Rep. Pignatelli wins big in 4th

Rep. William “Smitty” Pignatelli (D-Lee) has won re-election to the 4th Berkshire Massachusetts State House District, handily defeating Green-Rainbow Party candidate Lee Scott Laugenour.

“I’m just overwhelmed,” said Rep. Pignatelli in comments to The Beacon, who also took time to thank his supporters. “Running for office is a very humbling experience.”

Rep. Pignatelli won re-election in a landslide, winning 16,598 votes and 82 percent of the vote to 3,611 votes and 18 percent of the vote for Mr. Laugenour. Rep. Pignatelli also won all 20 communities in the 4th Berkshire District. No town was close.

“No, not at all,” he said when asked by The Beacon whether he was surprised by the scale of his victory. “We work hard, [we’ve] got wonderful constituent service[s].”

This was the second time that Mr. Laugenour and Rep. Pignatelli have faced off in the 4th Berkshire District. In 2010, Rep. Pignatelli defeated Mr. Laugenour, 11,279 votes to 2,483. While about 6,000 more votes were cast in the 2012 race, the percentages of the votes 82 and 18, are identical to 2010.

Due to the support of the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the strong performance of progressive Democrat Bill Shein in southern Berkshire County in his primary run against Congressman Richard Neal (D-Springfield), some political observers felt Mr. Laugenour might be in a position to improve on his 2010 margins and potentially pull off an upset.

In the end, however, Rep. Pignatelli’s aggressive campaign and superior fundraising, coupled with his ability to highlight his legislative accomplishments and pull on Beacon Hill proved too much for the Laugenour campaign to counteract. Rep. Pignatelli also received some prominent endorsements, including that of Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, the Massachusetts Teachers Association (MTA) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).

“I have congratulated Smitty Pignatelli on his victory in yesterday’s election. I wish to thank the volunteers, donors, and campaign team who step up to offer voters both choices and examples of political change that they can empower,” said Mr. Laugenour in a statement on his website.

The campaign also featured three debates between Rep. Pignatelli and Mr. Laugenour. One of these debates, sponsored by The Berkshire Beacon, drew more than 70 people and substantial press coverage. It was held at the Lenox Library on Oct. 31.

In comments to The Beacon, Rep. Pignatelli said that his first priority when he returns to the state house will be to work on meeting Massachusetts’ infrastructure needs.

Mr. Laugenour hasn’t indicated what his future political plans are.

Posted by Bera B. Dunau on November 8, 2012. Filed under Community News,News,State News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry