FORMER DEMOCRATIC state senator Ben Downing on Tuesday ended his campaign for governor, citing inadequate financial resources. “Unfortunately, we simply do not have the financial resources to continue,” Downing said in a statement. “While it’s painful to admit, that reality has brought this chapter to a close.” Downing, 40, a Pittsfield native now living […]
Ben Downing
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A hole in the middle
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER’S announcement that he won’t seek a third term – and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito’s decision not to try to succeed him – not only creates a void when it comes to what Baker calls his “brand of Republicanism,” it creates an opening in the state’s broad political middle. Baker managed to maintain […]
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Baker, Healey watch as field for governor forms
ANOTHER DAY, another candidate in the race for Massachusetts governor not named Baker. Or Healey, for that matter. With today’s campaign launch by Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz, three Democrats have now formally announced bids for the state’s top job. The Jamaica Plain lawmaker joins former Senate colleague Ben Downing and Harvard professor Danielle Allen in the […]
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For Downing, politics are personal
ON PAPER, Ben Downing looks very much like someone who might launch a run for governor while still in his 30s, which is what the 39-year-old Democrat did earlier this month, becoming the first declared candidate in the 2022 race. His dad was a popular elected official in Pittsfield where Downing grew up, elected four […]
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Former state senator Ben Downing launches gubernatorial campaign
BEN DOWNING, a former state senator from Western Massachusetts, on Monday launched a run for governor, laying out a liberal policy platform that aims to address inequality amid the recovery from COVID-19. With a slogan of building a “fairer, stronger Massachusetts,” Downing, a Democrat, said in an interview that he thinks Republican Gov. Charlie Baker […]