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Date: 11/11/2020
WESTFIELD – While the nation had its collective eyes glued on the presidential election, the most contested race in Westfield on Election Day was arguably the race for state representative of the 4th Hampden District, with three candidates on the ballot, and one mounting a write-in campaign.
Westfield had a 75 percent voter turnout, with a total of 20,424 residents casting votes, according to unofficial results. Republican Kelly Pease won with 9,327 votes to 7,719 for Democrat Matthew J. Garlo, and 1,820 for independent compassionate conservative Ethan Flaherty. City Councilor Dan Allie, who conducted a write-in campaign after losing the Republican primary to Pease, received all or part of the 876 write-in votes for state representative, which were not reported by name.
Pease, a retired Army officer with 20 years of active duty service, a bachelor’s in political science from Westfield State University and a Master of Law degree from Western New England University, was running in his first campaign for a statewide office. Previously, he served as a legislative aide to former state Sen. Donald F. Humason Jr., before Humason resigned to run for mayor of Westfield.
“I’m humbled by the people of Westfield choosing me to be their next state representative. I would be remiss if I didn’t thank my wife Serena and my son Riley for putting up with me being out on the campaign trail, and all the volunteers who were out with me at 7 a.m. most times in the morning. All those people who came out to support me, it’s just amazing. I want the people of Westfield to know I represent everybody, and I look forward to hearing the concerns of all the people of Westfield, not just Republicans, Democrats or independents, but everybody,” Pease said.
Garlo, a student mentor and communications professional, called Kelly Pease to congratulate him on Election Night after the results were in.
“No matter what ideas people have about party affiliation, we’re both hard workers, share a work ethic, and although we may have different ideas on how to get there, we both know what Westfield needs,” Garlo said.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my supporters and myself no matter the results,” Garlo added, thanking his former classmates, teachers and people he knows from local sports teams for their support. “I am thankful for the role my parents and my grandmother played along this journey. I’ll always be involved in serving the public in some aspect and in our democratic process in general,” he said.
Ethan Flaherty also called to congratulate Pease on his victory. Flaherty, who ran as an independent, is a junior at UMass, triple-majoring in political science, economics, and psychology.
“Huge congratulations to Kelly Pease for being elected as Westfield’s next state representative. I wish him all the best, and hope nothing but good things come our way as a city. Kelly is a great guy and I’m sure he’ll serve our city well. It’s a huge step running for office, and I have nothing but respect for him for pulling it off and gaining Westfield's confidence,” Flaherty said in response to a request for a comment.
Flaherty also thanked those who helped with his campaign, singling out his family and campaign treasurer. “My family has always been nothing but supportive, and I thank them for always keeping things level and compassionate. Cam Davignon, our treasurer, has always been an incredibly hard working and service minded person, and it was a complete honor working with him,” he said, adding, “I’d be going on forever if I recognized everyone who helped, donated, held signs, talked with me, gave advice, and so on, but know that I sincerely appreciate everyone, and will continue working hard to make your help worth it. This is only the beginning.”
Westfield voters also favored former Vice President Joseph Biden and Kamala Harris with 9,986 votes, to 9,695 for President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Mike Pence, who received the majority of votes in Westfield in 2016. Third-party candidates Jorgensen and Cohen received 406 votes, and Hawkins and Walker received 126.