Coakley flubs date of primary

By Matt Viser, Globe Staff

Attorney General Martha Coakley

Attorney General Martha Coakley has been accused of running her US Senate campaign as a front-runner, trying to run out the clock. But now she may be testing out a new strategy: convince voters that the primary is a day later than it actually is.

"I have results," Coakley told reporters this morning following a candidates' forum at Suffolk University. "And that's what I'm asking voters to look at on Dec. 9."

One problem: the primary is actually on Dec. 8.

Coakely had mentioned the real date twice before, and only minutes before she made the slip.

Maybe it's a secret voter-suppression strategy. It could be fatigue from a quick campaign, or she could be speaking to general election voters as if she's already won the primary.

But she's not alone: in a Suffolk University poll taken last month, 93 percent of Democratic voters couldn't remember the exact date of the primary.

Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com.