Massachusetts gubernatorial election, 2002
Encyclopedia
The Massachusetts gubernatorial election of 2002 was held on November 5, 2002. Businessman Mitt Romney
was elected to a four-year term, to be served from January 2, 2003 until January 4, 2007. Every four years, Massachusetts
holds state-wide elections for Governor
, Lieutenant Governor
, Attorney General
, Secretary of the Commonwealth
, State Treasurer, and Auditor
. The Primary election was September 17, 2002.
after Republican Governor Paul Cellucci
resigned upon being appointed U.S. Ambassador to Canada. However, Swift was viewed as an unpopular executive, and her administration was plagued by political missteps and personal and ethical controversies. Many Republicans viewed her as a liability and considered her unable to win a general election against a Democrat.
Prominent GOP activists campaigned to persuade businessman Mitt Romney
to run for governor, who was coming off his successful stint as head of the 2002 Winter Olympics
in Salt Lake City and was also mentioned as a possible candidate for Governor of Utah. Romney had previously indicated in fall 2001 that he would not challenge a sitting Republican in running for the Massachusetts governorship, and thus was in a delicate position. Massachusetts Republican State Committee chair Kerry Healey
had flown to Utah to personally assess Romney's intentions. On March 17, Romney flew into Massachusetts; a Boston Herald
poll showed him defeating Swift by a 75 percent to 12 percent margin in a Republican primary. On March 19, 2002, Swift tearfully declared that she had decided not to seek her party's nomination, citing family reasons and also saying "I believe that this is in the best interest of our state, as it will allow the Republican Party's best chances of holding the governor's office in November." Three hours later Romney announced his candidacy. Romney was subsequently unopposed in the Republican party primary.
Massachusetts Democratic Party
officials claimed that Romney was ineligible to run for governor, citing residency issues. The Massachusetts Constitution
requires seven consecutive years of residency prior to a run for office. Romney claimed residency in Utah
from 1999 to 2002, during his time as president of the Salt Lake City Olympic Committee. He had thus gotten a $54,000 property tax break there (which he now offered to pay back). In 1999 he listed himself as a part-time Massachusetts resident, and now said that he had planned to return to Massachusetts (where he had gone to business and law school and had spent his entire business career until taking over the Olympics) all along. The Massachusetts Democratic Party filed a complaint with the Massachusetts State Ballot Law Commission, which eventually ruled that Romney was eligible to run for office, saying that "[Romney] never severed his ties to Massachusetts [and] his testimony was credible in all respects." The ruling was not challenged in court, and the whole matter engendered sympathy for Romney, who accused the Democrats of playing "ridiculous, dirty politics".
, the Republican nominee for United States Senate in 1990 and a political adversary of Jane Swift, was the first Republican to declare his candidacy for Lieutenant Governor. Swift named Patrick Guerriero
, her deputy chief of staff and an open homosexual, as her running mate. Guerriero was chosen by Swift after Suffolk County District Attorney Ralph C. Martin II, Registrar of Motor Vehicles Daniel Grabauskas, Essex County
Sheriff Frank Cousins, and Massachusetts Turnpike Authority member Christy Mihos
declined to run with Swift.
Kerry Healey
, former Chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party
was selected by Mitt Romney to be his running mate. Shortly after Romney's endorsement of Healey, Guerriero dropped out of the race and gave his support Healey. Rappaport remained in the race and lost to Healey in the Republican primary.
Former state representative Donna Cuomo
was also briefly a Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor. She announced her candidacy on April 2, 2002 and dropped out of the race the next day.
, President of the Massachusetts Senate
Thomas Birmingham, former Democratic National Committee
and AIPAC chair Steven Grossman
, former United States Secretary of Labor
Robert Reich
, and former nominee for lieutenant governor Warren Tolman
.
The leader in most of the polls conducted as O'Brien, who was a longtime insider with four generations of heritage in the Beacon Hill political establishment. However, she faced criticism for some of the losing investments she had made as state treasurer. Reich's candidacy attracted considerable media attention, especially due to the 1997 publication of his memoir of working for the Clinton administration, Locked in the Cabinet. Reich had received criticism for embellishing events with invented dialogue, and the book had so angered Bill Clinton
that he endorsed Grossman instead. Of the Democrats running, all but Tolman opted out of Clean Elections
funding.
