Sheriff of Hampden Co. hold an annual cookout before election season

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (WGGB/WSHM) – A summer tradition returned to Springfield on Wednesday when Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi hosted his annual drive-in that drew large crowds and started plenty of political discussion.

“All politics (is) local because we know our people inside and out,” Cocchi said.

Local politics was just one of the items on the menu Wednesday at Cocchi’s annual summer cookout.

“It’s a great time to talk to people who are running for office,” Cocchi explained.

The summer tradition brought together about 1,000 people with the promise of food and fun, while also giving political hopefuls a chance to make connections with potential voters.

“They can either win someone’s vote or lose someone’s vote depending on the conversation they’re having,” Cocchi noted.

“It’s great. You can have conversations and meet people and understand what people really want,” said Judy Berault of Ludlow.

For voters, events like Wednesday’s can make all the difference.

“It’s absolutely important. You’ll see who they are, some of their platforms and even what kind of person they are,” added Berault.

The late summer meeting came at an opportune time for politicians. The event came just days before early voting began for the Massachusetts primary.

“People are starting to make up their minds about who they’re going to vote for. I think this could be a very critical time, whether it’s a federal election, a state election or a local election,” Cocchi said.

Among the political who’s who of the night was Massachusetts Commonwealth Secretary William Galvin, who was in western Massachusetts to launch his push for early voting.

“The intensity of this election is about to increase. Now it’s just a matter of days until the general election,” Galvin said.

I caught up with Galvin earlier in the day, where he also emphasized the importance of getting involved during the election season.

“There are a lot of reasons to vote, and hopefully people will take advantage of that,” Galvin added.

At Cocchi’s event, voters had a chance to put faces to the names they’ll see on the ballot next month, including state Sen. Adam Gomez and Springfield City Councilman Malo Brown, who are both eyeing the Senate seat of state, centered in Springfield. .

Early voting begins this weekend.

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