On Saturday, March 7 the newly elected Ward 1 Democratic Committee held a caucus to elect delegates to the 2020 Massachusetts State Democratic Convention to be held on May 30 at the Tsongas Center at UMass Lowell. However, that date could change as the COVID-19 pandemic increases in scale.
During the Massachusetts Presidential Primary the ‘Fresh Slate” group won 20 seats to effectively take over the Ward I Democratic Committee. Liana LaMattina, a candidate from the ‘Unity Slate” was the only member of the opposing group to win a seat on Eastie’s local ward committee.
The Saturday following the primary, the group held its first caucus and elected Heather O’Brien; Liana LaMattina; Victoria Dzindzichashvili (DiLorenzo); Gloribel Rivas; Jo Ann Fitzgerald; Teresa Polhemus; Claudia Correa; Nicole DaSilva; Katie Boyd; Gladys Oliveros; Brian Gannon; Zachary Hollopeter; Joe Ruggiero; Jay Ruggiero; Ricardo Patron; Fernando Ortiz; Steven Gingras; Andrew Therriault; Michael Sulprizio; and Kannan Thiruvengada as 2020 Delegates.
While the predominantly progressive slate won control of the Ward Committee during the primary the caucus voting seemed to favor a more balanced mix of neighborhood Democrats.
For example Jay and Joe Ruggiero, Polhemus, Boyd, LaMattina, Oliveros, Correa, DaSilva, Ortiz and Sulprizio were all part of the Unity Slate that lost out to the Fresh Slate but now represent half of the delegates heading to the Convention in late May.
In a statement the Ward Committee said, “If you were not elected at the caucus, you can still apply until March 25 to be an add-on delegate if you identify as being youth, LGBTQ+, disabled, or underrepresented minority. Add-on delegates can cast votes at the convention, and are an important way to build diversity and inclusion in the party. Additionally, you can apply for a fee waiver if the delegate fee would be a financial hardship.”
You can read more about the process, and apply to be an add-on delegate, here: https://massdems.org/2020-convent