NEW: Markey Calls on GOP Candidates To Sign People’s Pledge ASAP

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Tuesday, February 19, 2013

GoLocalWorcester Politics Team

After signing a "People's Pledge" with U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch to keep outside ad spending out of this year's U.S. Senate special election, Rep. Ed Markey is calling on the field of four potential Republican candidates to do the same immediately.

“The silence from the potential GOP candidates on the people's pledge is deafening and a warning that outside dollars could soon spill into this race," said Markey. "Massachusetts does not need Karl Rove, the Koch brothers and other special interests polluting our airwaves with outside negative advertising."

State Rep. Dan Winslow (R-Norfolk) was reported to have said he would not sign such a pledge, which expands upon the pledge signed by Scott Brown and Elizabeth Warren in last year's Senate race to include direct mail advertising in addition to broadcast ads.

Republican businessman Sean Bielat is also exploring a run, as is former U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan. Neither has officially announced or commented on the possiblity of signing the pledge.

Cohasset businessman and former Navy SEAL Gabriel Gomez, who has declared his candidacy, has not commented on the pledge.

Last week, Professor Robert Boatright, of Clark University, told GoLocalWorcester that “the only chance” the GOP has to “actually win this race is if American Crossroads, Americans for Prosperity, or some other such group decides to dump massive amounts of money into advertising in this race.”