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BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — The field of Massachusetts gubernatorial hopefuls is now one candidate smaller. Former State Sen. Ben Downing announced he was ending his campaign on Tuesday, saying his campaign did not have the money to stay in the race.
A look at the Downing campaign's financials shows a rapidly-shrinking war chest, with spending outpacing donations beginning in August. He ended the campaign with around $32,700 in the bank as of last month. The remaining fellow democratic candidates far outpaced that; State Sen. Sonia Chang-Diaz had about $200,000 on hand and Harvard professor Danielle Allen had more than $385,000. On the Republican side, former State Rep. Geoff Diehl had about $59,000 on hand.
Downing promised to keep calling attention to the core issues of his campaign, including climate change. He was the first Democrat in the race, announcing his run in February.
He criticized a "culture of complacency" that "prioritizes the comfort of those in power over addressing the challenges of those in need."
Gov. Charlie Baker announced his intention not to run for a third term earlier in December, leaving a wide-open field.
WBZ's Carl Stevens (@Carlwbz) has more:
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