Rep. Kaufman Hosts Democratic Gubernatorial Candidates

Representative Jay Kaufman held a candidate forum with the five Democratic candidates vying to replace Gov. Deval Patrick at Cary Memorial Building Thursday night. 

The election will be held on November 4, the day of the federal mid-term election. 

The five Democrats who have announced they are running are Attorney General Martha Coakley, State Treasurer Steven Grossman, Joseph Avellone, an executive with the contract research company PAREXEL and a former chairman of the Wellesley Board of Selectmen, Donald Berwick, former president and CEO of the Institute for Healthcare Improvements and columnist and former Assistant Secretary for Intergovernmental Affairs in the Department of Homeland Security Juliette Kayyem. 

According to a story on Boston.com, the conversation between the candidates was cordial and polite, without any of the political sniping seen in many national races. This was the first forum featuring the five Democratic candidates.  

According to the Boston.com story, the candidates spent most of the night talking about their owns pasts, experience and bringing up their key issues. 

One issue all the candidates agreed upon, the story states, is support of a bill in the state legislature that would allow illegal immigrants who had gone to high school for at least three years in the state to pay the lower in-state tuition rates at state colleges. 

Also running are Republicans Charlie Baker, who ran in 2010, and Mark Fischer of Shrewsbury, a newcomer to the political stage. Independents Evan Falchuk, an attorney and evangelical Christian pastor Scott Lively are also in the running. 

Read the full story here. 

You can also watch the entire video of the forum on LexMedia.