Election Day in Springfield is Tuesday November 5, 2013.
FOR WARDS 1 & 5 ONLY: The preliminary election is Tuesday September 17, 2013.

*NOTE: Not sure of your ward? Enter your address at the Secretary of State’s website to find out where and for whom you vote.  After the preliminary, the candidates not advancing to the general will be stricken out.  All candidates arranged alphabetically. Only contested races listed.  Wards 2, 4, 6, & 7 are uncontested. Committee Districts 2 & 3 uncontested.

Springfield City Council (related stories)

At-large

Thomas Ashe (incumbent since 2010)

Offices Held: Springfield School Committee
Profession: Gov’t & Community Affairs YMCA
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On the candidate (briefly): One of the many Ashes of the area.  A longtime member of the School Committee prior to running for an open Council seat in 2009.  Ashe ran for and lost the Democratic nomination for Clerk of Courts in 2012 to Laura Gentile, the current Clerk.  As Chair of Public Safety, Ashe was at forefront of the Fire Commission qualification debate and recently pawn shop regulation.  For more, check out his entry in WMassP&I’s Political Guide.

 

Joshua Carpenter

Offices Held: None.
Profession: Unknown
Facebook (no public page)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
On the candidate (briefly): Carpenter ran for State Representative as a Republican against Angelo Puppolo in 2010.

 

Ernesto Cruz

Offices Held: None
Profession: Former Life Insurance Agent, community activist
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Website
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On the candidate (briefly): Cruz, a former insurance agent turned community activist has worked for political campaigns up and down the ballot.  For the first time, it is his name on the ballot.  Smarter approaches to crime, greater citizen participation and improved air quality are among the pillars of his campaign.

Jeffery Donnelly

Offices Held: None
Profession: Unknown
Facebook
Twitter (inactive)
Website
On the candidate (briefly): Donnelly’s biggest claim to fame may be his written work that was the subject of a lengthy review/report by the Springfield Intruder, which also mentions the various lawsuits he has initiated against government entities. Umm…yeah…

 

James Ferrera (incumbent since 2007)

Offices Held: None
Profession: Driver, Office of Community Corrections
Facebook (no public page)
Twitter (none)
Website
Tagged Stories
On the candidate (briefly): The current Council President, Ferrera took office after Angelo Puppolo resigned to join the Legislature.  Ferrera socked it to himself after his 2012 committee assignments provoked a backlash.  Perceived to be the weakest of the at-large councilors, Ferrera political tactics seem more about headlines than policy, including on the casino.  Apparently less shy about hypocrisy than most councilors, The Republican‘s Cries and Whispers caught Ferrera at MGM’s victory party after then demanding the agreement, for which he voted, be renegotiated.  For more check out his entry in WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Justin Hurst

Offices Held: None
Profession: Attorney/business owner
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Website
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On the candidate (briefly): The son of Frederick and Marjorie Hurst, the latter of whom served on the School Committee, Hurst is also the husband of Denise Hurst, who is currently on the School Committee.  Hurst ran for Council in 2011 and came in 6th and could have joined the council had an at-large vacancy occurred.  His campaign is attempting to use technology to a far greater degree in this campaign.

 

Timothy Rooke (incumbent since 1996)

Offices Held: None.
Profession: Vice-President, Insurance Agency
Facebook (no public page)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
Tagged Stories
On the candidate (briefly): The current dean of the City Council, Rooke has served continuously longer than any other council (other councilors have served longer, but not continuously).  No one issue has defined Rooke this term as much as in past ones, when he was identified as one of the Council’s fiscal watchdogs.  For more, check out his entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Kateri Walsh (incumbent since 2004)

Offices Held: City Council 1987-1993
Profession: Springfield Women’s Commission Chair
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Website
Youtube
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On the candidate (briefly): Walsh may have one of the longest tenures on the Council if her prior tenure is factored in.  Her husband served on the Council before her.  This term residency and, via her Chairmanship of Maintenance and Development, the winter storm response by the city have been among defining issues.  For more check out her entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Bud Williams (incumbent since 2012)

