BEVERLY — Local legislators were split in their decision to give Gov. Deval Patrick the power to appoint an interim senator to fill Ted Kennedy's seat.
The House bill passed 95-58 on Thursday, with representatives from the North Shore stressing an upcoming health care vote as the backdrop of a much larger matter.
"You have to pull aside the veil and look at the substance of the issue," said Rep. Mary Grant, D-Beverly, who voted in favor of the proposal. "For me, the issue is representation. I don't believe you choose to not have a voice."
The state Senate is expected to vote on the bill next week, and if it passes Patrick will name someone to serve until a permanent replacement is chosen in the Jan. 19 special election.
Lawmakers said it's not just about having a voice in Washington as important legislation comes down the line, but making sure the people — be it veterans, immigrants or anyone else who appealed to Kennedy for help — are heard.
"What's most important about what we do is constituent services," John Keenan, D-Salem, said.
He voted for the measure, in part, because once a Senate seat is vacated, that office is required to shut down within 60 days. Staff members are in the middle of cases, he said, and the people they're attending to shouldn't suffer.
"I think what we all agree on," said Rep. Brad Hill, R-Ipswich, "is if a senator gets appointed, he keeps the staff of Sen. Kennedy."
To that end, he voted against naming an interim after signing a letter asking Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to waive that rule, and to keep Kennedy's office open whether someone is appointed or not. The House is still waiting for an answer.
Hill has maintained that "to change the rules in the middle of the game is quite frustrating."
Many Republicans have accused Democrats of being hypocrites for a bill they passed five years ago preventing Republican Gov. Mitt Romney from appointing a replacement for Sen. John Kerry, should he win the presidency. A temporary government appointment was how it was always done up until 2004, when Kerry was running for president.
Rep. Lori Ehrlich, D-Marblehead, agreed with Hill that the timing was bad.
"Changing election laws while an election was under way — that was a problem for me," she said. She voted against the bill.
Rep. Joyce Spiliotis, D-Peabody, also opposed the bill, saying Kennedy's death shouldn't be an excuse to change positions.
"It wasn't the right thing to do," she said.
She also pointed out that the Senate seat has been vacant for extended periods in the past — like the two years when Kerry was running for president and during Kennedy's illness. Plus, she said, if someone were appointed it wouldn't be for very long.
That's exactly why Rep. Ted Speliotis, D-Danvers, was in favor of it.
"I think it's a whole lot of noise about nothing," he said. "It's only a couple of months. If we can have more representation, let's do it. And we did it. I don't see what the big deal is."
For Keenan, the big deal was a provision in the original proposal that said the person appointed had to be of the same political party as the person previously in the seat.
"I did vote in favor after we stripped away the party requirement," Keenan said. "That was very important to me. I feel strongly that a governor, whether it's a Democrat or Republican, should be able to appoint anyone they want."
Staff writer Cate Lecuyer can be reached at clecuyer@salem news.com.
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