Needhamites to Attend 2012 Democratic Convention

Submitted by the Mass. Democratic Party

Needham Democrats will be among the more than 5,000 delegates to the Massachusetts Democratic Party’s Endorsing Convention who will gather on Saturday, June 2 in Springfield to award the party’s endorsement to one of the Democratic candidates for U.S. Senate.   

In February, Democrats and unenrolled voters gathered at a caucus in Needham to elect local representatives to the convention. Additional delegates were appointed by the Democratic State Committee to ensure that young people, minorities and persons with disabilities are adequately represented. They will join together with other delegations from around the state to participate in one of the largest examples of grassroots democracy the state has ever seen.

In all, Massachusetts Democrats held 557 caucuses throughout the Commonwealth.

Delegates from Needham will vote to select which candidate for Senate will receive the party’s endorsement to be the nominee to face Scott Brown this fall in what is shaping up to be a pivotal race both locally and nationally. They will also join with volunteers after the convention to launch a massive city-wide canvass of Springfield to talk to voters about Democratic values and candidates.

The Senate candidate who receives a majority of the delegate’s votes will become the officially endorsed candidate of the Massachusetts Democratic Party. Any candidate who receives at least 15 percent will remain on the Primary Election ballot.

The winner of the Party’s endorsement will address the convention following a final vote tally. The Massachusetts Democratic Party’s endorsement will be noted on the Sept. 6 Primary Election ballot.

 “Middle class families in Needham face a stark choice this fall. We can either keep the Commonwealth and our nation moving forward by sending President Obama back for a second term and replacing Scott Brown with a fighter for the middle class or we can allow the country to slip back into the doldrums of the past," said Massachusetts Democratic Party Chair John Walsh. “In the months ahead, Needham Democrats will play a key role in building the largest grassroots campaign the Commonwealth has ever seen, creating thousands of community conversations about our candidates and our ideas.”

The Needham delegation contains the following members: Gerald Wasserman, Damon Borrelli, Colleen Harkins, Robert Smart, Thomas Harkins, Sheila Pransky, Caitlin Harkins, Alan Pransky, Jeffrey Shapiro, Harmony Wu, Claire Ecsedy, Daniel Matthews, Jeanne McKnight, Susan Option, Michael Jacques, Katherine Jacques, Steven Jacques, Maurice Handel