In the September 17, 2002, primary, O'Brien won with 33 percent of the vote; Reich came in second with 25 percent, followed by 24 percent for Birmingham and 18 percent for Tolman (Grossman had dropped out before then).
, state representative John P. Slattery
, and former State Senator Lois Pines
. Gabrieli was the running mate of Shannon O'Brien while Slattery and Pines were not affiliated with any candidate. Stephen Lynch
was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor, but dropped out of the race when Congressman Joe Moakley
announced he was not running for reelection and Lynch decided to run to succeed him.. State Senator Cheryl A. Jacques was also a candidate for Lieutenant Governor, but dropped out of the race to run in the special election
in Massachusetts's 9th congressional district
.
of school exams. Romney had tried to soften his image of being rich and privileged by working at various blue collar
jobs such as riding a garbage truck, cleaning fish, and the like over the summer; O'Brien now said in response that "Massachusetts doesn't need a governor who thinks getting in touch with working people is a costume party." She said Romney was "trying to mask a very conservative set of belief systems"; while saying she would not critizice his membership in the LDS Church, she attacked his substantial donations to Brigham Young University
, objecting to their bar on expressions of homosexuality. O'Brien came out in support of same-sex marriage
. Romney declared support for faith-based initiatives.
Romney ran as a political outsider, just as he had in the 1994 U.S. Senate election
, and as an agent of change, saying he would "clean up the mess on Beacon Hill." Supporters of Romney hailed his business record, especially his success with the 2002 Olympics, as that of one who would be able to bring a new era of efficiency into Massachusetts politics. Romney said he would cut $1 billion out the of $23 billion state budget by eliminating the usual suspects of waste, fraud, and mismanagement while still reducing taxes over a phased period. He also said he was generally against tax increases, but refused to rule out the possibility; he did attempt to paint O'Brien as a 'tax-and-spend liberal'. Romney contributed over $6 million to his own campaign during the election, a state record at the time. His campaign was the first to use microtargeting
techniques, in which fine-grained groups of voters were reached with narrowly tailored messaging.
For a while Romney fell behind in the polls, but then surged back in front, helped by negative ads being put forth featuring a basset hound
sleeping as bad men removed bags of money from the Massachusetts treasury. Debates held instanced O'Brien attacking Romney repeatedly; he ended up referring to her style as "unbecoming", which engendered criticism that he was insensitive to women.
(J
), Carla Howell
(L), and Barbara Johnson
(I).
Romney's victory method was established by performing strongly with the (modest) Republican base vote in the state, capturing many independent voters in the belt between Route 128 and I-495
, almost running even in smaller working-class cities, and holding down Democratic margins in large urban areas. The conclusion represented the fourth win in a row for Republicans in the state gubernatorial contest.
Kerry Healey
was elected Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
. She defeated Chris Gabrieli
, Tony Lorenzen, Rich Aucoin, and Joe Schebel.
Campaign sites
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
was elected to a four-year term, to be served from January 2, 2003 until January 4, 2007. Every four years, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
holds state-wide elections for Governor
Governor of Massachusetts
The Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
, Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
The Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts is the first in the line to discharge the powers and duties of the office of governor following the incapacitation of the Governor of Massachusetts...
, Attorney General
Massachusetts Attorney General
The Massachusetts Attorney General is an elected executive officer of the Massachusetts Government. The office of Attorney-General was abolished in 1843 and re-established in 1849. The current Attorney General is Martha Coakley....
, Secretary of the Commonwealth
Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth
The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth is the principal public information officer of the state government of the U.S...
, State Treasurer, and Auditor
Massachusetts Auditor
The Massachusetts State Auditor is a statewide elected office in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The current auditor is Suzanne Bump.-List of state auditors of Massachusetts:-External links:*...
. The Primary election was September 17, 2002.
Governor
In 2002, Republican Lieutenant Governor Jane Swift was expected to campaign for the governor's office, and she had said she would in October 2001. Swift had been serving as acting governorActing governor
An acting governor is a constitutional position created in some U.S. states when the governor dies in office or resigns. In some states, the governor may also be declared to be incapacitated and unable to function for various reasons, including illness and absence from the state for more than a...
after Republican Governor Paul Cellucci
Paul Cellucci
Argeo Paul Cellucci is an American politician and diplomat who served as the 69th Governor of Massachusetts and US Ambassador to Canada.-Early life and career:...
resigned upon being appointed U.S. Ambassador to Canada. However, Swift was viewed as an unpopular executive, and her administration was plagued by political missteps and personal and ethical controversies. Many Republicans viewed her as a liability and considered her unable to win a general election against a Democrat.
