Cullinane wins 12th Suffolk Mass. House seat in a walk

Former State House aide Dan Cullinane beat back two independents Tuesday to claim the 12th Suffolk House District seat left vacant when former Rep. Linda Dorcena Forry was elected to the State Senate earlier this year.

Cullinane, who has worked for state Rep. Marty Walsh and Attorney General Martha Coakley, won with over 70 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results showing that Cullinane won the Boston parts of the district with 1,403 votes Edmond Romulus’s 384 and Lincoln Larmond’s 110. Cullinane also received over 200 votes in Milton, while the pair of independents collectively received several dozen votes. –

The new representative, who has been active in local politics, working on City Council and state Senate campaigns, was the heavy favorite heading into the race, particularly after winning a three-way Aug. 13 primary.

The 12th Suffolk House District includes parts of Dorchester, Mattapan, Hyde Park, and two precincts in Milton. The seat was once held by former House Speaker Thomas Finneran, a Mattapan Democrat, and until this summer, Dorcena Forry, who won a special election to replace Jack Hart in the state Senate.

“I think this race wasn’t about me; it’s a victory for people all across the 12th Suffolk that built this coalition of people who wanted a representative who is hands-on,” Cullinane said Wednesday morning. “That’s what drove this race.”

On Election Night, Cullinane received congratulatory phone calls from House Speaker Robert DeLeo (D-Winthrop), Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, and state Treasurer Steven Grossman, among others.


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