O’Connell has a leg up in Taunton race

Republican Rep. Shaunna O’Connell always seems to be one step ahead in the race to succeed Thomas Hoye Jr. as mayor of Taunton.

Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito in January broached the idea of Hoye leaving the mayor’s post to become the interim register of probate in Bristol County. But the appointment wasn’t officially announced until August 5, one day before nomination papers were due in the mayor’s race.

O’Connell, given a heads-up by the Baker-Polito administration before the announcement, was ready. The Taunton rep announced her candidacy for mayor within an hour of the announcement and even sent out a robocall to voters. Other candidates for mayor, who had no inkling the popular Hoye was stepping down, had to scramble to get their nomination papers in on time.

O’Connell also enjoys a big advantage in fundraising. She transferred all the money in her state rep campaign account into her mayoral account. She also went on a fundraising tear this year – a year in which she wasn’t up for reelection – raising $30,237 in the first six months of 2019 and $34,708 between July 1 and September 6, for a total of $64,945.

O’Connell has spent $48,880 this year – $28,501 since July 1 – and still has a balance in her account of $29,235 as of September 6, the end of the most recent reporting period. Her three rivals have far less. Estele Borges, a Taunton city councilor who ran against O’Connell for state rep in 2016, has raised $8,092, spent $4,300, and had a balance of $3,806 as of September 6. Firefighter Mark Baptiste has raised $847 and spent $517, leaving him with a balance of $329. Peter Bzdula hasn’t raised any money at all.

It’s unclear whether O’Connell’s aggressive fundraising this year is a sign she has known for a long time that Hoye was preparing to step down as mayor. Administration officials confirmed O’Connell was consulted on who should fill the position, which had been vacant since November 2018, but it’s not clear when the consultation was held or how much information was shared.

In the most recent campaign finance reporting period – July 1 through September 6 – O’Connell appears to have held a fundraiser raising $8,980 on July 25, 11 days before Hoye was nominated for the register of probate job. Nearly all of the rest of the money raised during the most recent reporting period came in after O’Connell announced her run for mayor.

O’Connell’s fundraising report also shows some coordination with the Massachusetts Republican Party. Between August 23 and September 4, she reported three reimbursements to the party for a total of $13,750. The reimbursements were for payments to Get Set Marketing of Springfield for what appear to be campaign mailings.

There hasn’t been a debate yet in the mayor’s race. The closest thing was a forum on September 12 where candidates separately made statements but no questions or candidate interactions were allowed.

The preliminary election for mayor in Taunton is September 24, with two candidates advancing to the final in November.

— BRUCE MOHL

BEACON HILL. 

Gov. Charlie Baker wants to sell the Hynes Convention Center and use the proceeds to expand the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. (State House News)

 Joe Battenfeld says “choirboy” Charlie Baker is aghast at the suggestion his administration is loading up court jobs and the state’s environmental offices with patronage hires, many with close ties to his lieutenant governor, Karyn Polito, but that’s exactly what’s happening. (Boston Herald) 

Attorney General Maura Healey explains why she isn’t joining the $12 billion settlement with Purdue Pharma. She wants the Sackler family to pay. (CommonWealth)

Fall River state Rep. Carole Fiola filed legislation to put local sign-off for marijuana businesses in the hands of city councils or municipal bodies in the wake of the indictment of the city’s mayor, Jasiel Correia, on charges of shaking down would-be pot shop operators. (Boston Globe) 

Governor Baker’s press secretary, Brendan Moss, has taken a job as communications director for Vineyard Wind. Until now, Vineyard Wind has relied mainly on outside contractors for public relations. (Standard-Times)

MUNICIPAL MATTERS

Residents are taking stock of the upside — and potential downsides — of the huge development on tap for the area of Dorchester between Savin Hill and Fields Corner. (Boston Globe)

J.H. Lynch & Sons wins the $14.6 million contract to remake Kelley Square in Worcester. (Telegram & Gazette)

Two Brockton firefighters were injured in an effort to extinguish a blaze on Monday morning. (Brockton Enterprise) 

ELECTIONS

The Herald News dives into what readers need to know on Fall River’s election day, as mayoral incumbent Jasiel Correia faces a slew of federal charges while vying for a third term in office. Two challengers are looking to unseat him. 

