Who’s that third person on the ballot for the Massachusetts special election for US Senate?
Woburn resident Richard A. Heos, a candidate for the 12 Visions Party.
If you haven’t seen the 66-year-old on the campaign trail, you’re not alone. While Republican and Democratic candidates Gabriel E. Gomez and Edward J. Markey have crisscrossed the state campaigning, Heos said, he’s been living his own life in Woburn, working as a referee for local basketball, baseball, and football games, and communicating with supporters at local coffee shops and on social media.
“This is a way to help society by being on the ballot,†Heos said. “But we’re getting the party on the ballot so people will see the party exists.â€
Heos said he’s pro-business and is using his candidacy to advance his party’s status. Heos described the 12 Visions Party as a nonpolitical party that seeks to devolve power to local law enforcement and end entitlement programs and taxation.
“We’re novices,†Heos said of his party. “We don’t expect to win†this race.
Before this run for Senate, which Heos said would be his last run for office, he ran for mayor of Woburn in 1991, then worked for the Republican Party. Heos then joined the 12 Visions Party after it was created in 2009.
Heos plans to spend Election Day in Woburn visiting a local coffee shop, getting lunch at a veterans’ hospital, and maybe playing a game of basketball before heading to the polls just before they close at 8 p.m.
Lauren Dezenski can be reached at lauren.dezenski@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenDezenski.
