Recent public opinions polls show that many Massachusetts voters have been repelled by the negativity of Lt. Governor Kerry Healey's gubernatorial campaign and have rallied behind Deval Patrick to give the Democrat a clear statistical advantage heading into today's election.
If Patrick is elected and exit polls match recent public opinion polls, he will enter the corner office with a resounding mandate. An Oct. 23 Suffolk University poll gave Patrick a 27-point lead over Healey, a striking increase from the 13 point margin he held earlier in the month.
Healey's campaign initiated a blitz of negative ads that were at first somewhat effective in chipping away at Patrick's lead.
However, according to Director of Suffolk University Polling Research Center and professor David Paleologos, voters turned away as these ads gradually became more caustic and began to include attacks on Patrick's family.
"All of this was seen as overstepping the boundary," Paleologos said. "The tone of the campaign really turned off a lot of voters."
Somerville Alderman at-large Bill White was, until recently, the last elected Republican in Somerville. He's since switched his party affiliation to the Democrat, he said, because of the GOP's shifting image.
White has since declared his endorsement of Patrick, who he said has "held the high road" in the race.
"The Republican party of Massachusetts was a much different party than it is today when I first joined 25 years ago," he said. "As the national party became more conservative, the Massachusetts wing was considered more liberal. That's changed in the last two years."
Ward 7 Alderman Bob Trane said that voters have become fed up with the biting partisanship of the Republican party, and refers to the Healey attack ads as "negative campaigning at its worst."
"The big issue is that the Republican party has been practicing very divisive politics, and I think people see that it's time for a change," he said.
According to Paleologos, Healey has not lost popularity because of her stance on pivotal issues. He said that voters are generally in agreement with Healey's policies, especially when it comes to taxes and immigration.
It is Healey's declining image that has doomed her by distancing her from the crucial independent voter bloc, Paleologos said.
"It's always about the independent vote, which makes up 50 percent of the electorate," he said. "Massachusetts is perceived as Democratic, but the final election is always about convincing independent voters. Independents are always more concerned about tone and character and less about issues."
Somerville Mayor and Democrat Joseph Curtatone said that the current administration's policies have stymied collaboration with local governments like Somerville's, which has effectively been holding back progress.
"What's been lacking from Beacon Hill is a partnership between the governor's office and the towns and cities like Somerville," he said. "They have been abandoned in a sense."
Curtatone lauded White's decision to change parties, and cited the alderman's frustration with the Republican party's politics as the central motivation for the switch.
"I'm glad he finally saw the light," Curtatone said. "He stated clearly that the ideology that's been turning this country in the wrong direction does not fit with the mainstream."
Tufts senior Mitch Robinson, who served as Patrick's college coordinator up until the Sept. 19 gubernatorial primary, said Patrick's willingness to reach across party lines and offer concrete solutions makes him appealing to voters.
"Deval's campaign is amazing because he's pulling Republicans and moderates who never thought about the Democratic party," Robinson said. "He stands for what bipartisan politics should be about."
