How old are the candidates in the Democratic primary?
33: State Representative James Eldridge
35: Former Lancaster Selectman Stephen Kerrigan
36: State Representative Barry Finegold
53: Former Lowell Mayor Eileen Donoghue
53: Sheriff James DiPaola
60: Middlesex College Dean Niki Tsongas
72: State Representative James Miceli
I think that when a candidate is on the younger side, he or she has to demonstrate experience. When a candidate is on the older end, he or she has to demonstrate energy and freshness.
Rep. Eldridge, for instance, has amassed an impressive degree of experience and number of achievements during his career thus far. That should mitigate any age questions for him.
I don’t know much about the two most senior members of the primary field, Rep. Miceli and Dean Tsongas, but I don’t doubt that their energy levels will be evidenced on the campaign trail. Miceli, for instance, graduated from college while Eisenhower was President, so the burden of proof is on him to demonstrate the necessary vigor for the rigors of Congressional life.
How do you think age will play out as a factor in the race?
Steve Kerrigan seems to have more experience than any of the candidates, including those who are much older than him.
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Having been elected a Selectman at age 26, he has experience in working in local government. He went on to serve as political director for Senator Kennedy. After that, he was Chief of Staff for Boston 2004, the non-profit group that ran the Presidential Convention in 2004. In that role, he was responsible for a budget of over $100 million, and thousands of staff and volunteers. He then went on to serve as Chief of Staff in the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, where he oversaw a state budget of $30 million and a staff of over 450 people.
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Kerrigan now works as a senior vice president at Lynch Associates. Click here for his bio. If you’re looking to send the best of both worlds to Congress, that is, a welath of experience AND a fresh and energetic dose of progressivism, it looks to me like Kerrigan is the man.
I didn’t think Wilmington was in the 5th Congressional district. Or doesn’t that matter?
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As for age – who cares? Did Tip O’Neill or Joe Moakley lack “vigor” for congressional life? Having met both of these liberal lions, I am pretty confident that they not only managed those “rigors” but they thrived in it.
I look for smarts and record no matter the age. Age should convey wisdom, but it doesnt necessarily (Thurmond, anyone?). Yeesh. Neither is a younger candidate necessarily less capable of handling the job. But if you’re really stuck on this metric, you will be interested to know that, according to this randomly selected website, the avg age of reps is 57 (almost 62 for senators). But this doesn;t indicate the avg age of people entering congress, so I’m not sure it’s too useful after all.
I don’t want to pick on you…but I get accused of not having progressive values rather often. It struck me that focusing on age doesn’t seem very progressive to me.