"Women’s ranks on Beacon Hill drop; Election reverses recent gains" by Michael Levenson and Andrea Estes Globe Staff / November 10, 2010
The much-hyped “year of the woman’’ in politics was not much of a banner year at all in Massachusetts.
Must be important; it is above the fold on the front page.
Despite a concerted effort by a group of veteran women legislators to increase their ranks on Beacon Hill, the number of women in the Legislature will drop to its lowest level since 1998 as a result of November’s election.
Hey, look, my ladies lost, too!
Must be a misogynistic country!
But we will liberate those Taliban women with bombs and bullets by God!!!
Come January, when legislators are sworn in for a new term, women will hold fewer than 1 in 4 seats in the House and Senate, reversing their recent gains and reinforcing the perception that Beacon Hill remains, at its core, an old boys’ club....
Isn't it?
Advocates who had hoped this election would usher in a larger crop of women leaders are instead fretting about the future....
Well, that's a woman for ya!
Massachusetts, which was second to last in New England in the percentage of women in the Legislature, appears likely to fall behind the national average next year....
And yet we are SO SELF-RIGHTEOUS about how GREAT WE ARE in comparison to those bad places in the rest of the nation.
There is no single reason for the drop in the number of women.
Translation: how many excuses can they make?
Some of the women who lost their seats to men on Nov. 2 — such as Representatives Danielle W. Gregoire, a Marlborough Democrat, and Pam Richardson, a Framingham Democrat — were relatively new legislators who lacked the solid political bases of veteran lawmakers.
Several veteran legislators — such as Senator Susan C. Tucker, an Andover Democrat, and Representative Karyn E. Polito, a Shrewsbury Republican — retired or ran for higher office.
Related: MSM Monitor Left Feeling Blue About Massachusetts
Had their chances. All hail the one-party, liberal fascist state.
In addition, women are often more reluctant than men to run for office and, once elected, are seen as easier targets, said Carol Hardy-Fanta, director of the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
How hateful our politics have become. Just ask Chrissy O'Donnell.
The tally could have been worse in this hotly contested election season, which featured many close races. A number of women who won — including Senate President Therese Murray, the most powerful woman on Beacon Hill — squeaked by with only narrow margins....
Doesn't exactly inspire confidence, does it?
Strange results considering the Democratic turnout that put them all over the top.
Now that the results are in, the focus is on a few bright spots amid the losses.
The Globe always looks for the corn kernels in a piece of crap.
In a closely watched House race, Republican Shaunna O’Connell of Taunton, a political newcomer, defeated a longtime incumbent Democrat, James H. Fagan, who lost by 49 votes and is contemplating a recount.
Wow, the Globe finally gets around to pimping a Republican win.
In-f***ing-credible.
“Seeing how entrenched these guys get in there and how difficult it is to make any changes in our government, with no accountability, that was the . . . driving force behind my decision to run,’’ O’Connell said....
After this last election I'm giving up on Massachusetts politics. I no longer even crack open the Metro or Business sections. I'm sick of reading s*** and lies.
In a hard-fought Senate race, Katherine Clark, a Democratic state representative from Melrose, narrowly beat her Republican opponent to fill the seat held for 19 years by Richard R. Tisei, a Republican who ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor.
Oh, a Democratic pick-up amidst the losses.
Advocates have also pointed out that the number of women in statewide office will increase from one, Attorney General Martha Coakley, to two, with the election of Suzanne Bump as the first woman state auditor.
Yeah, and THAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED ANYWAY because the DEMOCRATIC PARTY HACK was running against ANOTHER WOMAN!
Related: Bumping the Incumbent Auditors
Nice choice, Massachusetts, and NICE OMISSION, Globe!
For the first time, women also managed the winning campaigns for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, treasurer, and auditor this year, suggesting there is ample political talent behind the scenes.
And that's good(?)!
You are MAKING PROGRESS, ladies of Massachusetts!
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