Date: 11/16/2022
SOUTHWICK — Even more thoroughly than Democrats dominated the state election results on Nov. 8, Republicans swept the ballot in Southwick.
The town supported every GOP nominee by margins of 10 percentage points or greater, voting for Democrats only in the handful of cases where the Republicans had no candidate. Southwick also took opposite stances to the statewide results in two controversial ballot questions.
Nicholas Boldyga, the only Southwick resident on the ballot, was the top vote-getter with 2,812 votes, or 67.7 percent, to help him secure reelection as state representative. Boldyga, a Republican, fended off a challenge from Democrat Anthony Russo.
The rest of the Republicans that Southwick supported were statewide or district-wide losers. Southwick favored the Republican ticket for governor and lieutenant governor, Geoff Diehl and Leah Allen, with 60 percent of the vote, though the statewide winners were Maura Healey and Kim Driscoll, with 63.5 percent. Southwick also backed Republican James McMahon for attorney general (62.5 percent), while the wider electorate preferred Democrat Andrea Campbell by a nearly mirror-image share (62.6 percent); Republican Rayla Campbell for secretary of state (54.7 percent in town) versus reelected Democrat William Galvin (67.5 percent across the state); Republican Anthony Amore (60.9 percent in town) instead of Democratic Auditor-elect Diana DiZoglio (54.9 percent statewide); Republican Dean Martilli (58.7 percent in town) over reelected Democratic U.S. Rep. Richard Neal (61.4 percent district-wide); and Republican John Comerford for Governor’s Council (64.4 percent) over the Democratic winner, Tara Jacobs (61.5 percent across the district).
Only two Democrats got Southwick voters’ nod in contested races. Southwick supported incumbent state Treasurer Deborah Goldberg over Libertarian challenger Cristina Crawford, by a 56-44 margin. Statewide, Goldberg was reelected with 76.6 percent of the vote.
Southwick also voted for Democrat Paul Mark as its new state senator, though it gave him a smaller share of the vote — 52 percent locally, versus 76.2 percent district-wide — in his race against independent candidate Brendan Phair. After redistricting this year, Southwick is no longer part of the district represented by Westfield state Sen. John Velis, and instead has joined the large district consisting of Berkshire County and the Hilltowns.
Additionally, Democrats Anthony Gulluni and Nicholas Cocchi were unopposed in their bids for reelection as Hampden County district attorney and sheriff, respectively.
According to unofficial figures released by Town Clerk Michelle Hill, the town saw 56.6 percent turnout. The 4,206 voters were 61.5 percent against Question 1, the proposed 4 percent surtax on incomes over $1 million, and 68.3 percent “no” on Question 4, a law that allows the state ot issue driver’s licenses to people without legal residency status. Both questions passed statewide, with 52 percent and 53.7 percent of the vote, respectively. Southwick followed the state trend in accepting Question 2, a limit on dental insurance administrative costs, with a 57.6 percent “yes” vote (it passed with 71.5 percent statewide) and rejecting Question 3, a change in the number of liquor licenses a single corporation can hold, with a 70 percent “no” vote (it failed with 55.3 percent against it, statewide).