By Joseph Domelowicz Jr.
With an unofficial voter turnout of approximately 20 percent, Winthrop voters who turned out at the polls on Tuesday, May 20, supported East Boston Representative Anthony Petrucelli overwhelmingly, giving the Beacon Hill veteran 1,741 votes to just 576 votes for his challenger Revere City Councilor Dan Rizzo.
“This is a wonderful victory for a person we hope will do a great job for the town of Winthrop,†said Winthrop At-large Councilor Joseph Ferrino, a Petrucelli supporter who was on hand at the Senator’s victory celebration Tuesday night.
“His legislative experience as a four-term state representative, and his knowledge of the inner workings of the state house make him the right fit for this town,†added Ferrino. “His knowledge will benefit the town of Winthrop. He’s got a bright future ahead of him.â€
Petrucelli’s victory in Winthrop was underscored by his victories across the district, as he beat Rizzo in every community in the district except Revere, where he still was able to pull out more than 1,000 votes in his challenger’s home town.
“We said when we started this campaign that we thought we could grow into every community in district during the course of the campaign,†Petrucelli told the crowd, after benign introduced as the new State Senator by his wife Alessandra. “That’s what we did and I owe that to all of you and to so many others that worked for us during this campaign.â€
Petrucelli told supporters that he was overwhelmed by the support he received in communities and neighborhoods like the North End, Winthrop, Cambridge and Beacon Hill, all areas where he was a virtual unknown when the race began.
“We in this campaign had a positive message for this district that we were in the best position to bring experience and leadership to the office and an ability to stand up for what we thought was right,†added Petrucelli. “When you are coming from outside of a neighborhood and pull 80 percent in the North End or 75 percent in Winthrop or 70 percent ion Cambridge, it’s really just overwhelming.â€