Moore. But viewed through that same lens, it didn’t all go how either Moore or Glodis could have hoped. The spin from the anti-Moore crowd Tuesday night concentrated on Moore’s loss in Worcester — by far the biggest single portion of the district. Outside of Worcester, Moore secured victories in every other town save for Belanger’s hometown of Leicester.
• THEY’RE NOT THERE: It’s a move pulled from the pages of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington. When State House representatives want to put off or hold up proceedings during informal sessions, they pull a sly move by questioning the presence of a quorum. It’s a maneuver that can be called by a lone rep, usually when something isn’t going the way that he or she wants. Essentially, because quorum generally doesn’t exist during informal sessions, by questioning it, a rep can instantly force a session to be adjourned. Rep. Paul Murtry has gotten a lot of attention for the scheme while he tries to push through a liquor license for the Wegman’s grocery chain. But the most recent rep to try the stunt is our own John Fresolo, according to a recent State House News report. On Monday, Fresolo doubted the presence of a quorum, but quickly backed off after huddling with House leaders. Fresolo told the news service he was trying to advance a bill stuck in the Ways and Means Committee that would give a few World War II veterans benefits currently given to other veterans. Using parliamentary tricks to advance the bill is “my only defense at this point,” he told the service.
• PLOTTING THE CRIMES: Last week, Police Chief Gary Gemme sent a report to the City Council telling them it was too time consuming to get some of the information they had requested. It’s a frequent pronouncement from police officials, who often say that getting raw data is easy; it’s the compiling and teasing out that takes up valuable Crime Analysis Unit time. Now, it looks like the WPD is looking at supplementing their crime analysis with some new software. According to the city purchasing website, the city is looking to purchase CrimeView, a software suite from The Omega Group that theoretically allows departments to map incident data and query results in a map interface. “CrimeView® includes a number of query, reporting, analysis, and mapping features to help expand your capabilities and simplify your current crime analysis procedures,” reads The Omega Group’s website. It might not be the best solution, but it’s a heck of a lot better than we have now. Of course, while not listed as a piece of the purchase, we’re still crossing our fingers that the department buys the add-on component “CrimeView Community” that would make pertinent data and maps available on the web to the public.
• DIRECT AIR GETS SIGNED: The city is quickly getting ramped up to roll out the red walkway for Direct Air with some needed signage improvements. After a lightning-quick bid period, Sunshine Sign Company is providing five unspecified replacement signs for the airport at a cost of $3,341.30. The city also contracted with Lamar Central Outdoor to provide 6-8 lighted 14x48 signs on major highways in the Worcester, Metrowest, Hartford, Springfield, and Fitchburg/Leominster areas starting this month. Those are likely part of the up to $300,000 in public funds committed to Direct Air for advertising. o
