Deborah Beth Goldberg (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
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Allston, Fenway–Kenmore, Mission Hill, Jamaica Plain, and ...
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
A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...
. In 2018, Goldberg was re-elected as State Treasurer.
Early life and education
Goldberg was raised in
Brookline
Brookline may refer to:
Places in the United States
* Brookline, Massachusetts, a town near Boston
* Brookline, Missouri
* Brookline, New Hampshire
* Brookline (Pittsburgh), a neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
* Brookline, Vermont
See ...
and graduated from
Boston University
Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original cam ...
(B.A., '75),
Boston College Law School
Boston College Law School (BC Law) is the law school of Boston College. It is situated on a wooded campus in Newton, Massachusetts, about 1.5 miles from the university's main campus in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.
With approximately 800 stud ...
(J.D., '83), and
Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA ...
(M.B.A., '85).
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. Goldberg helped run this family business when she was younger
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.”
[
]
Political career
2006 lieutenant governor campaign
In the 2006 Democratic Primary, Goldberg finished second in a three-way race to then-Worcester
Worcester may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England
** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament
* Worcester Park, London, Engla ...
Mayor Tim Murray with 33% of the vote.
She received the endorsement of the ''Boston Herald
The ''Boston Herald'' is an American daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarded eight Puli ...
'', but failed to win the endorsement of her hometown newspaper, the ''Brookline Tab
The ''Brookline TAB'' is a local newspaper that primarily serves the town of Brookline, Massachusetts along with the surrounding area of Norfolk County, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1979 and is published weekly on Thursdays. The newspaper is ...
'', because, they claimed, she had "been taking too much credit" for the town's accomplishments and had "over inflate(d) the chairman's job". The strongly worded rebuke resulted in a vocal reader response and a separate endorsement 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. At the Massachusetts Democratic Convention, she was the top vote-getter in the race for Treasurer, winning 38.9% of the vote. Goldberg was the first to release a televised advertisement in the race on August 4, 2014. 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 for her position as State Treasurer.
Other work
Prior to becoming Treasurer, Goldberg served as president of the board of directors of Adoptions with Love, 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
The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, publi ...
.
Goldberg is involved with various events for Jewish organizations such as the Jewish Alliance for Law and Social Action and was the first Jewish woman elected to statewide office in Massachusetts. She 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.
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.
Electoral history
Personal life
She is married to Michael Winter, with whom she has two children.
References
Further reading
Supporting state treasurer candidate Goldberg
* ttp://www.masslive.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/05/treasurer_candidate_deb_goldbe.html/ Treasurer candidate Deb Goldberg gets firefighter support
Emily's List Endorses Deb Goldberg for Massachusetts Treasurer
External links
Government website
Deb Goldberg for Treasurer
campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldberg, Deb
1954 births
21st-century American politicians
21st-century American women politicians
Boston College Law School alumni
Boston University alumni
Harvard Business School alumni
Jewish American people in Massachusetts politics
Jewish women politicians
Living people
Massachusetts Democrats
Politicians from Brookline, Massachusetts
State treasurers of Massachusetts
Women in Massachusetts politics
21st-century American Jews