Lawmaker resigning for job at lobby firm
In a move that highlights a growing trend on Beacon Hill, state Senator Robert A. Havern, a veteran lawmaker who is the Senate's assistant majority whip, is resigning to take a position with ML Strategies, a high-powered Boston lobbying firm.
The 57-year-old Havern, an Arlington Democrat who has been in the Senate since 1991, said yesterday that he plans to submit his resignation to the Senate clerk today. He said he would serve until the end of this month.
Senate President Therese Murray is expected to announce a special election schedule shortly, with a primary most likely in November and a general election five weeks later.
Havern is one of a string of lawmakers of who have cashed in recently on their experience and connections. Three former House speakers, two former Senate presidents, and a host of former legislative committee chairmen and high-ranking members, many of them state senators, have been among the state's best-paid lobbyists in recent years, according to state records.
Havern's departure sets the stage for a scramble by local politicos who want to take over his southern Middlesex County seat.
According to local political observers, they include Democratic state Representatives J. James Marzilli Jr. of Arlington, Charles A. Murphy of Burlington, and Patrick M. Natale of Woburn. Another potential candidate is Selectwoman Diane Mahon of Arlington.
Havern, who served four years as a state representative before moving to the Senate, was the longtime Senate chairman of the Legislature's Committee on Transportation, which made him a key player during the development of such projects as the Big Dig, Rose Kennedy Greenway, and Logan International Airport expansion. He also oversaw the passage of bonds to pay for billions of dollars of highway and rail construction.
"It is time to make a change," Havern said. Havern, who is barred by law from lobbying the Legislature for a year after his departure, said the offer from ML Strategies was an "opportunity I didn't want to pass up."
Havern will serve as president of the ML Strategies Massachusetts Government Relations Practice. ML Strategies is the consulting affiliate of the Boston law firm Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo. The firm said Havern will work with clients in a variety of industries, including healthcare, real estate development, and financial services.
