Democratic caucus is Feb. 10

By D. Craig MacCormack/Daily News staff

GHS

Tue Jan 08, 2008, 12:32 AM EST

FRAMINGHAM -

Almost three dozen seats for the local delegation to the state Democratic convention will be up for grabs Feb. 10 at the party caucus.

The Democratic caucus, set for Keefe Tech at 750 Winter St., will elect 31 delegates and four alternates, who will choose the town's nominee for the seat held by U.S. Sen. John Kerry, who is being opposed by newcomer Edward O'Reilly.

The seat for the 32nd delegate, held by the chairman of the town committee, will be left vacant until after the group reorganizes in March, said Chairman Parwez Wahid, who plans to run for one of the 31 open seats.

Framingham's delegation is among the largest in the state, Wahid said.

Registration for the caucus starts at noon, with a call to order set for 1 p.m. The caucus is open to all Democrats in town who are registered as of Dec. 31, 2007.

Kerry and O'Reilly will be invited to the caucus, said Wahid. Most other communities hold their caucuses the weekend before Framingham, so there's a stronger likelihood of at least one candidate coming, he said.

The Massachusetts Democratic State Convention will be June 6 and 7 at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell. Delegates will choose their nominee for Kerry's seat at the convention after last year's convention focused only on issues.

Candidates for delegate and alternate seats must consent to their nomination in writing and must be present at the caucus. All ballots will be written and secret.

For more information on the caucus or the Framingham Democratic Town Committee, log on to the committee's Web site at www.framinghamdems.org or contact Wahid at 508-561-1975 or pwahid@rcn.com.

(Craig MacCormack can be reached at 508-626-4429 or cmaccorm@cnc.com.)

Reference: http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x1311172284