DAILY NEWS TRANSCRIPT

November 8, 2006


Lynch Retains Seat
By Greg Duggan

Jack E. Robinson, Republican challenger for the 9th Congressional District, had the optimism to overtake Democrat Stephen Lynch, but in the end the incumbent pounded his challenger by nearly a four to one margin.     

"I guess we’re around 80 percent of the vote. It doesn’t get much better than that," Lynch said by phone shortly before 11 last night. "I’m honored."     

Robinson, who lost even in his hometown of Brockton, found that many of his party brethren suffered similar plights at the polls.     

"This is a complete and utter disaster, state and nationwide for the Republican Party," said Robinson.     

The 9th Congressional District encompasses 21 cities and towns from parts of Boston to Bridgewater -- including Dedham, Norwood, Walpole and Westwood.     

With 96 percent of districts reporting by press time, Lynch had taken 78 percent of the votes. Voters in the towns of Dedham, Norwood, Walpole and Westwood largely mirrored the rest of the district. The incumbent took 79 percent of the vote in Dedham, 80 percent in Norwood, 74 percent in Walpole and 71 percent in Westwood.     

Both candidates exercised their own right to democracy earlier in the day. Lynch voted in South Boston around 11 a.m., said his Press Secretary Matt Ferraguto. The congressman then spent the day bouncing throughout the district, meeting with poll workers and voters.

Robinson said he cast his vote around 3:30 or 4 p.m. in Brockton. He then spent much of his day at campaign headquarters in downtown Brockton, where campaigners made calls encouraging people to vote and drove vans to polling locations.     

Following the election, Robinson, who ran unsuccessfully for secretary of state in 2002 and lost to Sen. Edward Kennedy for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 2000, said, "This dog has got some more fight left in him yet."     

He expects to focus his efforts on overhauling the Republican Party.     
"All of my efforts will be to rebuild the party on the South Shore," Robinson said. "This is a wake-up call, we need to shift gears here."     
Lynch cast his gaze to the future.     

"We’re awaiting the remaining votes out west," he said. "We need a total of 15 (seats) to take back the House. It will be a while before we know whether that’s going to happen or not. If it does, then we’ll probably be back in Washington sooner rather than later."