Brookline Saw Record Voter Turnout In State Primary
BROOKLINE, MA — Nearly 50 percent of the 38,610 registered Brookline voters cast ballots in the state primaries Sept 1. That's the largest turnout Brookline has seen at a state primary in at least two decades.
Part of the reason for the record primary turnout this year, according to Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin has to do with to changes in rules during the coronavirus pandemic making it easier for people to vote by mail and allowing early voting in the primary for the first time. Galvin estimated as many as 1.3 million ballots were cast across the state.
Massachusetts primaries have typically seen fewer than 1 million voters, except in 1990 when Democrat John Silber and Republican Bill Weld each won contested gubernatorial primaries. About 1.5 million people voted that year.
In Brookline, as of Sept. 1, some 48.9 percent of registered voters cast ballots. In 2002, the next highest turnout for the town during a state primary, some 33 percent of Brookline voters cast ballots. That year both the races for governor and treasurer were contested.
In the only statewide race this year, Sen. Edward Markey defeated Rep. Joseph Kennedy in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. Results in Brookline, where Kennedy and his family member the late President John F. Kennedy once lived, mirrored that of the rest of the state. Some 12,449 people cast ballots for Markey, while just 5,474 voted for Kennedy. Markey will face Kevin O'Connor, an attorney who defeated Shiva Ayyadurai in the Republican primary, in the November general election.
The other hot election for Brookline was the race for the seat Kennedy left behind. Three Brookline residents were vying to represent the 4th Congressional District, including frontrunner Jesse Mermell, who was a former Brookline Select Board member. According to the town results she carried the town with 7,055 votes. Another Brookline resident, Dr. Natalia Linos came in second here. Still, across the district Newton City Councilor Jake Auchincloss ended up winning.
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This article originally appeared on the Brookline Patch
