Cellucci stays as Massachusetts governor
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Paul Cellucci
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(AllPolitics, November 3) -- GOP incumbent Paul Cellucci eked out his re-election bid in Massachusetts to push back a strong challenge from Scott Harshbarger.
Both candidates are seasoned politicians and undecided voters may have had a hard time finding any deciding differences between the two men.
Cellucci pointed at low unemployment, shrinking welfare rolls, new tax cuts and said, "Times are good; why change?"
Harshbarger told voters, "We can do better." He promised to harness the state's economic boom and use it to improve schools, provide health care for the uninsured and child care for the poor, and retrain workers.
The race became competitive for a number of reasons. Massachusetts is full of partisan Democrats, who should have quickly lined up behind Harshbarger. But the state attorney general had angered some party members with his prosecutions of political corruption that had brushed some popular Democrats.
Analysts said Cellucci's moderation and Harshbarger's lack of strong party ties could have left local Democratic activists either sitting on their hands or quietly voting for the governor.
Getting rid of 'Taxachusetts'
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Scott Harshbarger
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Cellucci became governor when Republican William Weld gave up that office in his failed bid to win confirmation as U.S. ambassador to Mexico in 1997. The state emerged from recession during the Weld-Cellucci administration, and Cellucci touts a record of 28 tax cuts, saying the state has left behind its old reputation of "Taxachusetts."
Cellucci attacked his opponent for being a "tax-and-spend" liberal, a "risky" candidate who would even outspend the Legislature, where Democrats far outnumber Republicans.
Harshbarger countered that one of his first campaign proposals called for a $1.5 billion tax cut targeted at working families and senior citizens. He also promised the state will not spend "one penny more than
we can afford."
The Democrat also complained the state hasn't made enough progress despite billions in extra dollars pumped into local school districts because of an education reform law passed in 1993.
Harshbarger also created controversy by calling on Cellucci to explain more about his personal debt, which has mounted to more than $700,000.
The governor's race reached a record high in spending, cresting more than $11 million.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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