Sep 17, 2008 6:49 am US/Eastern
Wilkerson Loses Close Race To Chang-Diaz
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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Dianne Wilkerson (file image)
WBZ
In a key legislative race, Dianne Wilkerson, the lone black member of the state Senate, narrowly lost her re-election bid in the Democratic primary despite the support of Gov. Deval Patrick and Boston Mayor Tom Menino.
Wilkerson refused to concede defeat Tuesday night after results showed challenger
Sonia Chang-Diaz with a 1 percent, or 228-vote, victory. Wilkerson has not decided if she will ask for a recount.
She had touted her record on gay rights and fighting predatory lending in her rematch with Chang-Diaz, who narrowly lost their first race in 2006.
Wilkerson has been dogged by controversy for much of her 14-year Senate career, but this time, her financial troubles appeared to be too much for voters to ignore.
Last month, Wilkerson agreed to pay a
$10,000 fine and forgo about $30,000 in debts she said her political committee owed her after acknowledging she failed to keep proper campaign records from 2000 to 2004.
In other notable primaries: Retired firefighter Kenneth Donnelly defeated Arlington Selectman John Hurd for the seat held by state
Sen. James Marzilli, who faces charges that he sexually harassed four women on one day in June in Lowell and is not seeking re-election.
John Buonomo, the Democratic Middlesex County probate register charged with stealing from the Registry of Deeds in Cambridge, was elected without unopposed despite his recent resignation, which came too late to remove his name from the ballot.
Buonomo is widely expected to withdraw from the race, at which point the ward and town Democratic committees in Middlesex County will pick a replacement to put on the November ballot.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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