Contenders quick to begin campaigns
Signs were printed, press releases prepared. Even as Robert E. Travaglini stood in the State House lauding his successor as president yesterday, candidates were getting ready to launch campaigns for the Senate seat he has held for 14 years.
"I'm putting bumper stickers on my own car right now," Dan Rizzo, a city councilor from Revere, said when reached on his cellphone at 2:45 p.m. Two hours later, he sent out the press release announcing his candidacy that he had drafted earlier.
State Representative Anthony W. Petrucelli, an East Boston Democrat, had several hundred campaign signs made up a few weeks ago. Today, he said, after meeting with his campaign staff, he is going to start canvassing the district, handing out bumper stickers and campaign literature.
"I can't imagine why I would wait," he said. "It's a campaign. Special elections are quick. They're fast and furious. It's not the same type of election cycle as a regular election. Every day is valuable to work hard and meet voters."
State Representative Timothy J. Toomey Jr., Democrat of Cambridge, is also jumping into the race and said he plans to kick into gear next week.
Among candidates still mulling a run are Phil Boncore, a city councilor at large in Winthrop, and Chuck Famolare, Winthrop harbormaster. An aide for state Representative Robert A. DeLeo confirmed yesterday that he would not be running.
The First Suffolk and Middlesex District includes East Boston, Winthrop, and the North End, as well as portions of Beacon Hill, Revere, and Cambridge. But for years it has been dominated by East Boston politicians, including Travaglini and Michael LoPresti Jr., who held the seat from 1972 to 1993.
The district includes an array of public infrastructure elements , including the Deer Island sewage-treatment plant, tunnels that run under the harbor, and Logan International Airport, which requires legislators to maintain a delicate balance between allegiances to powerful agencies like the Massachusetts Port Authority and constituent concerns over issues such as airport expansion.
A date for the special election has not yet been set by the Senate, but the campaign is expected to last about 14 weeks. It will probably be an old-fashioned battle to connect with voters and persuade them to come out to the polls.
"It's going to be a shoe-leather race," said Michael McCormack, a former Boston city councilor and longtime political observer. "These are families and friends going out and knocking on doors, putting bumper stickers on cars and lawn signs out. At the end of the day, the candidate who knocks on the most doors and makes the best impression wins."
Petrucelli has a fund-raiser scheduled next week at Joe Tecce's Ristorante & Cafe in the North End. Several political insiders deemed Petrucelli the front-runner, in large part because of his popularity in East Boston and the backing of Mayor Thomas M. Menino, who will seek to keep the seat in the hands of a Boston politician.
Petrucelli is also said to have Travaglini's blessing.
"The scuttlebutt paints me as an underdog," Rizzo said. "I wear that badge proudly, but once the voters learn what I stand for. . . . It will resonate with people."
This afternoon he plans to hold a press conference at the Sheraton in Revere to officially announce his candidacy. He will also be handing out his red, white, and blue "Dan Rizzo, State Senate" bumper stickers.
Boncore is proceeding more cautiously.
"I'm contemplating it," he said. "No one knew what Bob was going to do. . . . Jumping into a race is not giving him his due."
Famolare is vacationing with his family in Florida and plans to make a decision next week.
Toomey declined yesterday to discuss his campaign, saying he did not want to distract from the news of the day.
Matt Viser can be reached at maviser@globe.com. 