Moving Day Comes Early

There's a job opening on the Lower Cape, but you have to live there. The Cape Cod Times got it just about right this morning, when they suggested that Gail Lese could now move to Chatham and run for State Representative.

With the ill-timed (and ill-advised) announcement of retirement by State Representative Shirley Gomes, (R) of Harwich, comes the obligatory jockeying for position to succeed her. Breaking from the pack early are, Sarah Peake and Ray Gottwald both Democrats.

Sarah Peake, you'll remember just ran against Gomes and lost. She's running for re-election to the Selectman's job in her hometown of Provincetown, and does not want to seem too anxious running for State Rep. again before getting re-elected to Town Rep. But she cleary thinks she's entitled at another shot since she was game to take on Shirley this year.

Ray Gottwald, of Harwich, would be borrowing from the same constituency if he runs. Gay marriage will still be THE issue in the district next time around. But he can also lay claim to the local Democratic party machinery, such as it is, for having spent many years serving it.

Not really interested in running again now that Peake has the inside track is Len Stewart (D), also from P-Town. He got everyone excited in challenging Gomes this time around, eventually abandoning the race to concenetrate on his job. Also mentioned is Ron Bergstrom (D), Selectman from Chatham, and not yet mentioned, Tom Bernardo (D), Speaker of the Assembly of Delegates, also from the fishing village. Discretion is the better part of valor here, boys.

The Republicans will have a job on their hands, first finding someone to run, then getting them elected, given the way Gomes is leaving. The obvious choice is Mark Boardman of Orleans, who ran a couple of years ago for State Senate against Rob O'Leary. Although somewhat quixotic, he ran a credible campaign against O'Leary, stuck to the issues, lost with dignity, and went back to work. He preserved his options for a future run. That's how it's done on Cape Cod.

The chastised, but not chastined, lame-duck Gomes, will now have to figure out how she gets anything done on Beacon Hill, or even gets her phone calls returned from state bureaucrats. Shirley, if you were going to retire, you should have told us before the election. Then the election would have been a true reflection of the voters sentiments on gay marriage. You still would have won.

Gomes probably didn't think she could survive another tortured vote on gay marriage at the Constitutional Convention, let alone run again in 2006 when gay marriage will be on the ballot as a Constitutional Amendment question. She still could have won.