Squabbling Over the Governor's Race

I just got this email sent out by a Chris Gabrieli supporter - pleading for Massachusetts Democrats to sign a petition to get him on the ballot (since he didn't enter the race in time for the Massachusetts Democratic Caucus). Interestingly, Gabrieli decided to enter the race after being snubbed by Reilly. Anyway, here's the original email:

Hi,
Attached is a petition to allow Chris Gabrieli ballot access at the Democratic Convention in June. We believe this process can only serve to create meaningful dialogue among qualified and dedicated Democrats who seek to serve the Commonwealth as the next governor, to offer democrats enhanced choices for nomination, and to ensure victory in November.

Please sign and return to
James Donahue
493 Kingsbury Ave
Bradford, Ma 01835

lets give Chris a chance, he is a good Democrat !!!

Thank you

Well, that's not so bad, is it? Apparently, fans of Deval Patrick (and possibly Reilly, but does he have any real fans anyway?) weren't too happy:

The recent actions of the putative leadership of the Massachusetts Democratic Party are quite disturbing. The challenge is to question their actions without the rancor which could jeopardize our efforts to produce progressive leadership in the corner office.

In order to provide an orderly process, through which an individual can be designated as the nominee of the party, the Democratic State Committee promulgated what are known as "rules". For the 2006 election cycle two persons have sought out the Democratic nomination for Governor and, up to this writing, both have followed those rules.

The candidates organized their supporters, attended the caucuses which were open to all enrolled Democrats, and later counted their votes. Individuals at the caucuses mainly sought election by their fellow Democrats as delegates for Mr. Reilly, Mr. Patrick or as uncommitted delegates. It appears that the vast majority of the delegates chose Mr. Patrick.

After the caucuses were complete it appears that some of the party elders were unhappy. For no possible reason other than the disappointment of the few they decided that other candidates should be added.

Okay, so the person who responded clearly isn't too happy. She goes on:

There actually was a process to add persons to the convention who had not chosen to present themselves to the Democrats who attended the caucuses. The person seeking to bypass the grass roots Democrats would have to obtain the signatures of 500 of the 3000 delegates elected to the convention.

But, there was a loophole. A loophole the size of a noose. Beyond the 3000 elected delegates there are several hundred ex officio delegates to the convention. If they could be included in the number of eligible signatures the odds of a late entry would improve. So, in a classic inside move, it was reinterpreted by the few in order to disregard the many.

However, is that what Gabrieli is doing? Does she offer any insight or evidence?

It is my opinion the we should express our displeasure with the process by refusing to sign any document to expand the candidate pool and, redouble our efforts for our personal choice. Both men who played by the rules deserve this action. It is time that the "party fathers" realized that we are not their dependent children but rather their emancipated children. Although we can be found in the field of politics, the grass roots Democrats are not the sheep of the party, we are the shepherds.

Since this is the end of the email, I'm guessing that's a no. Now, I'm a fan of Deval Patrick. I've supported him since the beginning and am very happy to see his candidacy start to take off. He whooped Reilly at the caucus and is a more progressive candidate, plus I like the idea of a minority representing this state as Governor for presumably what is the first time ever.

However, without providing evidence that Gabrieli's candidacy is illegitimate, the email came off as being just as elitist as the '"party fathers"' the writer denounced.

Of course, this isn't the end of the story. Deval Patrick's supporters were in great numbers on this heated email exchange.

"Go Deval!!!" Was a common sentiment.

While I hope the Massachusetts Governors race doesn't become as diluted with democratic candidates as it was four years ago, I think it sets a bad precedent when the progressive candidate's supporters are trying to stamp out a third candidate.

My question: how in the world did I end up on this email list?