Special election for state Senate a one-party race

With the field of candidates officially in place and a primary vote just a month away, the special election for the state Senate seat formerly held by Jarrett T. Barrios is quickly picking up steam.

Four Democrats will be competing in the Sept. 11 primary for the Middlesex, Suffolk, and Essex District, which covers Chelsea and Everett, and parts of Revere and Saugus, as well as precincts in Cambridge, Somerville, and the Charlestown and Allston-Brighton sections of Boston.

With no Republican or unenrolled candidates in the race, the Democratic primary winner appears to have a clear path to winning the seat in the Oct. 9 special election.

The race comes on the heels of a June 26 special election won by East Boston Democrat Anthony Petruccelli to fill the legislative seat held by Robert E. Travaglini, who resigned his post as Senate president in March. Barrios, a three-term Cambridge Democrat, resigned his seat effective last month to become president of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation.

Contending to succeed Barrios are Chelsea City Councilor Paul R. Nowicki and three Cambridge residents: Timothy R. Flaherty, City Councilor Anthony D. Galluccio, and Jeff Ross.

With summertime activities occupying voters, the race has yet to gain much visibility. But that is likely to change as candidates begin to intensify their outreach efforts, from knocking on doors to running phone banks, between now and Sept. 11.

Nowicki, 38, has served on the Chelsea council for eight terms, four of them as president. Galluccio, 40, has been a Cambridge city councilor for seven terms, one of them as mayor -- Cambridge mayors are elected from within the council. He lost a bid for state representative in 1996, and in 2002 was runner-up to Barrios in a three-way primary contest for the Senate seat. He campaigned again for the seat when Barrios was weighing a 2006 run for district attorney, but withdrew and endorsed the incumbent when Barrios decided to seek reelection.

Flaherty, 42, the son of a former House speaker, Charles F. Flaherty, ran unsuccessfully for Middlesex district attorney in 1998.

Ross, 38, who lost a bid for state representative in 1998, is a lawyer specializing in human rights and civil rights cases, and has long been active in community affairs.

"In races like this, it's all name recognition and organization," said Jeffery Berry, professor of political science at Tufts University. "It likely will be a very low-turnout race. So the candidate that has the most people working the phones on election day is likely to be the winner."

Berry said that Nowicki would seem to have an advantage as a Chelsea candidate facing three Cambridge contenders, who could divide the city's vote. But he said that advantage may be dissipated by what Berry expects to be a low turnout in Chelsea, based on past voting patterns.

In the 2002 primary, the last contested race in the district, Everett and Cambridge generated the largest number of votes cast, with 6,851 and 6,777, respectively. Boston was next with 4,723 votes, followed by Chelsea, 4,216; Revere, 1,433; Saugus, 1,408; and Somerville, 828.

"I think it's going to be a good race," said Everett Mayor John Hanlon, adding that he believes Galluccio is the candidate to beat.

"The others have got to play catch-up. He's been campaigning for six years. He's got quite a following," said Hanlon, who also said he is leaning toward supporting the Cambridge city councilor.

Already, verbal barbs are starting to fly among the rival candidates.

Flaherty, a lawyer in private practice who served as an assistant Middlesex district attorney, described the race as a match-up between himself, a "former prosecutor," and Galluccio, a "perennial politician."

Galluccio declined to respond directly, but observed that in replacing a "very hard-working and effective state senator," voters will be looking for "someone who has a demonstrated track record of not only serving but delivering for large amounts of constituents, and that person is me."

Nowicki, on leave from his job as a Massachusetts court officer, said the district needs "a strong, proven, and experienced leader -- and I'm the only one that brings all that to the table," noting, "I have more experience as a leader of my legislative body than all my opponents." He also noted that he has been the top vote-getter in five of the last eight elections in Chelsea.

His priorities would include seeking funds to bolster crime prevention efforts, Nowicki said. He would also be an advocate for preschool and extended-day programs, and for providing cities and towns with more state funding and revenue-raising options.

Ross, who speaks four languages, said he brings progressive credentials earned from "the work I have done in the community" and his "track record of consensus building."

He said his community work has included cofounding a Brockton task force that seeks broad-based approaches to public safety issues, and his legislative efforts have included helping draft and sponsor several bills, one of them to deter fraud by notaries.

As a senator, Ross said, he would advocate for affordable housing, crime prevention programs, and more aid and local revenue-raising tools for communities.

Galluccio is touting his record as a city councilor, which he said includes promoting "smart growth" planning, and as mayor -- a job that also involves chairing the School Committee -- in successfully negotiating a contract with Chelsea's teachers.

He said he would work to reduce congestion on local roads, support public education, and seek to increase local aid in order to reduce local real estate taxes. He would also seek to attract environmentally friendly businesses to the district to replace heavy industries.

Flaherty said that, as a lawyer, "I'm a skilled and effective advocate who knows how to make an argument, and as a state senator, I would be an effective advocate for the district."

His top issues would include promoting "innovative industries," such as life sciences and renewable energy, advocating money for crime prevention, and helping ensure the success of the state's new healthcare law.