Coakley Wins – Will Face Off Against Baker in November

Wednesday, September 10, 2014

GoLocalWorcester News Team

Democratic candidate Martha Coakley will go on to battle Republican Charlie Baker to determine who will be the next Massachusetts Governor after she defeated Steve Grossman and Don Berwick in a race that was closer than recent polls had predicted. With 91% of precincts reporting, Coakley had 42% of the vote, Grossman 37% and Berwick 21%.

The race pitted Coakley and Grossman – two well-know Massachusetts political heavyweights - against each other and with a third candidate: physician and healthcare quality expert Don Berwick running in his first campaign. Governor Deval Patrick, who stood by his commitment to serve only two terms, did not endorse any of the Democratic primary candidates. The Democratic candidates were reluctant to criticize the Patrick administration or the state’s democratic establishment despite several scandals that have often dominated political discourse in the state.

Over $5.7 million was spent combined by the three Democratic campaigns, with Coakley’s campaign outspending Grossman’s by only $64,000 and outspending Berwick’s by a wider margin of almost $500,000.

The heavily contested campaign left Coakley with slightly less than $200 thousand remaining in cash as of 8/31/14, while Baker has $1 million more. A challenge for Coakley will be reaching out to the Democrats and unenrolled voters who supported Grossman. Some recent polls have indicated Grossman supporters would lean toward Baker in a Coakley-Baker final.