What’s this about a Ben Affleck Massachusetts Senate run?
Some local political science experts weighed in today after WBZ News Radio reported that Cambridge-bred movie star Ben Affleck might jump into the Senate race if Massachusetts Senator John Kerry takes over as Secretary of State.
Emails to Affleck’s camp have not yet been returned, but with political analysts eyeing the 40-year-old “The Town” star, Metro reached out to some local political experts to see how the actor/director would fare if he did decide to run.
“What’s different about Affleck is normally these things are done as (actors’) careers is waning,” said Professor Thomas Patterson, who teaches at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. “It would be a little bit unusual… He is pretty much at the peak of his career.”
His personal wealth, star power and prior push for Senate star Elizabeth Warren would likely give him a leg up in a senate race.
“He probably has the internal fire, but it’s a pretty serious decision… You can’t be an actor, “slash” director, “slash” senator,” Patterson said.
If Affleck did decide to run, his movie-star status would not necessarily guarantee him a victory.
“It would be a question of who else is in the mix. If it were five politicians against Affleck, I’d bet on him, but we’d have to see what the line up looks like.”
Until Affleck comes out and says he will run, UMass Boston Political Science Professor Paul Watanabe is skeptical that it will happen.
“There is a big difference between someone saying they would be interested in (running) and someone actually doing it,” he said. “But he would certainly liven up the race if he joined in… He might as well jump in the pool.”
