Last night's Live Election Results coverage was a great example of all the many good things going on at WCCA TV. The spirit of collaboration and teamwork shined brighter than anything I have ever seen in a long while in Worcester.

Thanks to the guests who took time to visit the station at 415 Main Street. Scott Zoback, Kate Toomey, Phil Palmieri, Sam Rosario, Bill Coleman, Grace Ross, Paul Clancy, and those who phoned in.

Thanks to Peter Blute and Hank Stolz and all the good folks at WCRN and all WCCA TV staff, Charlie, Frank, Anthony, Zara, Jen, Tracy, Judy, WCCA interns and volunteers for making last night an amazing success.

It was the time we all took to plan, to listen and to pay attention to detail that did the trick.

I have received many compliments over the phone, and I have read comments on line as well. In my opinion WCCA/WCRN did the best job in covering the election results last night. HANDS DOWN! The partnership really helped promote the good work we all are doing here at WCCA and the commitment WCRN has to local issues. This morning, at 7AM, I appeared on the Peter Blute Show for about an hour. We discussed the event and the morning after results and while I was at WCRN I also received many compliments about the simulcast.

To the amazing WCCA TV staff and volunteer team, I want to say that WCCA has a lot to be proud of and people in this city are aware of that. Our teamwork was impeccable. We hit Worcester strong on cable, radio and the web. YOU ALL CONTRIBUTED. Thanks for your effort, testing out connections, coordinating crews, implementing promotions, blogging, creating B roll segments, running cameras, setting up sets, preparing the internet access, taking still shots, creating graphics, greeting guest, monitoring the signals, ushering, producing fine live television.

WOW !! Stunning work indeed.

Congratulations!!!

Viewers and members can look for more great thing to come on WCCA TV "The People's Channel"

Mauro

[Editor's note: see also this nice blog post about the simulcast, El Predictamundo]

I'll be updating this post with details from the WCCA/WCRN joint election night coverage. If you have any comments, you can phone into WCRN, or post comments on this post. The hosts may read your comment on the air.

7--And we're live with Mauro DePasquale, Peter Blute, Scott Zoback, and Hank Stoltz.

7.02--Amazingly the WCRN link seems to be working.

7.05--Zoback thinks district 4 will be closer than ever.

7.10--Zoback--"I was legitimately worried about Gary Rosen's health today."

7.15--Kate Toomey comes in. They talk about her personal difficulties. She thanks her husband for his support.

7.20--Zoback is liveblogging w/his phone. Bravo.

7.25--Stoltz: Why is turnout so low? Z--Maybe because of people who are registered but have moved. Toomey is talking about tax stuff. Govt income has not been keeping up with inflation.

7.30--Blute likes all the good challengers this year. Toomey says in other parts of the country there is not so much standing-out. Toomey's husband "saved Mike Perotto's life" during a standout.

Toomey says nobody's in it for the glory. Hank points out that nobody wants to give it up.

7.35--The director is firing commands like a machine gun. The interns who are shooting this are getting a trial by fire.

7.40--Everybody gives shoutouts to the local blogosphere + the Dive Bar debate.

7.45--WCRN is figuring out how to cut in and out for commercials

7.50--After a break, Sam Rosario stops by. "The rain always helps the incumbent, because the true voters show up." If Rosen gets the most votes for CC but not mayor, Sam thinks we'll have a serious discussion about strong mayor.

8--Polls close. Zoback hits his mug like a bell.

8.01--More discussion about how a movement towards "strong mayor" would happen

8.05--Here's Palmieri, a district councilor running unopposed

8.06--Mayoral candidate Bill Coleman stops by the control room

8.07--Palmieri reports that the polling places he's visited have higher turnout than normal. Thinks these precincts would help Rosen & Bergman. Palmieri says no way we're getting strong mayor, and we don't need it. Says we need a lobbyist at the state level.

8.14--Zoback said WoMag got "a different copy" of the Germain papers a week before the story broke. They held onto their copy--he's vague about the reason. Palmieri thinks only 100 copies went out.

8.17--Rosario is complaining about how the press has covered this race & people's skeletons in the closet. Zoback details how the Germain story & whisper campaign started. Thinks Germain was "genius" for being so frank about it.

