Election 2022 Results: Trahan 'Likely To Win': NYT

MASSACHUSETTS — With the clock reaching 1 a.m. Wednesday in Massachusetts, incumbent Democrat Lori Trahan had a sizable vote advantage over Republican Dean Tran in the race for the U.S. House of Representatives 3rd District.

According to the New York Times, Trahan had 98,009 votes to Tran's 58,789, with 63 percent of the votes counted. The newspaper wrote: "Our best estimate is that Trahan is very likely to win."

Trahan is seeking a third term in Congress.

At an October debate, Trahan, who is from Lowell, said representing the constituents of the 3rd Congressional District was the highlight of her life.

"I wake up every day with the lens of hardworking families in my mind's eye to make sure they can get in a better position for themselves and their families. I'd be honored to continue that work," Trahan said, according to the Lowell Sun.

The debate, according to the Lowell Sun, "exposed a wide rift between the (Trahan and Tran) on issues such as abortion, election integrity, the economy and Supreme Court Reform."

Though the candidates did appear to agree on matters such as retaining entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security and allowing adult use marijuana purchases.

Tran ran his campaign on themes like reducing inflation, reducing gas prices, fighting for American jobs and supporting first responders.

Tran was elected to represent Worcester and Middlesex District in the state Senate in 2017. However, he lost a bid for re-election in 2020.

While Tran was in office, a Senate Ethics Committee found that his office staff had been performing campaign work with public resources during business hours. Tran was stripped of his position as assistant minority whip.

This past summer, Tran was charged in connection with an incident in which he allegedly misused his power as a state senator to persuade an elderly constituent to give him her late husband's guns in exchange for $1,500 cash. He pleaded not guilty.

In 2018, Trahan's campaign for congress faced scrutiny after she loaned $300,000 of her husband's income to her campaign.

Trahan said she had identified the money properly and that what she did was not a violation.

State Representative 14th Middlesex District

In the race for state Representative in the 14th Middlesex District, Democrat Simon Cataldo faced Republican Rodney Cleaves to fill the seat vacated by Tami Gouveia, who ran for lieutenant governor.

As of 1 a.m., the Associated Press reported that Cataldo had 8,505 votes and Cleaves had 3,703 votes, with 61.54 percent reporting.

Cataldo is a former special education teacher who has worked as a federal anti-corruption prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice. In a final message to voters last week, Cataldo said that despite the current political climate, he was optimistic about the future, especially after campaigning over the last 15 months.

"There's a lot of uncertainty and — for many people — existential dread about what is going to happen on Tuesday in elections around the country," Cataldo said in an email to supporters. "I hope it gives you some level of comfort that, as someone who has had to engage in substantive conversations with strangers from many backgrounds and ideological corners over the last year-plus, I maintain a great deal of confidence in the future of our democracy — more than I had in the summer of 2021.

Cleaves, who worked in high tech for 40 years, has spoken out against what he calls a "one-party tyranny" in Massachusetts.

"(It is) a single-party system where the ruling party has the power to pass any legislation with impunity, without concern for the citizens that elected them," Cleaves said in a video on YouTube.

Cleaves continued: "Please, send me to Boston, and spark a new revolution. I'll force vigorous debate and do my best to kill the veto-proof, one-party system."

Other Races

In the race for state Representative in the 16th Middlesex District, Democrat Rodney Elliott and Republican Karla Miller ran to succeed Tom Golden, who resigned in April to become the Lowell city manager.

At 1 a.m., AP reported that Elliott had 3,058 votes and Miller had 1,864 votes, with 35.71 percent of precincts reporting.

In the race for state Representative in the 2nd Middlesex District, James Arciero, who first won the seat in 2008, ran against Republican Raymond Xie.

According to AP, at 1 a.m., Arciero had 9,367 votes and Xie had 5,146 votes, with 76.92 percent of precincts reporting

There also were races in which candidates ran unopposed: Democrat Marilyn Petitto Devaney for Governor's Council 3rd District, where she has served 12 terms, Democrat Marian Ryan, an incumbent, for Middlesex District Attorney and Democrat Peter Koutoujian for Middlesex County sheriff, a position he has held since 2011.