Tisei campaigns for 6th District on Election Day

PEABODY, Mass. (WHDH) -- Incumbent John Tierney is facing a tough challenge from Republican Richard Tisei in the race for the 6 congressional district.

Tisei greeted voters outside Lynnfield High, his former high school and a polling place Tuesday.

The Beacon Hill veteran admitted he owes his chance for a seat in Congress in part to the gambling scandal the put his opponent's wife and her family in federal court.

“They don’t expect perfection in their elected officials, but they expect you to be up front and honest and I think to a lot of people I don’t feel as though he’s passed that test,” said Richard Tisei.

Gerri Frost, a former longtime Democrat and Tierney voter admitted she was turned off by the scandal, but says she's also drawn to Tisei's record as an independent-thinking Republican.

“I think for a lot of us, it’s that he does not necessarily vote with a party and he studies the issues and votes how he feels it’s best going to serve the people in his district,” said Frost.

Tisei joked he was a Scott Brown Republican before there was a Scott Brown. And Tisei pointed out it was a younger Brown who worked on his first campaign.

“People right now don’t care so much about Democrat or Republican, they want people who can work together and who are problem solvers. And that’s been my history and that’s what I think I can do,” said Tisei.