Offices Held: City Council 1993-2009
Profession: Retired Probation Office
Facebook (inactive)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Williams is the most junior at-large Councilor by virtue of his decision to leave the Council in 2009 to run for mayor.  Best known for his proclivity to speak on nearly every item on the Council agenda, any pattern to his record is difficult sketch out.  Often seen voting with Ferrera or the other way around.  For more check out his entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Ward 1

Jose Claudio

Offices Held: None
Profession: Development/Community Relations-New North Citizens Council
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On the candidate (briefly): A fixture in the New North Citizens Council, Claudio is widely considered their choice to take on incumbent Zaida Luna.

 

Stephen Daly ELIMINATED IN PRELIMINARY

Offices Held: None known
Profession: Unknown
Facebook (No public page)
Twitter (none)
Website
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On the candidate (briefly): Per his website biography, Daly is a member of the Amoury-Quadrangle Association.  He is the only candidate believed to be a resident of downtown versus the North End-Brightwood neighborhoods.

 

Zaida Luna (incumbent since 2010)

Offices Held: None
Profession: Social worker
Facebook (No public page)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
Tagged Stories
On the candidate (briefly):  Luna was elected in 2009 with, what was thought to be support of the powers that be in the North End.  Two years later, a sudden write-in campaign backed by Cheryl Coakley-Rivera among others was launched against her.  This year, she is facing three challengers.  Of two Latinos on the Council, she probably advocates most for that community, but to what end is hard to discern.  Check out her entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Miguel Rivas ELIMINATED IN PRELIMINARY

Offices Held: None known
Profession: Former City Employee, Communities Development and Economic Development Depts.
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Twitter (none)
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Per a release, Rivas has been active in numerous community groups throughout the North End for some time.  He was a Park Commissioner under Richard Neal.

 

Ward 3

Salvatore Circosta

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Business Owner, Sal’s Bakery & Cafe
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Twitter
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Circosta had made a splash on the city since opening his Cafe in the “X,” the center of the Forest Park neighborhood.  Straddling the Ward 3 side of the Forest Park neighborhood, Circosta jumped into the ward race this year.  At his kickoff, he suggested that working to help businesses like his succeed would be among his priorities if elected.

 

Melvin Edwards (incumbent since 2010)

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Retired, from Mass Dept of Mental Health
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Website
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On the candidate (briefly): For the first time as an incumbent, Edwards is facing an opponent in his race for City Council.  Last year he sought the Democratic nomination for his State Senate district, but did not succeed.  During the last days of the campaign, Edwards suffered a devastating double knee injury.  He returned to the Council full time in January.  For more check out his entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Ward 5

Michael Belanger

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Business owner
Facebook (no public page)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
On the candidate (briefly):  No press accounts or public information has been found on Belanger.  Sources familiar with him say he owns his own business and could potentially self-fund a campaign.

 

Kyle Burns ELIMINATED IN PRELIMINARY

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Unknown, member of teamsters
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Twitter (none)
Website
On the candidate (briefly):  Burns is more visible digitally than Belanger, but just as much a newcomer.  At this stage, it appears that Burns is aiming most directly at incumbent Concepcion and his representation of the Ward.  Although his digital trail goes through some pretty odd political territory, his platform seems pretty basic and unoffensive, if even boilerplate for Springfield politics.

Clodo Concepcion (incumbent since 2010)

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Unknown, retired.
Facebook (no public page)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
Tagged Stories
On the candidate (briefly): Concepcion has historically had two bases of support.  The Elderly and the 16 Acres Civic Association where he has been a fixture for some time.  Those had historically been more than enough to hold onto his seat, but with two challengers this year word is Concepcion has gone into panic mode.  Whether true or not remains to be seen and could depend on which of the two challengers advances to the general, assuming Concepcion does.  Check out his entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

 

Ward 8

John Lysak (incumbent since 2010)

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: Unknown
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Twitter
Website
Youtube
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On the candidate (briefly): Lysak is the only Councilor to have had a race in the three cycles since the establishment of ward representation.  He has succeeded in both races so far.  As such, he is probably the Council’s most successful non-Democrat since Tony Ravosa.  While not alone in councilors challenging Mayor Sarno, he probably has done so the most vocally, especially over the closure of the Pine Point branch library.  Check out his entry in WMassP&I’s political guide.

