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Deborah Beth Goldberg[1] (born May 11, 1954) is an American politician and lawyer. She is the Treasurer of Massachusetts, serving since January 2015. She was a member of the Board of Selectmen for the town of Brookline, Massachusetts from 1998 to 2004, serving the last two terms as chair. Goldberg was a candidate in the 2006 Massachusetts Democratic primary election for lieutenant governor. In 2018, Goldberg was re-elected as State Treasurer.[2]
Deb Goldberg | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2015 | |
| 58th Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts | |
| Assumed office January 21, 2015 | |
| Governor | Charlie Baker Maura Healey |
| Preceded by | Steve Grossman |
| Member of the Brookline Board of Selectmen | |
| In office 1998–2004 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Deborah Beth Goldberg May 11, 1954 Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse | Michael Winter |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Boston University (BA) Boston College (JD) Harvard University (MBA) |
| Signature |  |
| Website | Government website |
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Goldberg was raised in Brookline and graduated from Boston University (B.A., '75), Boston College Law School (J.D., '83),[3] and Harvard Business School (M.B.A., '85).[4]
Goldberg's family immigrated to Massachusetts and opened a grocery store in Boston's North End in 1892. The family opened additional stores and their business grew into what eventually became Stop & Shop, the largest supermarket chain in New England.[5] Goldberg helped run this family business when she was younger[6] and attributes some of her stance on advocating for local issues to her upbringing with a family-run market. She relates to her constituents with rhetoric such as "I say my family is your family" in her speeches. Though she received an MBA, she states “my real MBA came from working in the business.”[7][6]
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2006 lieutenant governor campaign
In the 2006 Democratic Primary, Goldberg finished second in a three-way race to then-Worcester Mayor Tim Murray with 33% of the vote.
She received the endorsement of the Boston Herald, but failed to win the endorsement of her hometown newspaper, the Brookline Tab, because, they claimed, she had "been taking too much credit" for the town's accomplishments and had "over inflate(d) the chairman's job".[8] The strongly worded rebuke resulted in a vocal reader response[9] and a separate endorsement[10] from Stan Spiegel, a Brookline Tab columnist and Brookline Town Meeting member.
2014 campaign for treasurer
On February 27, 2014, Goldberg formally announced her candidacy for State Treasurer.[11] At the Massachusetts Democratic Convention, she was the top vote-getter in the race for Treasurer, winning 38.9% of the vote.[12] Goldberg was the first to release a televised advertisement in the race on August 4, 2014.[13] Goldberg was seated as Treasurer January 21, 2015 after defeating Republican Mike Heffernan in the general election.
2018 re-election
In 2018, Goldberg was re-elected to her position as State Treasurer with 67.6% of the vote.[14] She defeated State Representative and Republican National Committeewoman Keiko Orrall who was unopposed for the Republican nomination.[15]
2022 re-election
In 2022, Goldberg defeated former software engineer and Libertarian nominee Cristina Crawford.[16] With no Republican opponent, Goldberg was re-elected as State Treasurer with 76.6% of the vote.[17]
Other work
Prior to becoming Treasurer, Goldberg served as president of the board of directors of Adoptions with Love,[18] was an Advisory Board member of the Greater Boston Food Bank, is a Commissioner on the Town of Brookline's Neighborhood Conservation District Commission, was Senate President Therese Murray's appointee to the Treasurer's Commonwealth Covenant Fund, and sat on the advisory board of the Taubman Center for State and Local Government at Harvard Kennedy School.[19]
Goldberg is involved with various events for Jewish organizations such as the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action[20] and was the first Jewish woman elected to statewide office in Massachusetts.[21]
Controversy
In November 2014, it was reported that Goldberg had admonished an employee of Adoptions with Love for seeking employment with the State Treasurer's office without first informing her current employer of her job seeking plans. Goldberg came to this knowledge in her official capacity as Treasurer-elect, and her actions were seen as a breach of ethics.[22][23][24]
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| Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Democratic Primary Election, 2006 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Democratic | Timothy Murray | 351,951 | 42.6 |
| Democratic | Deborah Goldberg | 280,661 | 34.0 |
| Democratic | Andrea Silbert | 192,165 | 23.3 |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 1,602 | 0.2 |
| Massachusetts Treasurer & Receiver-General Democratic Primary Election, 2014 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Democratic | Deborah Goldberg | 202,819 | 42.7 |
| Democratic | Barry Finegold | 149,470 | 31.4 |
| Democratic | Thomas Conroy | 122,198 | 25.7 |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 848 | 0.2 |
| Massachusetts Treasurer & Receiver-General Election, 2014 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| Democratic | Deborah Goldberg | 1,120,192 | 55.1 |
| Republican | Michael James Heffernan | 828,894 | 40.8 |
| Green-Rainbow | Ian Jackson | 81,907 | 4.0 |
| Write-ins | Write-ins | 1,665 | 0.1 |
She is married to Michael Winter, with whom she has two children.[25]
Goldberg received the 2016 Excellence in Leadership Award from The Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Boston (JCRC) and the Massachusetts Association of Jewish Federations (MAJF)'s "Women in Leadership" reception.[26][27]
In 2023, Goldberg received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Boston Arts Academy, Boston's only public arts high school, honoring her deep-rooted connection to the arts.[28]
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