Prominent GOP activists campaigned to persuade businessman Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
to run for governor, who was coming off his successful stint as head of the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City and was also mentioned as a possible candidate for Governor of Utah. Romney had previously indicated in fall 2001 that he would not challenge a sitting Republican in running for the Massachusetts governorship, and thus was in a delicate position. Massachusetts Republican State Committee chair Kerry Healey
Kerry Healey
Kerry Murphy Healey was the 70th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. She served from 2003 to 2007 with Governor Mitt Romney. She was the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor of Massachusetts, losing to Democrat Deval Patrick in November 2006...
had flown to Utah to personally assess Romney's intentions. On March 17, Romney flew into Massachusetts; a Boston Herald
Boston Herald
The Boston Herald is a daily newspaper that serves Boston, Massachusetts, United States, and its surrounding area. It was started in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States...
poll showed him defeating Swift by a 75 percent to 12 percent margin in a Republican primary. On March 19, 2002, Swift tearfully declared that she had decided not to seek her party's nomination, citing family reasons and also saying "I believe that this is in the best interest of our state, as it will allow the Republican Party's best chances of holding the governor's office in November." Three hours later Romney announced his candidacy. Romney was subsequently unopposed in the Republican party primary.
Massachusetts Democratic Party
Massachusetts Democratic Party
The Massachusetts Democratic Party is the state affiliate of the United States Democratic Party in the U.S. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The state party chairman is John E...
officials claimed that Romney was ineligible to run for governor, citing residency issues. The Massachusetts Constitution
Massachusetts Constitution
The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the fundamental governing document of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, one of the 50 individual state governments that make up the United States of America. It was drafted by John Adams, Samuel Adams, and James Bowdoin during the...
requires seven consecutive years of residency prior to a run for office. Romney claimed residency in Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
from 1999 to 2002, during his time as president of the Salt Lake City Olympic Committee. He had thus gotten a $54,000 property tax break there (which he now offered to pay back). In 1999 he listed himself as a part-time Massachusetts resident, and now said that he had planned to return to Massachusetts (where he had gone to business and law school and had spent his entire business career until taking over the Olympics) all along. The Massachusetts Democratic Party filed a complaint with the Massachusetts State Ballot Law Commission, which eventually ruled that Romney was eligible to run for office, saying that "[Romney] never severed his ties to Massachusetts [and] his testimony was credible in all respects." The ruling was not challenged in court, and the whole matter engendered sympathy for Romney, who accused the Democrats of playing "ridiculous, dirty politics".
Polling
| Poll source | Dates administered | Mitt Romney | Jane M. Swift |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Herald | March 17, 2002 | 77% | 12% |
Lieutenant Governor
Jim RappaportJim Rappaport
James Rappaport is a real estate developer, entrepreneur, attorney, philanthropist, and Republican politician from Massachusetts.-Political career:...
, the Republican nominee for United States Senate in 1990 and a political adversary of Jane Swift, was the first Republican to declare his candidacy for Lieutenant Governor. Swift named Patrick Guerriero
Patrick Guerriero
Patrick Guerriero, a former Massachusetts state legislator, mayor and advocate for equality, is a founding partner of , a Washington, D.C.-based government affairs firm. Working on the local, state and federal level for two decades, Guerriero has advised and counseled many of the nation's leading...
, her deputy chief of staff and an open homosexual, as her running mate. Guerriero was chosen by Swift after Suffolk County District Attorney Ralph C. Martin II, Registrar of Motor Vehicles Daniel Grabauskas, Essex County
Essex County, Massachusetts
-National protected areas:* Parker River National Wildlife Refuge* Salem Maritime National Historic Site* Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site* Thacher Island National Wildlife Refuge-Demographics:...
Sheriff Frank Cousins, and Massachusetts Turnpike Authority member Christy Mihos
Christy Mihos
Christy P. Mihos is an American politician and businessman from the U.S. commonwealth of Massachusetts. He was an Independent candidate for Governor of Massachusetts in 2006 and ran again as a Republican in the 2010 Massachusetts gubernatorial election...
declined to run with Swift.
