Andrea Harrington apparent winner in contentious Berkshire DA contest

Berkshire County — Andrea Harrington, who won the Democratic primary for Berkshire District attorney, appears to have fended off a challenge from assistant DA Paul Caccaviello, who ran as a write-in candidate after being bested by Harrington in a three-way primary.

Final results were not yet available, in large measure because Caccaviello’s write-in campaign necessitated widespread manual counting, which has slowed the reporting of the results. But preliminary numbers indicated Harrington leading by a margin of almost 2-1.

In Great Barrington the margin was even wider where town clerk Marie Ryan reports that Harrington beat Caccaviello by 2,258 votes to 680, or more than 3-1.

At the Tavern at the A in Pittsfield, state Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, left, and Leigh Davis celebrate Andrea Harrington’s victory in the race for district attorney at Tavern At The A. Courtesy Leigh Davis

Video on Facebook of Harrington supporters, gathered at Tavern at the A in Pittsfield, all but declared victory, with one of them declaring, “It is over!” Harrington herself made an appearance, high-fiving supporters who were shouting “Andrea!” 

Harrington, an attorney from Richmond, won a three-way primary in September against Caccaviello and Great Barrington attorney Judith Knight. But Caccaviello in short order announced a write in campaign and Knight recently endorsed him on her Facebook page.

In a controversial move, Caccaviello became acting DA in March after longtime DA David Capeless announced his resignation, having secured the approval of Gov. Charlie Baker to appoint Caccaviello as his successor, thereby allowing Caccaviello the advantage of running as an incumbent.

Both Harrington and Knight ran as reformers. Click here to read an Edge profile on Harrington and here for an interview with Knight. Both emphasized their support for criminal justice reforms of the sort championed by state Sen. Adam Hinds, who recently endorsed Harrington.

Harrington also secured the endorsements of Attorney General Maura Healey, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal and Pittsfield Mayor Linda Tyer. Two years ago, Harrington lost a Democratic primary for state Senate to Hinds. 

For his part, Caccaviello also secured endorsements in his write-in campaign from a number of individuals and organizations, including the Berkshire County Republicans and the Berkshire Eagle.