Robertson Claims Victory In Tewksbury-Wilmington State Rep Race

TEWKSBURY, MA -- Democrat Dave Robertson defeated Republican Pina Prinzivalli and independent Patricia Meuse for the right to represent Wilmington and all but one precinct of Tewksbury in the state House of Representatives. The victory marks the first time the seat will be occupied by someone other than James Miceli since well before either of the major-party nominees was born. Miceli died in office while planning to run for reelection against Prinzivalli, who announced her candidacy last October.

With all but the early votes cast in Precinct 4a in Tewksbury counted, Robertson received 9,110 votes to Prinzivalli's 8,216. Meuse received 1,663

The district followed Monday's prediction by Secretary of State William Galvin that voter turnout would be high. The more than 20,000 votes cast in the district was far higher than the 16,003 cast in the last midterm election in 2014, as well as the 15,989 cast in 2010 and the 15,792 cast in 2006.

Miceli, who was first elected in 1977, was a Democrat from Wilmington. But he was conservative Democrat who supported immigration enforcement and the death penalty while opposing abortion and same-sex marriage.

Robertson, 28, had been Miceli’s legislative aide. He was one of five Democrats to enter the race in the days after Miceli died in April and defeated a wide-open field in the September primary. None of the candidates that Robertson defeated formally endorsed him after the Sept. 4 primary.

Reflecting its conservative base, the district voted in favor of Republican Geoff Diehl over Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Prinzivalli had aligned her campaign with Diehl's, who endorsed her. But the early vote totals suggest that many voters in the district may have opted to split the ticket and backed Robertson in the state rep race.

"I want to congratulate Dave Robertson on his victory. He had a great run, beginning with his win in a five way primary against some of the biggest names in Tewksbury and Wilmington politics. He ran a great race. Congratulations Dave," Prinzivalli posted on Facebook just after midnight Wednesday morning.

Prinzivalli, 34, stayed on message throughout her 13-month campaign, repeatedly hammering her “Taxpayers first” campaign slogan and positioning herself as a traditional Republican -- pro-life, pro-gun and anti-sanctuary city -- in a district that is more conservative than many other greater Boston suburbs.

Unofficial Vote Totals

All precincts reporting.

Earlier on Tuesday, Meuse claimed Prinzivalli's campaign had distributed a misleading flier on car windshields during church services on Sunday. Meuse claimed those fliers did not accurately represent her views on a range of issues.

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Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).