Festa wins close race in 35th
Published on November 4th, 1998
STONEHAM, MA - In Tuesday's general election, 35th Middlesex District Democratic candidate Michael Festa won his duel with Republican Paul O'Neill after a campaign which was filled with drama and tension.
In Stoneham, 2,285 voters marked the Democratic ticket in precincts 4, 5 and 6 while 1,735 sided with O'Neill. Festa gained 54 percent of the popular vote in a race that drew only 167 blanks and three write-ins. In Melrose, unofficial results showed that Festa took 6,491 votes while his Republican counterpart drew 4,749. In this race, results were similar in percentages as the Democrats drew nearly 56 percent of the vote with 301 blanks and 55 write-ins. He won a majority of the votes in all six of Melrose's precincts, however.
"It's been fun," Festa said when reached from his victory party at Pauli's in Melrose. "Even in the traditional Republican precincts, the message was pretty non-partisan. It was a good campaign."
Festa, who had lost a campaign for State Senate in 1990, explained that the race in Stoneham was tight as expected.
"You have a situation where Paul has strong political support in Stoneham," he said. "I think that, whereas many people didn't really know either of us, they (the voters) looked at our resumes and looked at the issues. I know Paul knocked on a lot of doors in Stoneham as well as myself and I want to thank the people of the town who supported and trusted us."
O'Neill, reached at his campaign party at the Melrose Knights of Columbus, expressed some dissatisfaction in the outcome, but appeared poised to mount another campaign in the near future.
"I'm disappointed in the results, but there are many people who have given a lot in this campaign and put their confidence in me. I appreciate that," he said. "Mike lost a race before and knows how difficult it is to get support your first time out. I look forward to bringing the issues back to the table in a couple of years."
Festa, who was attacked in the latter part of the campaign by O'Neill for not pledging to be a full-time representative, has said that he will maintain his Melrose-based law practice while in office.
He explained that the margin of victory was narrow, but was nonetheless satisfying.
"We won it and even though it wasn't as decisive as we would have wanted, we're happy to get the win."
Festa said he is looking forward to getting to Beacon Hill and is thinking positive about his opportunity in the state legislature.
"I look forward to working together with Senator (Richard) Tisei and Representative (Paul) Casey," he said. "We've got a lot to do.
"I think we'll make a good team and do what's best for the town."
O'Neill, who was attacked during the race by the Festa campaign after making a false claim about having been an assistant district attorney in Suffolk County, said he was thankful to the people who helped his cause.
"I want to thank all those people in Stoneham who lent their support to me.
"It was a very good campaign and it was hard fought on both sides," he said, adding that he will keep a close watch on the pulses of the 35th Middlesex District communities. "I will continue to work with the people in Stoneham and Melrose to improve the quality of life.
"I also want to thank Mike. He did a good job."
Of the race, Festa agreed, saying, "It was very hard fought. I think people really said, 'Hey, he's got the qualifications and he'll do a good job for us.'"
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