Attorney General Primary Countdown: How Do They Plan to Win?

Monday, August 23, 2010

Stephen Beale, GoLocalProv Politics Editor

With a recent Brown University poll showing 60 percent of voters undecided, the Democratic primary for Attorney General remains one of the most exciting and dynamic races of the political season. With the Sept. 14 primary now just weeks away, the three Democratic campaigns are revving up with their first major round of television advertising. GoLocalProv spoke with the campaigns about how they plan to make their final pitch to voters.

Stephen Archambault

For Lincoln town solicitor Stephen Archambault, his extensive experience as the only in-the-trenches prosecutor—something his campaign says other candidates don’t have—is a major selling point with voters, according to spokesman Rob Horowitz.

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During the campaign, Archambault has consistently opposed insurance rates hikes from companies like Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island—and promised to use the office of Attorney General to fight future increases. The other candidates have certainly criticized them as well, but Horowitz says Archambault has been the most outspoken and often ahead of the others on the issue. “We’re the ones who’ve gotten some traction on it as a result,” Horowitz said.

Archambault could also benefit from an anti-incumbent political climate, Horowitz said, pointing to polls that say as many as 70 percent of Rhode Islanders think the state is heading in the wrong direction. He said that makes it tougher for candidates like Peter Kilmartin, whom he described as a 21-year career politician in the state House. “New energy and the fact that he is not an insider guy will be very helpful,” Horowitz said.

The campaign has made a six-figure purchase of television advertising to get its message out in the final weeks, but in a small state, Archambault is also counting on the grassroots to carry him across the finish line, Horowitz said. “It’s still a state where personal contact can still make a difference,” he said. “He will have shaken tens of thousands of hands by the time this is over.” It helps that he has an army of well over one hundred volunteers to spread the word as well.

Joe Fernandez

Former Providence city solicitor Joe Fernandez is running as an outsider who can stand up to the political establishment, according to campaign manager Dan Herkert. “He’s not the same old politician we see and people think it’s refreshing that Joe is willing to step up to the plate and tackle the issues facing Rhode Island,” he said.

As city solicitor, Herkert said he already has a proven record of getting things done—and in the final weeks before the primary, the campaign is gearing up to defend that record from distortions and attacks from his opponents, he added.

Fernandez points to his role in cleaning up Providence City Hall in the wake of the Operation Plunder Dome scandal and his involvement in the votes to revoke the pensions of corrupt cops as evidence of his willingness to fight corruption. “Joe absolutely has not spent his whole life going along to get along,” Herkert said. “He has a record of getting results for people through his work as a solicitor for seven years.”

Like Archambault, the campaign recently made an approximately $100,000 television ad buy. Herkert said the campaign was confident it had positioned itself to get its message to voters above the din of all the other political ads expected to hit the airwaves as the primary approaches.  

Peter Kilmartin

For Kilmartin, his record as a police officer, police prosecutor, and state rep set him apart in the race for Attorney General, according to spokesman Brett Broesder. “This race comes down to who is going to be able to protect Rhode Island families from crime and be the top law enforcement official in the state,” Broesder said. “Peter Kilmartin is that person.”

As state rep, Kilmartin has helped pass laws to protect children from predators, stop texting while driving, put an end to pension abuses, and make mortgage companies that foreclose on homes pay taxes, Broesder said. As Attorney General, his top priorities will be leading the charge against violent crime, cracking down on corruption, and fighting against rate insurance and utility rate hikes.

So far, Kilmartin has spent somewhat less than the others on television advertising—about $40,000, according to the most recent campaign finance report. In addition to the battle over air, the campaign will rely on over 300 volunteers to help it win on the ground.

Kilmartin has one clear advantage over the others, according to Broesder—the official endorsement of the Democratic state party. “We worked extremely hard for that endorsement and in the end it will be a tremendous benefit for us,” he said. Another major endorsement is from the International Brotherhood of Police Officers, which Broesder said reinforces Kilmartin’s law enforcement credentials.

Related Articles

• Kilmartin Calls for Restrictions on Campaign Donors
• AG Candidates Decry Health Insurance Rate Hikes
• Archambault Promises Crackdown on Mortgage Fraud
• Which AG Candidate Has the Most Out of State Money?
• Archambault: Ethics Panel Should Have Jurisdiction Over Legislature
• Fernandez Aims to Protect Consumers from Fraud and Abuse
• Fernandez to Officially Launch Campaign for Attorney General
• Kilmartin Calls for Denial of Increase in Insurance Rates
• AG Candidate Says RI Needs to Go After More Medicaid Fraud
• Kilmartin Releases Plan on ‘Neighborhood Safety’

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