Wilkerson plans write-in campaign for Senate

September 23, 2008 07:53 PM Email| Comments (0)| Text size – +

By Jeannie Nuss, Globe Correspondent

Hoping to retain the seat she has held for 15 years, State Senator Dianne Wilkerson announced today that she will wage a write-in campaign against Sonia Chang-Diaz, who beat her by only a small margin in the recent primary.

"We're going to do this. It won't be easy. This is not a process for the faint of heart, but I'm ready if you're ready," she told more than 300 supporters gathered at a Masonic lodge in Dorchester.

Chang-Diaz beat Wilkerson in the Sept. 16 primary by a vote of 9,081 to 8,853, or 228 votes.

Wilkerson is also pursuing a recount. The city Elections Commission announced today that it would recount votes in four wards. Wilkerson had asked for recounts in five wards; the commission granted her request for recounts in three. Chang-Diaz successfully asked for a recount in one ward. The recount is slated for Saturday at City Hall.

"I look forward to the completion of the recount this Saturday, when I feel confident the final results will show me to be the Democratic Nominee for this seat," Chang-Diaz said in a statement. "Of course we take nothing for granted, and I look forward to continuing to meet with voters, listen to their concerns, talk together about the need for new leadership for our district, and respectfully ask for their vote in November."

Socialist Workers Party candidate William Theodore Leonard will also be on the ballot for the Nov. 4 election.

Wilkerson, the state's lone black senator, received high-profile endorsements, including that of Governor Deval Patrick, but was weakened by campaign finance and past legal troubles.

It's not the first time that Wilkerson has waged a sticker campaign. In 2006, she beat Chang-Diaz in a write-in/sticker campaign for the Democratic nomination in the Second Suffolk senatorial district.