Kerry Healey
Kerry Healey
Kerry Murphy Healey was the 70th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. She served from 2003 to 2007 with Governor Mitt Romney. She was the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor of Massachusetts, losing to Democrat Deval Patrick in November 2006...
, former Chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party
Massachusetts Republican Party
The Massachusetts Republican Party is the Massachusetts branch of the United States Republican Party. Governance of the party takes the form of a State Committee which, in accordance with Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 52, consists of one man and one woman from each of the 40 Senate Districts...
was selected by Mitt Romney to be his running mate. Shortly after Romney's endorsement of Healey, Guerriero dropped out of the race and gave his support Healey. Rappaport remained in the race and lost to Healey in the Republican primary.
Former state representative Donna Cuomo
Donna Cuomo
Donna Fournier Cuomo is an American politician who represented the 14th Essex district in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1993–1999. She later served as the deputy director of the Department of Public Safety's programs division.Cuomo was briefly a Republican candidate for...
was also briefly a Republican candidate for Lieutenant Governor. She announced her candidacy on April 2, 2002 and dropped out of the race the next day.
Primary results
Governor
There was a five-way battle for the Democratic nomination for governor, contested among Massachusetts State Treasurer Shannon O'BrienShannon O'Brien
Shannon Patricia Elizabeth O'Brien is a Democrat from Massachusetts. O'Brien served in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1987 through 1993, in the Massachusetts Senate from 1993 through 1995, and was the Massachusetts State Treasurer from 1999 through 2003...
, President of the Massachusetts Senate
President of the Massachusetts Senate
The President of the Massachusetts Senate is the presiding officer. In the United States Congress, the Vice President of the United States is the ex officio President of the United States Senate. In Massachusetts, however, the President of the Senate is elected from and by the Senators...
Thomas Birmingham, former Democratic National Committee
Democratic National Committee
The Democratic National Committee is the principal organization governing the United States Democratic Party on a day to day basis. While it is responsible for overseeing the process of writing a platform every four years, the DNC's central focus is on campaign and political activity in support...
and AIPAC chair Steven Grossman
Steven Grossman (political operative)
Steve Grossman is the Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts.-Education:Grossman received his Bachelor's from Princeton University, and his MBA from Harvard Business School, where he was a Baker Scholar.-Political career:...
, former United States Secretary of Labor
United States Secretary of Labor
The United States Secretary of Labor is the head of the Department of Labor who exercises control over the department and enforces and suggests laws involving unions, the workplace, and all other issues involving any form of business-person controversies....
Robert Reich
Robert Reich
Robert Bernard Reich is an American political economist, professor, author, and political commentator. He served in the administrations of Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter and was Secretary of Labor under President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997....
, and former nominee for lieutenant governor Warren Tolman
Warren Tolman
Warren E. Tolman is a Massachusetts lawyer and former member of the Massachusetts General Court, serving in both of the Court's houses...
.
The leader in most of the polls conducted as O'Brien, who was a longtime insider with four generations of heritage in the Beacon Hill political establishment. However, she faced criticism for some of the losing investments she had made as state treasurer. Reich's candidacy attracted considerable media attention, especially due to the 1997 publication of his memoir of working for the Clinton administration, Locked in the Cabinet. Reich had received criticism for embellishing events with invented dialogue, and the book had so angered Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
that he endorsed Grossman instead. Of the Democrats running, all but Tolman opted out of Clean Elections
Clean elections
"Clean Elections" is a term used to describe a particular system of government financing of political campaigns, in which the government provides a grant to candidates who agree to limit their and private fundraising efforts and limit their campaign-spending.- In the United States :Clean Election...
funding.
In the September 17, 2002, primary, O'Brien won with 33 percent of the vote; Reich came in second with 25 percent, followed by 24 percent for Birmingham and 18 percent for Tolman (Grossman had dropped out before then).
Polling
| Poll source | Dates administered | Shannon O'Brien | Tom Birmingham | Robert Reich | Warren Tolman | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Globe/WBZ-TV | September 13, 2002 | 31% | 22% | 22% | 13% |
Primary results
Lieutenant Governor
The Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor was a three-way battle between businessman Chris GabrieliChris Gabrieli
Chris Gabrieli is an American businessman and a leading national education reformer. He is currently driving the movement to reform the school calendar.-Biography:...
, state representative John P. Slattery
John P. Slattery
John P. Slattery is an American politician who represented the 12th Essex district in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1995–2003 and was a Peabody, Massachusetts City Counclior from 1993-1994. He was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts in 2002, but lost the...
