Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Richard Tisei
Richard R. Tisei was a 2014 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 6th Congressional District of Massachusetts.[1] He was defeated in the general election by Democratic candidate Seth Moulton.
He was a 2012 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 6th Congressional District of Massachusetts.[2] He was defeated by Democratic incumbent John Tierney on November 6, 2012.[3]
Tisei represented the Middlesex and Essex district in the Massachusetts State Senate from 1990 to 2011 and served as Minority Leader in the Massachusetts State Senate from 2007 to 2011.
Biography
Tisei was born in Someville, MA, and is a longtime resident of the 6th Congressional District. Tisei earned his Bachelor's degree in 1984 at American University.[4]
Career
Tisei represented the Middlesex and Essex district in the Massachusetts State Senate from 1990 to 2011 and served as Minority Leader in the Massachusetts State Senate from 2007 to 2011.
His other political experience includes being the assistant minority leader for the Massachusetts State Senate from 1997-2006 and the second assistant minority floor leader for the Massachusetts Senate from 1993-1996. Tisei was a representative in the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1985-1991 and chair of the Weld for Governor campaign in 1990. He served on the Middlesex County Charter Commission from 1986-1988.
Tisei has professional experience as a business owner and has been a realtor since 1991.[5]
Issues
Political stance
Tisei said he "sees himself as a traditional Republican, believing in individualism, limited government involvement in people's personal lives, and an emphasis on the role of the individual" and as "a libertarian on social issues."[6]
Noteworthy events
Campaign accounts
In July 2014, David Scharfenberg of The Boston Globe reported that Tisei might have spent funds from his legislative campaign account on polling for a congressional bid in 2012. Under campaign finance law, this would be prohibited as only federal funds may be spent on federal races.[7] Tisei's campaign said that any payments were made prior to his official declaration of candidacy for Congress and that those funds were for activities in support of a potential run for state office. Campaign manager Ryan Gough said that Tisei “has always had an unimpeachable record of openness and transparency."[7]
Republican convention
Tisei announced on March 21, 2014, that he would not attend the state Republican convention because of his opposition to the state committee’s more socially conservative platform.[8][9] The Massachusetts Republican State Committee approved language in its party platform in February 2014 that included opposition to abortion and gay marriage.[8][10]
“I don’t want to go and be seen in any way to be endorsing that. I don’t really feel comfortable being at a convention where the platform takes the party backward, rather than forward, as far as appealing to a large group of Massachusetts voters,” Tisei said.[8] Tisei, who is gay, got married in 2013.[10]
Elections
2014
Tisei was defeated in the 2014 election for the U.S. House to represent Massachusetts' 6th District. Tisei ran unopposed in the Republican primary on September 9, 2014.[1] He was defeated by Seth Moulton (D), who defeated incumbent John Tierney in the Democratic primary, in the general election on November 4, 2014.[11][12]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Seth Moulton |
53.6% | 149,638 | |
| Republican | Richard Tisei | 40.2% | 111,989 | |
| Independent | Chris Stockwell | 3.7% | 10,373 | |
| Write-in | Other | 0.1% | 219 | |
| Blank | None | 2.4% | 6,700 | |
| Total Votes | 278,919 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State Official Results | ||||
The National Republican Congressional Committee added Tisei to their "On the Radar" list in November 2013. According to the NRCC, candidates that made this list were set to receive "...the tools they need to run successful, winning campaigns against their Democratic opponents."[13][14]
Endorsements
- The Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund endorsed Tisei on February 25, 2014.[15]
2012
Tisei ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House to represent Massachusetts' 6th District. Tisei won the nomination on the Republican ticket.[16] He ran unopposed in the September 6, 2012 Republican primary, after Bill Hudak suspended his campaign.[17] Incumbent Democrat John Tierney was seeking re-election.
According to the website Daily Kos, this race was one of nine top-ballot 2012 races that contained Libertarian candidates who received more total votes than was the difference between the Democratic winner and the GOP runner-up. In this case, Daniel Fishman took in over 13,000 more votes than the number that separated Tierney and Tisei.[18]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Tierney Incumbent |
46.4% | 180,942 | |
| Republican | Richard Tisei | 45.3% | 176,612 | |
| Libertarian | Daniel Fishman | 4.3% | 16,739 | |
| N/A | All Others | 0.1% | 514 | |
| N/A | Blank Votes | 3.9% | 15,045 | |
| Total Votes | 389,852 | |||
| Source: Massachusetts Secretary of State "Return of Votes" | ||||
Race background
According to the Washington Post, Massachusetts' 6th was a battleground district in 2012, with redistricting making it less solidly Democratic. Furthermore, Democratic incumbent John Tierney faced PR issues and Tisei was a strong candidate with the potential to be the first openly gay, non-incumbent Republican congressman.[19]
According to the Washington Post, John Tierney had also been the target of ads from YG Action Fund, a conservative PAC supergroup. This highlights a trend in which super PACs have attempted to swing vulnerable house seats through strategic advertising. These ads were not solicited by the Tisei campaign, but his spokeswomen voiced her support for them.[20]
Media
Tisei released the campaign ad below on December 6, 2011. It was featured on his 2012 campaign website.[21]
Richard Tisei, "What People Are Saying"[22] |
2010
Tisei faced Tim Murray (D) and Rick Purcell (G) in the general election on November 2, 2010. Murray won election.
| 2010 Massachusetts lieutenant gubernatorial general election | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote Percentage | |
| Democratic Party |  Tim Murray
|
48.44% | |
| Republican Party | Richard Tisei | 42.09% | |
| Independent | Paul Loscocco | 8.04% | |
| Green Party | Rick Purcell | 1.43% | |
| Total Votes | 2,287,407 | ||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Tisei was re-elected senator for the Massachusetts Senate for the Middlesex and Essex district.[23] In this election he raised $263,850-; of that total $255,734 (97.4%) was from in state contributions and $6,837 (2.6%) was from out of state contributions.[24]
| Massachusetts State Senate - Middlesex and Essex district | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Richard Tisei (R)
|
56,460 | |||
| All Others | 743 | |||
| Blanks | 21,775 | |||
Campaign themes
2012
On his campaign website, Tisei listed seven issues. They were:[25]
- Jobs
Excerpt: "I will fight tirelessly to put Washington on a path to fewer regulatory burdens, lower debt, and overall conditions which promote job growth."
