Hewins appears victorious with 89-vote margin in state rep race
Sarah Hewins, center, stands with two supporters in front of Town Hall on Election Day. Photo by Erin Darling
Sarah Hewins, center, stands with two supporters in front of Town Hall on Election Day. Photo by Erin Darling
With preliminary vote tallies reported at press time, Democrat Sarah Hewins appeared to be narrowly successful in her challenge of state Rep. John Gaskey (R-Carver).
In a district encompassing all of Wareham and Carver and a portion of south Middleboro, the incumbent Gaskey won the contest in both Carver and Middleboro. The arrival of the Wareham vote count at around 7 a.m. on Nov. 4 gave Hewins a lead of 89 votes.
In total, Hewins received 9,264 votes and Gaskey received 9,175.
Wareham appears to have given Hewins edge. She earned 5,274 votes in the town, while Gaskey got 4,548 votes.
In Carver, where both candidates are from, Gaskey won with 2,787 votes while Hewins received 2,573. Gaskey also won Middleboro by 13%, receiving 1,840 votes to Hewins’ 1,417.
The results have not yet been certified.
Gaskey declared victory in a Facebook post on the night of Nov. 3 before the Wareham results were released, but has since deleted the post.
This result marks the first time the district has elected a Democrat since 2000. Gaskey defeated former Rep. Susan Gifford (R-Wareham), who held the office from 2002 to 2024, in the 2024 Republican primary. He eventually beat Hewins, who launched a write-in campaign in response to his primary win.
Hewins, who has served on the Carver Select Board since 2009, ran on her long career in public service to claim the state representative seat. Ahead of the election, Hewins called herself an “independent-minded Democrat” supporting transparency in the state Legislature and combating high energy costs.
Before her 2024 write-in campaign, she ran against Gifford in 2016 and 2018, losing by over 10 points both times. But this time, she got her win.
Gaskey, who narrowly defeated Mark Townsend for the Republican nomination in the September primary, has pitched himself as an “anti-establishment” conservative, supporting an audit of the state Legislature, advocating for looser gun laws and criticizing state-enforced housing policies.
During his time in the state Legislature, Gaskey has also proposed several items related to transgender youth, including a proposal to ban transgender student athletes from playing on teams matching their gender identity and restrictions on youth access to gender-affirming surgeries and hormones.
Neither candidate was available for comment ahead of press time.
