Early Voting

Find Out About Early Voting, Mail In Ballot Drop Offs & Who’s Running

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The 2020 Election is nearly here, with voters in Watertown and Massachusetts going to the polls twice in two months. Many voters are taking advantage of the mail-in ballots, and early voting starts soon. The Town Clerk’s office has already received hundreds of mail in ballots, which are available due to the COVID-19 outbreak, said Watertown Town Clerk John Flynn. State officials send the requests for mail-in ballots to the Town Clerk’s office, and staff sends out the ballots. “We have mailed out over 7,000 ballots,” Flynn said. “This is the first challenge to an incumbent U.S. Senator for years.

Elections

See the Candidates for 10th Middlesex State Rep. in an Online Forum

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The two candidates for the 10th Middlesex State Representative seat (which includes the Westside of Watertown) appeared on an online discussion with the Newton-Needham Chamber of Commerce this week. Incumbent John Lawn of Watertown and Newton City Councilor Alison Leary spoke with Chamber President Greg Reibman for about an hour on Monday. View the video below:

Around Town

Rising COVID-19 Cases Concerns Watertown Health Director

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An upturn in the new COVID-19 cases concerns Watertown Health Director Larry Ramdin, who worries that the state may go back into more strict shutdown rules if the trend gets worse. During the first week of August, Watertown had its first COVID fatality reported since the second week of May, bringing the total to 24. For the first time in several weeks, the number of new positive COVID-19 cases is into the double digits in Watertown, and the state numbers are growing by around 2,000 a week. “People are going on vacation, it is summer, there is a little complacency,” Ramdin said. “People are going to social gatherings, they are not social distancing, not wearing face coverings, expose themselves.”

29th Middlesex

State Rep. Candidate Endorsed by Planned Parenthood, Act on Mass

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Democratic activist and Democratic State Committee member Steve Owens is running for the State Representative seat that Jon Hecht will be leaving. The following announcements were provided by Steve Owens for the State Representative campaign:

Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund (PPAF) of Massachusetts, the advocacyand political arm of Planned Parenthood league of Massachusetts, has endorsed Steve Owens as the next State Representative in Watertown and Cambridge. Formed in 1984, PPAF believes that working within the political process is critical to increasing access to sexual and reproductive health services. “In 2020, the Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund of Massachusetts is endorsing candidates who not only support reproductive rights andhealth – but also understand the importance of access to care,” PPAF stated in their endorsement. PPAF works to elect qualified state and local candidates who will pursue policies that put patients first and protect reproductive health care for everyone.

Government

Water & Sewer Bills Will Rise Over 8%, Council Grudgingly Approves Rates

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Watertown residents will see their water and sewer bills increases by more than 8 percent with the approval of the Fiscal Year 2021 water and sewer rates by the Town Council on Tuesday night. The Council voted 8-1 to approve the rates, with Lisa Feltner voting “no.” All the councilors expressed concern and/or disappointment about the rate hike. Some asked for ways to give some relief, or even to create a fund for those who have trouble paying their bills, but nothing emerged from Tuesday’s meeting. Watertown’s Water and Sewer budgets pay for the expenses of running the systems through the money collected from customers.

Elections

LETTER: Steve Owens Has Put in the Work

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I’m writing to urge my friends and neighbors to vote for longtime Democratic Town Committee chair Steve Owens for state rep this primary. Other letters have touted Steve’s progressive commitments and his impressive command of the issues facing our state. In this letter I want to focus instead on the work Steve has put into this race. Regardless of your policy views, I think we can all agree that we want a representative who will be energetic about using his powers of office to stand up for us and help our community and our town. Steve is the only candidate who has a campaign website where he has written about issues that are important to him and what he intends to do in office, a key piece of transparency that other candidates have chosen not to provide.

Elections

Council Moves Polling Place from Senior Housing to Middle School

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After hearing from many people worried about having voters coming into a senior apartment building during the 2020 elections, the Town Council voted to move the polling location to Watertown Middle School. A temporary location for Precincts 11 and 12 is needed because the normal voting location, Cunniff Elementary School, is under construction. School construction at Hosmer Elementary School also impacted Precinct 2, which will move to the Hellenic Cultural Center. The locations will be used for the Sept. 1 State Primary and the Nov.

Elections

LETTER: Steve Owens Would Be a Transportation Minded State Rep

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Many Watertown voters have traffic, congestion and public transportation at the top of their list of concerns. Many of us rely heavily on MBTA service to get to work and other essential life functions. The majority of us are deeply concerned about the environment and climate change. If you want an advocate who will be committed to addressing these concerns in the State House, then Steve Owens is your best choice for State Representative. Steve is a transportation professional by trade and understands the complication of going from policy to complex nuts and bolts operations.