Game on in the Worcester 4th

I've checked in a couple of times on the race for State Representative, criticizing Claire Freda for running away from the Democratic Party in order to run as an independent (a la Joe Lieberman), and expressing some concern that the events of the summer would make it tough on Jen Flanagan as she seeks reelection.

I've expected all along that the race would be a difficult one, since Flanagan defeated Freda in the 2004 primary by only 835 votes. But things have been very very quiet through the summer. Until today:

LEOMINSTER-- City Councilor Claire M. Freda is going into the general election cycle with a larger campaign fund than her opponent, incumbent state Rep. Jennifer L. Flanagan, according to campaign finance reports filed this week.

Mrs. Freda is trying to oust Ms. Flanagan, who is finishing her first term representing the 4th Worcester District in the Legislature next year.

There is no primary election in the contest next week. Mrs. Freda withdrew from the Democratic party earlier this year and is challenging Ms. Flanagan as an independent in November. There are no other candidates for the seat on the ballot.

Mrs. Freda began the campaign with $3,121.68 in her coffers, and raised $12,695 as of this week's reporting deadline, according to finance reports. Of that $15,816.68 war chest, Mrs. Freda has spent just $452.90, leaving $15,363.78 in her account. Her expenses include printing and postage charges.

Ms. Flanagan had $11,155.29 in her campaign account at the start of the year, and has raised another $13,667 since January. Of her $24,822.29 war chest, however, she has already spent $10,737.79, leaving $14,084.50 for the remainder of the campaign.

It's never good for the incumbent when the challenger leads in cash-on-hand. That's supposed to be one of the advantages of incumbency. However, if Rep. Flanagan has been spending all of that money yet the summer has been quiet, I wonder if she's already paid for a lot of the materials she will be using over the next few weeks.

Hopefully, Flanagan is gearing up to at least update her campaign website, which appears to have been silent since spring. It would be nice to know what sort of events are coming up, why voters should cast their vote for her, etc.

Update: Interesting how the headline writers at the Telegram and the Sentinel & Enterprise take completely opposite conclusions from the same information.

Pointing to the cash on hand, the Telegram's headline reads: Freda outraises Flanagan
Pointing to the latest quarter's result, the Sentinel headlines: Flanagan edges Freda in fundraising

Tags: Massachusetts Leominster Election 2006 Legislature Jennifer Flanagan Claire Freda