, and former State Senator Lois Pines
Lois Pines
Lois Pines is a Democratic politician from Massachusetts.She ran for Massachusetts Attorney General in 1998 against Thomas Reilly, also a Democrat. Pines has also served in the state legislature for a number of years. In 2002, Pines ran for Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor, but lost in the...
. Gabrieli was the running mate of Shannon O'Brien while Slattery and Pines were not affiliated with any candidate. Stephen Lynch
Stephen Lynch (politician)
Stephen F. Lynch is the U.S. representative for . He is a member of the Democratic Party who has served since 2001. Lynch was previously an ironworker and lawyer, and served in both chambers of the Massachusetts General Court....
was a candidate for Lieutenant Governor, but dropped out of the race when Congressman Joe Moakley
Joe Moakley
John Joseph "Joe" Moakley was a Democratic congressman from the Ninth District of Massachusetts, a seat held two years earlier by Speaker John William McCormack. Moakley was the last chairman of the U.S...
announced he was not running for reelection and Lynch decided to run to succeed him.. State Senator Cheryl A. Jacques was also a candidate for Lieutenant Governor, but dropped out of the race to run in the special election
Massachusetts's 9th congressional district special election, 2001
Massachusetts's 9th congressional district special election of 2001 was held on October 16, 2001 to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Representative Joe Moakley...
in Massachusetts's 9th congressional district
Massachusetts's 9th congressional district
Massachusetts's 9th congressional district is in eastern Massachusetts, including part of Boston and some of its southern suburbs. It is currently represented by Stephen Lynch, who has served the district since 2001. It has subsumed much of the former 11th District in the south suburbs of Boston...
.
Primary results
General election
O'Brien's campaign was hobbled by the short amount of time between the primary and general election, and by her having exhausted most of her funds by spending $4.5 million to win the nomination. She focused her attacks by portraying Romney as being out of place in Massachusetts. Romney had stumbled earlier in the year by not knowing that "MCAS" stood for the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment SystemMassachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System
The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System, commonly shortened to MCAS , is the Commonwealth's statewide standards-based assessment program developed in 1993, in response to the Massachusetts Education Reform Act of the same year...
of school exams. Romney had tried to soften his image of being rich and privileged by working at various blue collar
Blue collar
Blue collar can refer to:*Blue-collar worker, a traditional designation of the working class*Blue-collar crime, the types of crimes typically associated with the working class*A census designation...
jobs such as riding a garbage truck, cleaning fish, and the like over the summer; O'Brien now said in response that "Massachusetts doesn't need a governor who thinks getting in touch with working people is a costume party." She said Romney was "trying to mask a very conservative set of belief systems"; while saying she would not critizice his membership in the LDS Church, she attacked his substantial donations to Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
, objecting to their bar on expressions of homosexuality. O'Brien came out in support of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage is marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Supporters of legal recognition for same-sex marriage typically refer to such recognition as marriage equality....
. Romney declared support for faith-based initiatives.
Romney ran as a political outsider, just as he had in the 1994 U.S. Senate election
United States Senate election in Massachusetts, 1994
The 1994 United States Senate election in Massachusetts was held on November 8, 1994. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy won re-election.- Candidates :* Mitt Romney, CEO of Bain Capital and son of former Michigan Governor George W...
, and as an agent of change, saying he would "clean up the mess on Beacon Hill." Supporters of Romney hailed his business record, especially his success with the 2002 Olympics, as that of one who would be able to bring a new era of efficiency into Massachusetts politics. Romney said he would cut $1 billion out the of $23 billion state budget by eliminating the usual suspects of waste, fraud, and mismanagement while still reducing taxes over a phased period. He also said he was generally against tax increases, but refused to rule out the possibility; he did attempt to paint O'Brien as a 'tax-and-spend liberal'. Romney contributed over $6 million to his own campaign during the election, a state record at the time. His campaign was the first to use microtargeting
Microtargeting
Microtargeting is the use by political parties and election campaigns of direct marketing datamining techniques that involve predictive market segmentation...
techniques, in which fine-grained groups of voters were reached with narrowly tailored messaging.
