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Basile wins primary for East Boston seat Defeats 3 others in Mass. House race
By Erin Conroy 9/26/07 - Business consultant Carlo Basile won the special Democratic primary by more than 500 votes last night to fill a vacant East Boston seat in the Massachusetts House. In unofficial results, Basile had 2,071 votes, beating runner-up Jeff Drago, who had 1,549 votes. Candidate Gloribell Mota had 634 votes, and Mary Berninger had 149 votes, with all precincts reporting. Basile, 36, will succeed former representative Anthony Petruccelli, a Democrat who now serves in the Senate, after winning a special election that followed the resignation of Senate President Robert E. Travaglini earlier this year. There is no Republican candidate running for the seat. "I feel like I've always worked hard and been active in this community and lived in East Boston all of my life, so I think I deserve this," Basile said in a telephone interview last night. "The other candidates were good, too, but there had to be one winner. I'm humbled by their support and grateful. I can't wait to represent the best community in the Commonwealth." Basile attended East Boston public schools, St. Dominic Savio Preparatory High School, and Suffolk University and has worked in the past as chief of staff for the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles. He said he plans to address healthcare and airport expansion while representing the First Suffolk District. Critics said during Basile's campaign that he had supported Republicans Mitt Romney and Kerry Healey in their bids for governor. Drago, 28, an aide to Mayor Thomas M. Menino, had the backing of the mayor and Travaglini. He ran on a platform of improving education and developing East Boston's waterfront. Drago could not be reached for comment last night, but said in a statement through his campaign spokesman, Michael Ford, that he respected the voters' decision. "He is very proud of the positive, issues-oriented campaign that he ran, but the people of East Boston have spoken," Ford said. Both Basile and Drago are of Italian-American descent, consistent with a trend in East Boston where Italians have held the seat for 74 years. Mota is the daughter of Latin American immigrants, and Berninger is of Irish descent. Basile bought ads in Spanish-language newspapers and hired translators as part of his campaign in a community where the Latino population has climbed to nearly 40 percent since 1990. Mota, 31, on leave from her job on the staff of Councilor Felix Arroyo, promoted affordable housing and emphasized the fact that she and her two children live with her mother. Berninger, 51, who lives in the Orient Heights neighborhood, has said that immigrants should learn English and become more involved in local causes. |
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Paid for by the Carlo Basile Committee | 35 Breed Street, East Boston 02128 |
