Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is winding down his second term in office and preparing to pass off the corner office to his successor Governor-elect Charlie Baker on Thursday.
On Wednesday afternoon the outgoing Governor is expected to embark on the traditional “Lone Walk,” said to date back to the late 19th century.
“There’s a disputed history… but it goes back... to Governor Butler who in 1884 was virtually friendless as he left so he had to take the walk by himself. In recent years though, Governors have sometimes taken a walk with a wife or staff members and so forth,” said Maurice (Mo) Cunningham, Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts in Boston and contributor to WGBH’s partner MassPoliticsProfs.
And despite some bumps on the road during his tenure – for example, last year the Gov. Patrick unsuccessfully proposed $1.9 billion in revenues to address transportation and education issues – Cunningham believes the Governor will be walking away from his eight-year term proudly.