For a while Romney fell behind in the polls, but then surged back in front, helped by negative ads being put forth featuring a basset hound
Basset Hound
The Basset Hound is a short-legged breed of dog of the hound family. They are scent hounds, bred to hunt rabbits and hare by scent. Their sense of smell for tracking is second only to that of the Bloodhound....
sleeping as bad men removed bags of money from the Massachusetts treasury. Debates held instanced O'Brien attacking Romney repeatedly; he ended up referring to her style as "unbecoming", which engendered criticism that he was insensitive to women.
Polling
| Poll source | Dates administered | Republican | Democratic | Green-Rainbow | Libertarian | Independent | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitt Romney | Jane M. Swift | Shannon O'Brien | Robert Reich | Tom Birmingham | Steve Grossman | Warren Tolman | William Galvin | Marty Meehan | Jill Stein | Carla Howell | Barbara Johnson | ||
| Boston Herald | February 18, 2001 | –– | 23% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | 37% | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| –– | 25% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | 37% | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 25% | –– | –– | 37% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 25% | –– | –– | –– | –– | 25% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 25% | –– | –– | –– | 26% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| Boston Globe | January 27, 2002 | –– | 21% | 39% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| –– | 23% | –– | –– | 35% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 23% | –– | 35% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 23% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | 33% | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 25% | –– | –– | –– | 27% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| –– | 24% | –– | –– | –– | –– | 28% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| Boston Herald | February 27, 2002 | 38% | –– | 32% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| 40% | –– | –– | 31% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | ||
| Boston Herald | September 20, 2002 | 42% | –– | 45% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| Institute of Politics/NECN | October 2–3, 2002 | 40% | –– | 40% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| RKM Research and Communications | October 4, 2002 | 42% | –– | 43% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| Institute of Politics/NECN | October 24–27, 2002 | 39% | –– | 41% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | 5% | 3% | 3% |
| Boston Herald | October 29, 2002 | 38% | –– | 44% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
| Boston Globe/WBZ | November 1, 2002 | 40% | –– | 41% | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– | –– |
Results
Romney was elected Governor in November 2002 with 50 percent of the vote over O'Brien, who received 45 percent of the vote. Other candidates included Dr. Jill SteinJill Stein
Jill Stein is an American physician, activist, co-chair of the Green-Rainbow Party and candidate for President of the United States in 2012. Stein was a candidate for Governor of Massachusetts in the 2002 and the 2010 gubernatorial elections. Stein is a resident of Lexington, Massachusetts and a...
(J
Green-Rainbow Party
The Green-Rainbow Party is a political party in Massachusetts. It is the Massachusetts state affiliate of the Green Party of the United States.-Establishment of official party status:...
), Carla Howell
Carla Howell
Carla A. Howell is an American political activist and small government advocate. She is President of the Center For Small Government. She is most known for organizing tax cut initiative petitions, called ballot measures in other states...
(L), and Barbara Johnson
Barbara Johnson
Barbara Johnson was an American literary critic and translator. She was a Professor of English and Comparative Literature and the Fredric Wertham Professor of Law and Psychiatry in Society at Harvard University...
(I).
Romney's victory method was established by performing strongly with the (modest) Republican base vote in the state, capturing many independent voters in the belt between Route 128 and I-495
Interstate 495 (Massachusetts)
Interstate 495 is the designation of an Interstate Highway half-beltway in Massachusetts. It was the longest auxiliary Interstate Highway of its kind—measuring 120.74 miles —until 1996, when the PA Route 9 section of the Pennsylvania Turnpike was redesignated as Interstate 476, making it about ...
, almost running even in smaller working-class cities, and holding down Democratic margins in large urban areas. The conclusion represented the fourth win in a row for Republicans in the state gubernatorial contest.
Kerry Healey
Kerry Healey
Kerry Murphy Healey was the 70th Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts. She served from 2003 to 2007 with Governor Mitt Romney. She was the 2006 Republican nominee for Governor of Massachusetts, losing to Democrat Deval Patrick in November 2006...
was elected Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
The Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts is the first in the line to discharge the powers and duties of the office of governor following the incapacitation of the Governor of Massachusetts...
. She defeated Chris Gabrieli
Chris Gabrieli
Chris Gabrieli is an American businessman and a leading national education reformer. He is currently driving the movement to reform the school calendar.-Biography:...
, Tony Lorenzen, Rich Aucoin, and Joe Schebel.
External links
- "Massachusetts 2002 Election Statewide Results" from Elections Division
Campaign sites