 

Orlando Ramos

Other Offices Held: None
Profession: District Director for Sen. James Welch
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On the candidate (briefly): Ramos has been Lysak’s rival for three cycles now and snark about his stick-to-itiveness aside, if he were not at all formidable, Lysak would not be girding for a fight each time.  While Ramos has access to resources by virtue of his job with Senator Welch, he has his own history and backing from unions from his time with the Carpenters.

Springfield School Committee (related stories)

At-large

Denise Hurst (incumbent since 2010)

Offices Held: none
Profession: Case Supervisor, Mass Dept. of Mental Health
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Twitter (none)
Website
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On the candidate (briefly): The wife of daughter-in-law the politically active Hurst family, Hurst is facing her first competitive race for office after winning unopposed in 2009.  Hurst has earned herself respect from her counterparts on other communities school committees.  However, the makeup of the race has the potential to endanger her, possibly more than Pepe, because she and McFadden are more likely to be competing for the same votes.  For more, check out her entry in WMassP&I’s Political Guide.

Calvin McFadden

Offices Held: None.
Profession: Pastor
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Website
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On the candidate (briefly): McFadden is a relative newcomer both to the city and certainly to its politics.  His candidacy has gleaned some support among the city’s political elite.  Along with the political support, McFadden has launched a multipronged digital strategy and a slick mnemonic driven platform that he (and his backers) hope get him onto the Committee.

Antonette Pepe (incumbent since 2004)

Offices Held: none
Profession: Retired paraprofessional/union president.
Facebook (none)
Twitter (none)
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Pepe has crossed locked horns with the city’s special interests, the political establishment and many, many others over a ten year political career that began under the old all at-large Committee.  She ran for mayor in 2011 losing in the preliminary, but was remembered for challenging Sarno’s position more vociferously.  Although a bit too fiery at times, opinion is divided among observers whether she executes her job politically or not and has won plaudits from some quarters for her persistence in the causes she has championed.  Whether she behaves politically or not, she does take up the mantle of outsider and seemingly relishes it.  For more, check out her entry in WMassP&I’s Political Guide.

District 1 (Wards 1 & 3)

Rosa Perez

Offices Held: none
Profession: Unknown
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Twitter (none)
Website
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On the candidate (briefly):  Perez is challenging Norman Roldan for the seat that includes Brightwood, Downtown, Maple Heights/Six Corners, the the North and South Ends and patches of Forest Park.  Little is known about her candidacy except that she appears outside the New North orbit as Roldan is active in that organization.

Norman Roldan (incumbent since 2010)

Offices Held: None.
Profession: Information Systems, Bay State
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On the candidate (briefly): Roldan was unopposed in 2009 and won the term without a contest.  This time he has a contender.  For more, check out his entry in WMassP&I Political Guide.

District 4 (Wards 2 & 8)

Zaida Govan

Offices Held: none
Profession: Coordinator, United Way
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Twitter
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Govan is challenging Peter Murphy in an incredibly diverse district that includes the historically Irish, but increasingly Latino Ward 2 and the already thoroughly integrated Ward 8.  Govan has been an activist in the city and region for several years now, but this is her first apparent bid for office.

Peter Murphy (incumbent since 2010)

Offices Held: None.
Profession: Pastor
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Twitter (none)
Website (none)
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On the candidate (briefly): Murphy won his seat in 2009 after defeating a college student who went to school in Rhode Island.  This year his competition is still from Indian Orchard, but could prove a bit more stiff.  Although he has decided to engage social media, it has not evolved much beyond a few photos of his kids.  For more check out his entry on WMassP&I’s political guide.