Rep. Joe Kennedy has been building good will nationally among fellow Democrats he has campaigned for, establishing a broad network that could be helpful in a primary match-up against Sen. Ed Markey. (Boston Globe) State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg is laying plans to run for Kennedy’s seat if he takes on Markey. (State House News)

The Globe makes endorsements in three races for open district City Council seats in Boston, giving the nod to Ricardo Arroyo in District 5, Kenzie Bok in District 8, and Craig Cashman in District 9. 

The Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance will be in court Tuesday arguing before a federal judge in its lawsuit against the state’s law requiring the disclosure of top donors in political advertising. (Gloucester Daily Times)

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

A 1959 pre-Thanksgiving detection of a banned carcinogenic herbicide in cranberries from Oregon and Washington led to a cranberry scare that caused lasting damage to the industry. (WBUR)  

EDUCATION

Gov. Charlie Baker makes the case for his education funding bill, which he says can be implemented without new revenue, and says a competing proposal that would send more money to districts would also leave at least 30 districts worse off. (Boston Globe)

After students racked up $2,333 in unpaid school lunches in a week, Methuen is looking at ways to address that issue, including possibly calling parents or the Department of Children and Families. (Eagle-Tribune)

ARTS/CULTURE

Abigail Rockwell, granddaughter of Norman Rockwell, isn’t taking umbrage at the title of Lana Del Rey’s latest album — Norman Fucking Rockwell. (Berkshire Eagle)

Plans are underway to fund repairs that could allow landmark Scargo Tower in Dennis to reopen by the end of the year. (Cape Cod Times) 

An art exhibit in Milton was created to protest the construction of a compressor station in Weymouth. Some area locals are concerned about the environmental impact of the project. (Patriot Ledger) 

A two-ton anchor of unknown origin will return to its spot out in front of the newly expanded Peabody Essex Museum. (Salem News)

TRANSPORTATION

It’s always the little things. The Red Line derailment on June 11 that wreaked havoc on the commute of hundreds of thousands of commuters that day and ever since appears to have been caused by track debris making its way into what was supposed to be a closed-off axle compartment. (CommonWealth)

T notes: A half-price reverse commute fare will be part of the pilot testing commuter rail service between Boston and Foxboro…After a successful test, the T is finally freeing the ramp…MassDOT’s sweet refinance…Tiny steps on the Red-Blue connector. (CommonWealth)

More than 5,000 driver’s licenses have been suspended in the wake of revelations that the Registry of Motor Vehicles was not keeping up with notifications of out-of-state infractions wracked up my Massachusetts drivers. (Boston Herald) 

The Massachusetts State Police adopt a standard policy for contracting with tow truck companies across the state. (MassLive)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

EPA data identify the largest emitters of greenhouse gases in western Massachusetts. A UMass facility tops the list. (Daily Hampshire Gazette)

Union of Concerned Scientists president Ken Kimmell is worried about the trend to close carbon-free nuclear power plants before there are other carbon-free alternatives, and he says if those plants are replaced by natural gas, that’s a problem. (WBUR)

CASINOS

Slot machine revenue dipped in August at Encore Boston Harbor, but table games continued to surge. The 61-36 percent split between table games and slots is the reverse of what typically happens. (CommonWealth)

MGM Springfield’s gaming revenues were $144 million below projections for the first year. (MassLive)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS

Florida officials say they still want to prosecute Patriots owner Robert Kraft on charges of soliciting a prostitute. (Boston Globe)

The president of the union representing State Police troopers resigned, the latest turmoil in the controversy-plagued agency. (Boston Globe)

Brendan O’Brien, a Peabody police sergeant, was ordered held without bail for liking a photo on his ex-girlfriend’s Facebook page in violation of the restraining order she secured after he allegedly grabbed her by the throat and tried to strangle her during an argument. (Salem News)

MEDIA

WBZ radio veteran Carl Stevens plans to slow-walk his way toward retirement, as the 64-year-old reporter moves to part-time status at the station. (Boston Globe)