To tell you the truth, we don’t really know.

As Secretary of the Commonwealth, Bill Galvin has sat silently by as the very foundations of our democracy have been crumbling. Unlike the activist Secretaries of State Katherine Harris (Florida 2000) and Kenneth Blackwell (Ohio 2004) — Mr. Galvin has remained nearly invisible. So invisible that other than his prominently placed picture in the official Massachusetts voter information guide the Secretary’s office is completely under the radar. While many people don’t know what the Secretary of the Commonwealth does, the responsibilites of that office are central to the health of our democracy.

At taxpayer’s expense, this fine image of Secretary of State Galvin has been distributed far and wide in the official Massachusetts voter guide.

The Secretary oversees the critical underpinnings of our democracy, and most urgently, the apparatus of influence peddling in state government — money in elections, public information, and lobbying. Over the past 12 years under Bill Galvin, virtually all the basic indicators of civic health –the vital signs of our democracy — have been in a steep decline.

Money in politics is breaking all records, and more than 80% of the money funding elections comes from less than 1% of the voters. Competition in elections has declined by more than half, with incumbents running unopposed in 75% of legislative races. Voting rights violations are frequent. And the same insiders return to office year after year — with a Soviet-style re-election rate of 98%! Influence peddling has become a way of life on Beacon Hill — there are now seven lobbyists for every legislator. Legislators are writing multi-million dollar bills behind closed doors and ramming them into law without meaningful public review. As a result, our tax dollars are wasted in poorly managed projects like the Big Dig that benefit big campaign donors, create major new tax burdens, and fail to meet the needs of the residents of the Commonwealth.

It is time that the people of Massachusetts had a Secretary of State that was independent of the Beacon Hill influence-peddling machines. It is time that the person who oversees our elections felt a responsibility to participate in public debates on the issues facing the voters. It is time that we had a Secretary of State who would use the authority of that office as chief public information officer to be the watchdog that our democracy desperately needs.

written by: Eli Beckerman

This entry was posted on Monday, October 23rd, 2006 at 1:22 pm and is filed under Secretary of State's office, Galvin. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.