by Neil W. McCabe

The state representative for the 27th Middlesex District, running for the state senate seat vacated by the passing of Charles E. Shannon Jr., announced Monday the hiring of her senior campaign staff.

“I am thrilled to have found such experienced campaign staff so quickly,” said State Rep. Patricia D. Jehlen, D-Somerville, who worked with Shannon to secure state funding for the recently begun Lowell Street Bridge repairs.

The three senior campaign staffers will be Sean Carberry of Somerville as campaign manager, Daniel Cohen of Medford as pollster and senior advisor and Georgia Hollister Isman of Cambridge as field director, she said.

“The fact that they joined my team this early and are already hard at work shows their confidence in my ability to win this special election,” she said.
“We’re looking forward to waging a positive campaign focused on my record of fighting for working families,” she said.

Carberry is a Democratic political strategist who recently served as a congressional campaign manager in New Hampshire, Jehlen said.
Prior to entering politics, Carberry said he was a political journalist for WBUR, the Boston NPR news station.

Isman has run field programs for state and local races across the country including a recent Massachusetts State Senate special election, Jehlen said.
Last year, she served as the Massachusetts volunteer coordinator for America Coming Together, and mobilized thousands of activists for the 2004 presidential election, Isman said.

Cohen is a veteran of more than 25 campaigns around the state. Among Cohen’s victories last year was State Rep. Carl M. Sciortino Jr.’s victory over 16-year incumbent Vincent P. Ciampa in the Sept. 1 Democratic Primary and Ciampa’s sticker campaign for the Nov. 2 General Election, Carberry said.

Cohen will continue to work on the campaign of Rebekah Gewirtz, who is challenging Ward 6 Alderman John M. “Jack” Connolly, he said.

The arrangement is consistent with other campaigns, where pollsters work have multiple client candidates during the same election cycle, he said.
Gewirtz once served as Jehlen’s administrative assistant in her Beacon Hill office.

“I couldn’t ask for a better campaign team or candidate,” said Carberry.

The Jehlen campaign expects to spend $150,000, he said.

“I admire Pat’s principled, progressive values and her unwavering commitment to economic and social justice,” he said.

“I am proud to lead her state senate campaign and to work with such experienced campaign staff as Georgia and Dan,” he said.

“With their records of success in state political campaigns, and Pat’s record of fighting for working families, I am confident we will win the special election for State Senate for the Middlesex 2nd District,” he said.