Mass. hysteria!

Eyes of nation on Senate race as voters decide on Scott Brown, Martha Coakley --Boston Herald

Amazing Senate battle heads to the finish line

By Jessica Van Sack and Hillary Chabot
Tuesday, January 19, 2010 - Updated 1m ago
Comments 687

A U.S. Senate race widely labeled a yawner just weeks ago reaches a thunderous finish today as Bay State voters cast ballots that could upend Barack Obama’s health-care plan and change the course of his presidency.

Republican state Sen. Scott Brown, 50, of Wrentham faces off against Democratic Attorney General Martha Coakley, 56, of Medford in the pivotal contest to fill the remaining two-year term of the late Sen. Edward M. Kennedy.

At stake in their intense battle is President Obama’s health-care reform goal, Democrats’ fillibuster-proof majority in the Senate, and the state’s long-held reputation as a bastion of blue.

The candidates continued their barnstorming yesterday, with Brown - who has stunned the nation with his longshot surge - striking a populist tone on his “Bold New Leadership Tourâ€