Special Elections Today

Today is election day in the 11th Norfolk state rep district which includes Dedham, Westwood and Precinct 8 in Walpole. Democrat Steve Bilafer is battling independent Paul McMurtry and Republican Doug Obey for the seat that opened when former Rep. Bob Coughlin resigned to join the Patrick administration. My prediction is that Bilafer wins it, but my fear is that he and McMurtry split the Democratic vote -- McMurtry has pledged to re-enroll as Democrat after the election -- clearing the way for Obey. I'm not sure how likely that scenario is, but in a special election anything's possible.

Also today is the special election to replace Jimmy Kelly on the Boston City Council's District 2. That district includes Chinatown, the South End and South Boston and the race is between South End resident Susan Passoni -- interviewed here -- and South Boston resident Bill Linehan. While Passoni has been endorsed by the Boston Globe, Herald and Phoenix, the conventional wisdom is that this seat belongs to South Boston. Still, today's Globe notes that without Kelly on the ballot, some Southie residents plan to stay home.

Update:
And the winners are: In Boston, Bill Linehan (52.57%) over Susan Passoni (46.49%).
In the 11th Norfolk, Paul McMurtry (37.6%) over Doug Obey (31.4%) and Stephen Bilafer (30.9%).