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Kennedy Favored In Primary

Tomorrow's Cambridge Democratic primaries, the only serious hurdle for candidates in a city with six Democrats to every Republican, probably won't lead to dramatic change on Capitol or Beacon Hills.

While anti-incumbent fever threatens the careers of his colleagues, U.S. Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II, a six-year veteran of the House, is virtually guaranteed to prevail in tomorrow's primary. His opponent, Charles C. Yancey, a Boston City Councillor, has been all but ignored by the local media.

Even the local networks and papers like The Boston Globe gave only scant attention to the Kennedy-Yancey debate. When Yancey's name got into print, it was usually accompanied by a prediction that he had no chance of winning.

Cambridge City Councillor Timothy Toomeyappears the favorite in a tighter race for theState House seat vacated by Peter Velucci. KarenUlminski, one of Velucci's aides, is challengingToomey.

Given his stature and favorable attention fromthe media, Kennedy will likely glide to victoryfor a fourth term. Since winning the seat as ajunior at Providence College in 1986, hispopularity has increased among the working-classand poor communities he represents.

Kennedy wrote amendments to the Home MortgageDisclosure Act which require banks to report loansthey make to residents in their community. Thechanges were made to expose "redlining" practices,which prevent minorities from receiving the samekinds of loans as whites.

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Kennedy also boasts of winning $27 million tothe district for public housing in Somerville, andof protecting 17,000 local public housing unitsfrom condominium developers.

Aside from his litany of social programs,Kennedy espouses a few policies which makeCambridge progressives which make Cambridgeprogressives wince. He supports the death penalty,having voted twice in Congress for its use inextreme circumstances. Yancey opposes capitalpunishment.

Yancey also challenges Kennedy's vote for thebalanced budget amendment as a mere substitute forserious deficit-cutting measures.

On social issues, Yancey has a similarprogressive record on the local level,representing the regions of Roxbury, Dorchesterand Mattapan as a city councillor. The first Blackon a state-wide ballot, Yancey says his race is anasset in a state which has 13 white malescurrently in Congress.

Yancey has made an issue of his opponent'sfamily legacy, questioning how genuinelyanti-establishment a Kennedy could be.

"Look at his last name," Yancey says. "Itdoesn't get more establishment than that."

Yancey proposed legislation in the City Councilwhich would have forced the city to divest fromSouth Africa, a withdrawal of $12.5 million. Healso helped reopen police and fire stations in1984 which were closed by Proposition 2 1/2.

Yancey supports national legislation whichwould fund the superconducting supercollider, a $9million project which Kennedy opposed. Yanceyalso says he is better able to convert defensespending to domestic spending quickly.

Like many candidates, including someincumbents, Yancey has emphasized the "gridlock inWashington" theme, promising to inject new resolveinto the national legislature.

On Beacon Hill

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