8.24--"Diamond Dave" Maciewski drops by the control room. Grace Ross is walking around somewhere. Scott Zoback is gone.

8.25--Bill Coleman joins the panel. He feels good and thinks a lot of people have switched their vote since the preliminary. "It's kinda been a Bill Coleman Nation kind of thing."

8.30--Channel 12 (govt channel) has some preliminary results.

8.36--Councilor Clancy is in the control room. People are scrutinizing the early tallies. Sam Rosario thinks we'll never have casinos in Worcester. They're reading the early tallies.

My internet dies.

They're reading the early tallies. Mayor is Lukes>Rushton>Rosen>Coleman. Hank predicts Clancy & Palmieri will win :)

Grace Ross is on.

9.23--Rosario thinks more people will get involved in local politics as a result of this highly-contested campaign.

9.24--They're saying Germain is now a City Councilor.

Nice words for the also-rans. The panel hopes to see more of them in the future.

9.26--Calling Eddy the winner.

9.29--Rosario: "Everybody who puts their name on the ballot is a winner."

9.34--Palmieri talks more about D4 race. Points out Lukes may be the first elected woman mayor. Some panelists dance around "the B word."

We take a break, I reset the internet.

9.45--Via Womag, Rushton is calling for a recount. Blute decries the local political machine.

Stoltz sez the mayor has her attorneys standing by in case of recount.

9.50--Lukes talks to the panel via the phone. She has a lead of only 77 votes! Blute: "In this situation it's probably better to be Konnie than to be Rushton."

Rosario explains that some absentee ballots are submitted with too many folds and will have to be hand-counted.

We're trying to get Rushton. WCRN is having trouble reaching him. Mauro points out the recount could effect the at-large race's #6 spot.

10.01--No luck w/Rushton. And we are out!

The sun came out, and the numbers of voters began to grow.

Don't miss WCCA TV13's live election coverage from 7-10 tonight, both on Worcester cable channel 13 and online.

The big news: It's raining.

Wormtown Taxi:

Just the other day, I had one elderly lady tell me that she would cancel a doctor's appointment if it was going to rain. Going out in the rain just to vote, of course, would be out of the question.

Good pix in that story.

Worcester Magazine:

As we were talking, a young guy in a Mustang drove past, backed up and rolled down his window to ask if we had resident permits. He then flashed a badge, told us he was State Police, told us he didn’t want to give us tickets, and kept repeating versions of, “You know how we State Police follow the signs.” It was a definite shot at us as media, specifically Charter, for their story on cops parking in handicapped spots outside the new courthouse.

The Telegram reports that, based on the number of absentee ballots received, the City Clerk is expecting a better turnout than usual.

Forum for Worcester mayoral candidates, the Dive Bar, October 22, 2007. Features Bill Coleman, Rick Rushton, Gary Rosen, and Konnie Lukes. This will air Monday, Nov 5, at 3pm on WCCA TV13. Edited by Kaz Gamble, voiceover by Peter Blute. More about the forum.

Video: Download the mp4 video (154MB) or see other formats.

Note: A time code appears over the first few seconds of this . . . a cleaner version of this video will magically appear before election day, we promise.

The short edit:

Click To Play

The full edit:

You can download the mp4 video (303MB) or try other formats.

• Friday, September 28: 9:30pm
• Saturday, September 29: 10:00am
• Sunday, September 30: Midnight
• Sunday, September 30: 7:30pm

You can also watch individual clips of this forum.

Video: Download the mp4 video (139MB) or see other formats.

Photos: Photos taken at the forum are in the WCCA Flickr photo album.

About the forum:

• Wormtown Taxi: "It was interesting to note which candidates actually answered the questions posed, and which candidates didn't."
• Telegram & Gazette: "Candidates paint picture of art, culture in the city"

Election coverage

• Cultural coalition candidate forum, including video clips from the candidates
• Vote Smart forum
• Dive Bar mayoral forum

Upcoming WCCA broadcasts

• Dive Bar mayoral forum, Nov 5, 3pm

Other election resources

• I'm very curious to see what the T&G does with their website for election day. I know WoMag is going to try to blog heavily that day. WCCA TV13 will have live coverage that evening, and the website will be updated as needed; I'm guessing this will be mostly a running list of relevant blog posts popping up at other sites.
• Telegram & Gazette election page
• List of all candidates