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James Kelcourse
James Kelcourse (Republican Party) was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, representing the 1st Essex District. He assumed office on January 7, 2015. He left office on June 29, 2022.
Kelcourse (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Massachusetts House of Representatives to represent the 1st Essex District. He did not appear on the ballot for the general election on November 8, 2022.
Kelcourse resigned from the state House on June 29, 2022, after being confirmed to serve on the Massachusetts Parole Board.[1]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes biannual updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org.
2021-2022
Kelcourse was assigned to the following committees:
- Human Resources and Employee Engagement Committee
- House Ways and Means Committee
- Education Joint Committee, House ranking minority member
- Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Joint Committee
- Ways and Means Joint Committee
2019-2020
Kelcourse was assigned to the following committees:
- Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Joint Committee, Ranking Minority
- Education Joint Committee
- Ways and Means Joint Committee
- House Ways and Means Committee
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Joint |
| • Education Joint |
| • Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Joint |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Kelcourse served on the following committees:
| Massachusetts committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Personnel and Administration |
| • Economic Development and Emerging Technologies Joint |
| • Education Joint |
| • Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture Joint |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2022
See also: Massachusetts House of Representatives elections, 2022
General election
General election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Dawne Shand defeated Charles Fitzwater in the general election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Dawne Shand (D) | 59.6 | 12,790 |
| Charles Fitzwater (R) | 40.3 | 8,657 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.1 | 18 | ||
| Total votes: 21,465 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- James Kelcourse (R)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Dawne Shand advanced from the Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 6, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Dawne Shand (Write-in) | 64.1 | 1,442 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 35.9 | 806 | ||
| Total votes: 2,248 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Incumbent James Kelcourse (Unofficially withdrew) defeated Charles Fitzwater and Samson Racioppi in the Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 6, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | James Kelcourse (Unofficially withdrew) | 72.8 | 1,598 |
| Charles Fitzwater (Write-in) | 20.1 | 441 | ||
 | Samson Racioppi (Write-in) | 5.0 | 110 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 2.1 | 46 | ||
| Total votes: 2,195 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2020
See also: Massachusetts House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Incumbent James Kelcourse defeated Amber Hewett in the general election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Kelcourse (R) | 51.6 | 14,537 |
| Amber Hewett (D) | 48.3 | 13,614 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 11 | ||
| Total votes: 28,162 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Amber Hewett advanced from the Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 1, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Amber Hewett | 99.7 | 9,207 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 31 | ||
| Total votes: 9,238 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Matthew Burton (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Incumbent James Kelcourse advanced from the Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 1, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Kelcourse | 99.7 | 2,123 |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.3 | 6 | ||
| Total votes: 2,129 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2018
General election
General election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Incumbent James Kelcourse defeated Jennifer Rocco-Runnion in the general election for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Kelcourse (R) | 52.7 | 11,384 |
| Jennifer Rocco-Runnion (D) | 47.3 | 10,219 | ||
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.0 | 5 | ||
| Total votes: 21,608 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Jennifer Rocco-Runnion advanced from the Democratic primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 4, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Jennifer Rocco-Runnion | 100.0 | 3,570 | |
| Total votes: 3,570 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Republican primary election
Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District
Incumbent James Kelcourse advanced from the Republican primary for Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District on September 4, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | James Kelcourse | 100.0 | 2,096 |
| Total votes: 2,096 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2016
Elections for the Massachusetts House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on September 8, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was June 7, 2016.
Incumbent James Kelcourse defeated Brianna Sullivan in the Massachusetts House of Representatives First Essex District general election.[2][3]
| Massachusetts House of Representatives, First Essex District General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  James Kelcourse Incumbent |
54.06% | 13,272 | |
| Democratic | Brianna Sullivan | 45.94% | 11,280 | |
| Total Votes | 24,552 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth | ||||
Brianna Sullivan ran unopposed in the Massachusetts House of Representatives First Essex District Democratic Primary.[4][5]
| Massachusetts House of Representatives, First Essex District Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Brianna Sullivan (unopposed) | |
Incumbent James Kelcourse ran unopposed in the Massachusetts House of Representatives First Essex District Republican Primary.[4][5]
| Massachusetts House of Representatives, First Essex District Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | James Kelcourse Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for the Massachusetts House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election was held on September 9, 2014, and a general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was June 3, 2014. Edward Cameron defeated Robert Lavoie in the Democratic primary. James Kelcourse was unopposed in the Republican primary. Kelcourse defeated Cameron and independents Ari Herzog, Rama Valianti and Steven Stanganelli in the general election.[6] Initial results placed Cameron ahead of Kelcourse. However, following a recount on November 19, 2014, the Governor and Council certified Kelcourse as the winner of the election.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | James Kelcourse |
42% | 6,978 | |
| Democratic | Edward Cameron | 42% | 6,968 | |
| Independent | Ari Herzog | 9.8% | 1,628 | |
| Independent | Steven Stanganelli | 4.8% | 791 | |
| Independent | Rama Valianti | 1.4% | 231 | |
| Total Votes | 16,596 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Edward Cameron |
62.3% | 2,783 |
| Robert Lavoie | 37.7% | 1,686 |
| Total Votes | 4,469 | |
2012
James Kelcourse ran in the 2012 election for Massachusetts State Senate District First Essex District. He ran as an Independent candidate and was defeated by Kathleen A. O'Connor Ives (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[8][9]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Kathleen O'Connor Ives |
45.9% | 36,405 | |
| Republican | Shaun Toohey | 33.6% | 26,654 | |
| Independent | James Kelcourse | 4.2% | 3,358 | |
| Independent | Paul Magliocchetti | 16.2% | 12,870 | |
| Total Votes | 79,287 | |||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
James Kelcourse did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
James Kelcourse did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Massachusetts scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2022
In 2022, the Massachusetts State Legislature was in session from January 5 to August 1.
- Legislators are scored on bills of interest to an organization that pledges "to make government more transparent, make fiscally responsible choices, and to hold the line on taxes."
- Legislators are scored on their sponsorship of legislation related to animal issues.
- Legislators are scored by the organization on votes that "can show the distinction between a progressive legislator, and everyone else."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the Massachusetts State Legislature was in session from January 6 to January 4.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Massachusetts State Legislature was in session from January 1 to January 5.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 2 through December 31.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Massachusetts General Court was in formal session from January 3 to July 31. The legislature was in informal session from August 1 to December 31.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 4 through November 15. The legislature held an informal session from November 16 to January 2.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 6 through July 31.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Massachusetts General Court was in session from January 7, 2015, through January 5, 2016.
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See also
2022 Elections
External links
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Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Boston Herald, "Amesbury rep’s resignation drops House GOP ranks to 27," July 3, 2022
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of State, "2016 State election candidates," accessed October 3, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "Election data lookup," accessed December 20, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Massachusetts Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Candidates (Democratic)," accessed June 20, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Secretary of the Commonweath of Massachusetts, "Massachusetts Election Statistics," accessed October 14, 2016
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "2014 State Primary Candidates," accessed September 9, 2014
- ↑ Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, "Return of Votes For Massachusetts State Election November 4, 2014," accessed December 4, 2014
- ↑ 2012 State Primary Candidate List, "Massachusetts Secretary of State," Acccessed June 26, 2012
- ↑ AP "Massachusetts - Summary Vote Results," accessed September 6, 2012
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Massachusetts House of Representatives 1st Essex District 2015-2022 |
Succeeded by Dawne Shand (D) |
