Editing Worcester, Massachusetts (section)

===Politics===
{{See also|Mayoral elections in Worcester, Massachusetts}}

[[File:Massachusetts Vietnam Memorial-entrance.jpg|thumb|right|Massachusetts Vietnam Veterans' Memorial, erected in 2002]]
Worcester's history of [[social progressivism]] includes a number of [[temperance movement in Massachusetts|temperance]] and [[Abolitionism in the United States|abolitionist]] movements. It was a leader in the [[women's suffrage]] movement: The first national convention advocating women's rights was held in Worcester on October 23–24, 1850.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.worcesterma.gov/city-clerk/history | title=Worcester, MA History | publisher=City of Worcester, Massachusetts | year=2007 | access-date=March 3, 2007 | archive-date=March 4, 2010 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304224655/http://www.worcesterma.gov/city-clerk/history | url-status=live }}</ref>

Two of the nation's most radical abolitionists, [[Abby Kelley|Abby Kelley Foster]] and her husband Stephen S. Foster, adopted Worcester as their home, as did [[Thomas Wentworth Higginson]], the editor of ''The Atlantic Monthly'' and [[Emily Dickinson]]'s avuncular correspondent, and Unitarian minister Rev. [[Edward Everett Hale]].

The area was already home to [[Lucy Stone]], [[Eli Thayer]], and [[Samuel May Jr]]. They were joined in their political activities by networks of related Quaker families such as the Earles and the Chases, whose organizing efforts were crucial to the anti-slavery cause in central Massachusetts and throughout New England.

Anarchist [[Emma Goldman]] and two others opened an ice cream shop in 1892. "It was spring and not yet warm," Goldman later wrote, "but the coffee I brewed, our sandwiches, and dainty dishes were beginning to be appreciated. Within a short time, we were able to invest in a soda-water fountain and some lovely colored dishes."<ref>[https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/peopleevents/p_frick.html American Experience | Emma Goldman | People & Events] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150712130323/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/peopleevents/p_frick.html |date=July 12, 2015 }}. PBS. Retrieved on July 15, 2013.</ref>

On October 19, 1924, the largest gathering of the [[Ku Klux Klan]] (KKK) ever held in New England took place at the Agricultural Fairgrounds in Worcester. Klansmen in sheets and hoods, new Knights awaiting a mass induction ceremony, and supporters swelled the crowd to 15,000. The KKK had hired more than 400 "husky guards", but when the rally ended around midnight, a riot broke out. Klansmen's cars were stoned and burned, and their windows smashed. KKK members were pulled from their cars and beaten. Klansmen called for police protection, but the situation raged out of control for most of the night. The violence after the "Klanvocation" had the desired effect: Membership fell off, and no further public Klan meetings were held in Worcester.<ref name="klanvocation">{{cite web|title=Ku Klux Clan Rallies in Worcester: October 19, 1924|url=http://massmoments.org/moment.cfm?mid=302|website=Mass Moments| date=August 27, 2007 |access-date=June 21, 2017|archive-date=October 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171004160748/http://massmoments.org/moment.cfm?mid=302|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Robert Waring Stoddard|Robert Stoddard]], owner of ''The Telegram and Gazette'', was one of the founders of the [[John Birch Society]].

Sixties era radical [[Abbie Hoffman]] was born in Worcester in 1936 and spent more than half of his life in the city.
{| class=wikitable
! colspan = 6 | Voter registration and party enrollment as of November 24, 2024 – Worcester<ref>{{cite web |title=Registered Voters and Party Enrollment as of October 26, 2024 |publisher=Massachusetts Elections Division |access-date=November 24, 2024 |url=https://www.sec.state.ma.us/divisions/elections/download/research-and-statistics/enrollment_count_20241105.pdf}}</ref>
|-
! colspan = 2 | Party
! Number of voters
! Percentage
|-
| {{party color cell|Democratic Party (United States)}}
| [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]]
| style="text-align:center;"| 33,090
| style="text-align:center;"| 27.82%
|-
| {{party color cell|Republican Party (United States)}}
| [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]]
| style="text-align:center;"| 7,545
| style="text-align:center;"| 6.34%
|-
| {{party color cell|Independent Party (United States)}}
| Unenrolled
| style="text-align:center;"| 76,884
| style="text-align:center;"| 64.64%
|-
| {{party color cell|Libertarian Party (United States)}}
| Political Designations
| style="text-align:center;"| 439
| style="text-align:center;"| 0.37%
|-
! colspan = 2 | Total
! style="text-align:center;"| 118,940
! style="text-align:center;"| 100%
|}