- Debt
Excerpt: "The common sense approach to budgeting that we each follow in our households must be forced upon the spenders in Washington if we’re to preserve our way of life for future generations."
- Healthcare
Excerpt: "I will support common-sense legislation which results in lower health care costs and less bureaucratic red tape interfering in the health care decisions of the people."
- Seniors
Excerpt: "I support the Earned Retiree Healthcare Benefits Protection Act, which will protect the retirement health benefits of our nation’s seniors. That legislation would prohibit post-retirement reductions in benefits — as well as providing employers with a substantial hardship exemption if the employers were truly unable to restore post-retirement benefits which had been promised to retirees (to be determined by the Secretary of Labor)."
- Iran and Israel
Excerpt: "Israel stands as a nearly solitary bastion of liberty and freedom in the Middle East. She’s our closest ally and we have a special duty to ensure her continued survival."
- Veterans
Excerpt: "As a state legislator, I was a strong advocate for our veterans. I helped them obtain needed benefits and advocated for the Chelsea Soldiers Home. I helped pass a law which established a “veteran’s preference” in public housing. As your Congressman, I will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that our veterans receive the full assistance they deserve."
- Education
Excerpt: "As a state legislator, I supported school choice, home schooling, and the establishment of charter schools. I was also a strong advocate for merit pay for our best teachers. Giving parents more control and placing less of an emphasis on test results and more of an emphasis on actual learning in the classroom remain my priorities."[25]
Campaign finance summary
Ballotpedia currently provides campaign finance data for all federal- and state-level candidates from 2020 and later. We are continuously working to expand our data to include prior elections. That information will be published here as we acquire it. If you would like to help us provide this data, please consider donating to Ballotpedia.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Richard Tisei has three sisters. He lives in Wakefield, Massachusetts, with his partner.[26]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Richard + Tisei + Massachusetts + Congress"
See also
- Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
- Massachusetts lieutenant gubernatorial election, 2010
- United States House of Representatives
- Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District elections, 2014
- Massachusetts' 6th Congressional District
External links
- Richard Tisei for Congress Official Campaign Website
- Richard Tisei for Congress Official Facebook
- Richard Tisei 2012 Official Twitter
- Boston.com article about Tisei's entry
- Richard Tisei's Vote Smart Profile
- Richard Tisei Official YouTube Channel
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tewksbury Advocate, "Tisei renews Congressional battle," accessed February 3, 2014
- ↑ Washington Blade, "Tisei considers rematch in 2014 congressional election," accessed October 28, 2013
- ↑ Politico, "2012 Election Map, Massachusetts"
- ↑ Project Vote Smart - Senator Tisei
- ↑ Project Vote Smart - Senator Tisei
- ↑ Martha Vineyard Times, " "Katama resident Richard Tisei: a quiet political presence — until now", September 7, 2012 (dead link)
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Boston Globe, "Officials appear to misuse Mass. campaign funds," accessed July 29, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Hamilton Wenham Patch, "Tisei Spurns GOP Convention," accessed March 24, 2014
- ↑ Glouster Times, "Tisei skips GOP convention over gay rights stand," accessed March 24, 2014 (dead link)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Boston Globe, "Richard Tisei to boycott GOP convention," accessed March 24, 2014
- ↑ Washington Blade, "Tisei considers rematch in 2014 congressional election," accessed October 28, 2013
- ↑ Politico, "2014 Massachusetts House Primaries Results," accessed September 9, 2014
- ↑ Roll Call, "House Republicans Put 36 Recruits ‘On the Radar’" accessed November 21, 2013
- ↑ NRCC Young Guns, "List," accessed March 20, 2014
- ↑ Washington Post, "LGBT group to back two gay Republicans for Congress," accessed February 26, 2014
- ↑ Open Secrets, "Massachusetts Congressional District 6 Election 2012" accessed January 5, 2012
- ↑ Yahoo News, "Congressional Candidate Bill Hudak Suspends 2012 Campaign," accessed October 4, 2012
- ↑ Daily Kos, "Libertarians provided the margin for Democrats and at least nine elections," November 15, 2012
- ↑ Washington Post blog, "The 10 House districts that might surprise you," May 11, 2012
- ↑ The Washington Post, "Conservative super PACs targeting blue-state Democrats," Sept. 17, 2012
- ↑ "Tise For Congress," accessed October 4, 2012)
- ↑ YouTube channel
- ↑ Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth, "Return of Votes For Massachusetts State Election - November 4, 2008," accessed March 18, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "2008 campaign contributions," accessed December 29, 2014
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Richard Tisei for Congress, "Issues" August 14, 2012
- ↑ Tisei's Campaign Website, Biography (accessed: October 4, 2012)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by - |
Massachusetts State Senate Middlesex and Essex 1991–2011 |
Succeeded by Katherine Clark |
