SOUTH END NEWS
Sonia Chang-Diaz for state Senate
by Editor-in-chief Laura Kiritsy, Thursday Sep 11, 2008
At a candidate’s forum in Jamaica Plain last week, state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson was handed a golden opportunity to give a public mea culpa directly to her constituents and generate some positive headlines about the numerous personal and political financial difficulties that have overshadowed her impressive career as a state legislator. Wilkerson was asked by an audience member what she would do in the future to uphold the legal requirements of state campaign finance laws. Wilkerson’s response? She deflected the question with a joke: "Try my best to follow them," she answered, as some in the audience laughed and clapped. "That’s all I got to say."
It was a sad moment for those who have respected Wilkerson’s hard work over the years for the South End and the rest of the Second Suffolk Senate District. It was a moment in which we finally thought, "Enough is enough." Her light treatment of a serious issue defines her tenure in elected office.
Last month, Wilkerson agreed to pay a $10,000 fine for campaign finance irregularities - the second such fine of her tenure as a lawmaker - dating to 2003-2004. Following the settlement agreement that she reached with the Attorney General’s office, Wilkerson issued a statement attributing the violations to "accounting errors" and said she now considers the matter closed. But further audits conducted by the state’s campaign finance office as a result of those violations raised questions about entries in Wilkerson’s campaign accounts made as recently as last year, including a contribution from an out-of-state political action committee, which is prohibited by Massachusetts campaign finance laws.
In 2006, the South End News endorsed Wilkerson’s candidacy despite her financial problems and despite her failure to gather the requisite signatures to have her name placed on the primary ballot - which only underscored her campaign’s organizational disarray. Our reasoning at the time was that the work Wilkerson’s advocacy on behalf of the many marginalized communities in her district - young people of color affected by youth violence, those in need of affordable healthcare and gay and lesbian people seeking equal marriage rights, to name a few groups - was too important to lose. We are no longer convinced that that is the case. And Wilkerson’s choice to joke about campaign finance laws in a public forum doesn’t inspire confidence that she will stay out of trouble going forward. As her opponent Sonia Chang-Diaz rightfully pointed out in her response to the question that Wilkerson dodged: "Campaign finance laws are at the heart of how we hold people in power in this state accountable."
Voters in the Second Suffolk District deserve a state senator who will do more than merely "try" to uphold and adhere to the state’s campaign finance laws. They deserve a senator who will not only advocate tirelessly for them at the State House - as Wilkerson has undoubtedly done - but one who is also accountable and trustworthy.
That’s why the South End News urges you to vote for Chang-Diaz Sept. 16 in the Democratic primary for the Second Suffolk District Senate seat. Chang-Diaz is passionate about the issues that concern voters in the diverse district, which range from strong public education to CORI reform to healthcare accessibility.
As a former school teacher, a legislative aide to former state senator Cheryl Jacques and, most recently, as a staffer at the Mass. Budget and Policy Center, which focuses on the effects of economic issues on poor to moderate-income residents, Chang-Diaz certainly has knowledge of the issues and systems with which she’ll be dealing as a state senator. And over the course of her 2006 and 2008 bids for the seat, Chang-Diaz has proven herself to be a dogged campaigner. That’s how she went from a political no-name to winning 44 percent of the vote in a matter of months in the 2006 primary. That tenacity will no doubt serve her well on Beacon Hill, where progress requires persistence.
Wilkerson certainly has a record of accomplishment in the state Senate and the powerful connections with other political leaders that come with long-term incumbency. She has delivered for the district and her constituents in innumerable and honorable ways. But she, too, was once a political novice who proved herself worthy of the support of the Second Suffolk voters in her challenge to an incumbent back in 1992.
At this point in time, we believe Chang-Diaz deserves the same consideration.
Vote Sonia Chang-Diaz on Sept. 16.
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