Morrissey Beats 2 Challengers in Dem Nod for Norfolk DA

State Sen. Mike Morrissey (D-Quincy) came out victorious for the Democratic nod for Norfolk County district attorney in Tuesday's state primary.

Morrissey won the election by more than 5,000 votes. State Rep. Joseph Driscoll was the runner up in the election, and Michael Chinman placed third. There was no Republican candidate on Tuesday's ticket.

Morrissey, born and raised in Quincy, has been a state legislator for more than 30 years. Since 1992 he has been the state senator in the Norfolk district.

Morrissey was the only candidate with no experience as a prosecutor, while Chinman resigned from his job in March as a Middlesex County assistant district attorney to run for the top job in Norfolk. Driscoll prosecuted cases in Braintree.

Morrissey was unavailable for comment Wednesday following the election, but his campaign manager, Brian Palmucci, said that leadership experience will help Morrissey in office. He said that the entire campaign was thrilled with the win.

"The voters of Norfolk County truly understand the job of the district attorney," said Palmucci. "The big issue is, did they want a top prosecutor or someone who can lead the whole office? The voters chose someone to lead."

Morrissey is a founder and senior managing partner of a law firm, where he has hired, trained and supervised attornies. This, according to votemorrissey.com, includes one who became a Suffolk County district attorney.

Palmucci said that the office requires a leader with experience in hiring, training and supervising top attorneys. And Morrissey can, and will, do all this, Palmucci said.

It was his first race for elected office for Chinman and he said that while he didn't win, he valued the support he received.

"Close to 10,000 people voted for me, which is great," said Chinman. "One thing I noticed is that I had very ardent supporters. This is very gratifying."

Chinman said that he held a different vision than Morrissey and that the voters clearly supported his Morrissey's agenda rather than his own.

State Rep. Driscoll was unavailable for comment Wednesday.

The district attorney spot became vacant when William Keating left after 12 years, and won the Democratic nomination for the U.S. House seat in the 10th congressional district Tuesday. This spot was left vacant by William Delahunt, who is also a former Norfolk County district attorney.

The next step for Morrissey is the Nov. 2 election, where he will face Independent candidate John Coffey of Dedham.