Published in the August 30, 2018 edition

By MAUREEN DOHERTY AND DAN TOMASELLO

NORTH READING — In spite of the endless political rancor that permeates the news, airways and social media 24/7, the State Primary next Tuesday, Sept. 4 seemingly has snuck up on us, and with good reason.

The precursor to the November 6 mid-term election falls the day after Labor Day and our attentions have been elsewhere.

But ready or not, here it comes.

According to Town Clerk Barbara Stats, a total of 11,040 residents are eligible to vote in Tuesday’s State Primary. Voters needed to be registered by August 15.

Surprisingly, requests for absentee ballots had been more brisk than expected, according to Stats. Voters who need to cast an absentee ballot must submit an application to the Town Clerk’s office by 5 p.m. on Friday, August 31. Absentee ballots must be received “no later than the closing of the polls on Tuesday, September 4,” Stats said.

Voters in all four of the town’s precincts will cast their ballots in the Parish Hall at St. Theresa Church, 51 Winter St. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Due to the Labor Day holiday next the Monday and the State Primary election next Tuesday, the Board of Selectmen moved its meeting to Thursday, September 6.

There are three primary ballots – Democratic, Republican and Libertarian. Voters registered in one of these three parties may only receive the party ballot of their enrollment, Stats explained. All other registered voters may choose one of the three party ballots; their voter status will automatically revert back to their previous affiliation after the primary, she explained.

Democratic candidates

There are five contested races on the Democratic primary ballot for North Reading voters. 

• Jay Gonzalez and Bob Massie are vying for the Democratic nomination for governor. 

Gonzalez was the chairman of the Massachusetts Board of Early Education and Care during former Gov. Deval Patrick’s administration. He served as president and CEO of CeltiCare Health and New Hampshire Healthy Families. 

Massie is an activist and author who works on issues such as global leadership and corporate accountability, social justice and climate change. He won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor in 1994 and ran on a ticket with former State Rep. Mark Roosevelt, but lost in the general election to former Gov. Bill Weld. 

• The race for lieutenant governor features Quentin Palfrey and Jimmy Tingle. 

Palfrey worked as a senior advisor for jobs and competitiveness in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy during former President Barack Obama’s first term. He previously severed as executive director of the Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) North America and is the co-director of the Global Access in Action project at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. 

Tingle has been a comedian for three decades, and has written and delivered commentaries for “60 Minutes II” and was a regular contributor on “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.” He attended Cambridge Latin High School and UMass-Dartmouth. 

• Secretary of State William Galvin is being challenged by Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim and the hotly contested race has been contentious. 

Galvin has been the commonwealth’s Secretary of State since 1995, and recently supported same-day voter registration and the new automatic voter registration law. He has also highlighted issues such as fraud in the finance industry, credit card pressure placed on students, and HMO costs.

Zakim, who was endorsed by state Democrats at the party’s convention, was elected to the Boston City Council in 2013. He is the City Council’s Committee on Civil Rights chairman. He previously served as chairman of the Committee on Housing and Community Development, and the Special Committee on Transportation, Infrastructure, Planning and Investment.  

• The fourth contested race is between incumbent of the Northern District Attorney Marian T. Ryan of Belmont and Donna Patalano of Winchester, who is a former assistant D.A.

• The fifth and final contested race in the Democratic primary is for Councillor in the fifth district between incumbent Eileen R. Duff of Gloucester and Nicholas S. Torres of Methuen.

There are no other contested races in the Democratic primary.

Running unopposed for second terms are U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Attorney General Maura Healey, and Treasurer Deb Goldberg.

Congressman Seth Moulton and State Auditor Suzanne Bump are both running unopposed for their third terms in office.

Maria C. Curatone of Somerville is running unopposed for Register of Deeds on the Democratic ticket as is Clerk of Courts for Middlesex County Michael A. Sullivan of Cambridge.

There are no Democratic candidates for either Senator in the First Essex and Middlesex District or Representative in the General Court for the 20th Middlesex District. 

Republican candidates 

There are three contested races in the Republican primary. The primary is headlined by a three-way race for U.S. Senate.

State Rep. Geoff Diehl of Whitman was elected to his seat in the House of Representatives in 2010. Diehl, who was endorsed by state Republicans at the GOP’s convention, was a strong supporter of a ballot question that led to the repeal of the Massachusetts gas tax indexing law in 2014.  

Beth Joyce Lindstrom of Groton is also running for U.S. Senate in the Republican primary. She served as the Director of Consumer Affairs during former Gov. Mitt Romney’s administration. She was also the first woman to serve as executive director of the Massachusetts Republican Party. 

John Kingston of Winchester is the third candidate running in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate. He previously worked for AMG, a global asset company management company, for 16 years. He launched the non-partisan group Better for America, a nonprofit organization that sought to get nationwide ballot access for an independent candidate to run for president in the 2016 election.

There is a two-way race for the Republican nomination for governor as incumbent Gov. Charlie Baker of Swampscott is facing off against Scott Lively of Springfield, an activist and author who is known for his strong opposition to LGBT rights. 

There are two candidates running for the Republican nomination for Attorney General. 

James McMahon of Bourne is a Cape Cod-based attorney. He served in the military from 1971 to 1977, and also served in the Army National Guard. 

Daniel Shores of Hingham is a Boston-based attorney who previously ran for the Ninth Congressional District. He is the vice chairman of Massachusetts Maritime Academy’s Board of Trustees. 

The remaining Republican candidates are running unopposed in primary.

State Rep. Bradley H. Jones Jr. of North Reading, the House Minority Leader, is running for re-election to his seat in the 20th Middlesex District. He was first elected to the House in 1995.

State Sen. Bruce E. Tarr of Gloucester, the Senate Minority Leader, is running for re-election to his seat in the First Essex and Middlesex District.

Incumbent Lt. Gov. Karyn E. Polito of Shrewsbury is seeking re-election as well.

Anthony Amore of Swampscott is running for the Republican nomination for Secretary of State. Keiko Orrall of Lakeville is vying to be the Republican nominee for treasurer. Concord’s Helen Brady is running for auditor.

Beverly resident Joseph S. Schneider is running for his party’s nomination for Congress. Richard Baker is seeking nomination as Councillor for the Fifth District.

There are no Republican candidates for District Attorney of the Northern District, Clerk of Courts for Middlesex County or Register of Deeds of the Middlesex Southern District.

Libertarian candidates

There are only two candidates appearing on the Libertarian party’s ballot.

Beverly resident Daniel Fishman is running for State Auditor. He previously ran for Congress in 2012.

Marc C. Mercier of Oxford is running for Councillor of the fifth district.