Five-term Governor’s Councilor Eileen Duff said this week she will be a candidate for Essex County Register of Deeds in 2024 following incumbent John L. O’Brien Jr.’s decision not to seek re-election.
Duff has served on the Governor’s Council since initially being elected in 2012. Over the last 11 years, she said, she has worked closely with the Deval Patrick, Charlie Baker and Maura Healey administrations to ensure “the justice system in Massachusetts is responsible, fair and equitable for all in the Commonwealth.”
“I’m proud of what I have been able to accomplish while a member of the Governor’s Council,” Duff said. “I worked across the aisle with Democratic and Republican administrations to bring fairness and common sense into the Massachusetts justice system. I look forward to earning the support of Essex County so I can continue that work as Register of Deeds.”
WHAV first reported in the spring of 2016 that Southern Essex District Register of Deeds O’Brien Jr. said he is suffering from Lewy body dementia with Parkinsonian symptoms. He said at the time, “People know me well enough to realize that should I, at any time, reach the point where I could not perform my duties and responsibilities I would step aside. Hopefully that day is a long time down the road. What I am attempting to do in making this announcement is to put a face to a disease that has affected millions of people and without a cure will only affect millions more.”
Duff said in a statement is uniquely qualified for the position of Register since “she has served as a Realtor for two decades and, owing to her service as governor’s councilor, is an expert on the Massachusetts court system.”
Growing up in Peabody, Duff is a longtime resident of Gloucester where she lives with her wife, Jan. She holds a bachelor’s in History from Trinity Washington University and master’s in Management from Cambridge College.