Our endorsements:

Endorsements are a norm for a newspaper. But if you ask us, it is only a guide for what we feel. After all, we too live here and we do serve the city. The paper and its staff have a stake in the election and, as in the past, we hereby offer our endorsements.

Primary Day here for state and federal office holders is next Tuesday, September 4, and although many avoid voting in the primary, perhaps this time you should not. What follows are our suggestions and why we make them.

We are not attacking their opponents, but we need to pick one for each office so that in November’s final election our choices will be on the ballot. We are not going to go into depth and we are not going to cover all the races here, but we have a few picks and we hope you consider them. We are only going to go through the Democratic side of the ballot for now. This Tuesday is very important. Even though it’s just a primary, we all need to go out and vote to make sure our choices make the November ballot on the Election Day. We urge all Somerville residents to go – stand in line if you have to – and have your voices heard.

Governor’s Race: Robert Massie

Somerville has a local candidate running for governor. He is a political activist and progressive whose campaign slogan is “The People’s Governor.” He is sincere and qualified for the office. Massie is running for the Democratic nomination for governor. He has been politically involved over the years, highly educated and is progressive. He is being supported by many of the progressive’s here in Somerville and throughout the state. We think he deserves your vote on Tuesday, September 4.

Secretary of State: William Galvin

This is one statewide political candidate who has never had a scandal in his department in all his years as Secretary of State. He has made the office here in Massachusetts modern and accessible to everyone. He has always in the many years we have known him been dedicated to the residents of Massachusetts. And what’s more, he is not just heard from at election time, you have seen his commercials on TV over the years where he has helped many elderly people in need who were scammed by con artist get their money back. Today, we can go online and search records and we bet this is one of the most modern Secretary of State offices in the country. We strongly support Bill Galvin and hope you join us in voting him back in office.

Congress for the 7th District: Congressman Michael Capuano

This race is hotly contested on the Democratic side, as incumbent Congressman Michael Capuano is being challenged by a Boston City Councilor. Of course we support Mike for re-election. He is one of us. As a former mayor of Somerville he served us well over the years. He has got a great office staffed with intelligent people. They are responsive, and when you call them you are taken care of. He gets these leadership qualities from being a successful mayor and running our city well for several years. He has always been a man of great conviction and commitment to the community. He has been endorsed and supported by many labor and veteran’s groups. He has been a great congressman and progressive candidate who doesn’t forget his roots here in the district and our city. We have known him for many years as alderman, mayor, and now for the past 18 years as our congressman upon whom you can rely. Congressman Capuano leads his district with great distinction. He follows in the footsteps of other distinguished representatives here in the 7th Congressional District such as John F. Kennedy, Thomas P. Tip O’Neal, Joseph Kennedy and now Michael Capuano Jr. We strongly support and endorse Mike in this his bid for re-election to Congress. Because this is a primary with a challenger, we urge all of Somerville to vote next Tuesday for Mike on Election Day.

Middlesex County District Attorney: Marian Ryan

We strongly support and recommend Marian Ryan for Middlesex County District Attorney. She is an extremely qualified person who has worked at the DA’s office a long time, and has grown through the ranks of this office to lead it. Ryan has been a proven progressive prosecutor for Middlesex County. She has developed a collaborative and multi-pronged response to the opioid epidemic. She has been an innovator and one district attorney who has taken public and principled stands to fight for our values. In the largest county in Massachusetts, her office has been there to not just prosecute the law breakers, but to help those who are victims as well. Marian Ryan deserves to be re-elected as our district attorney, and we urge everyone to cast a vote for her. Did we mention that she too has a history with Somerville? She grew up and lived near City Hall for many years, but is now a resident of Belmont.