Below is the text of the press release issued this morning by the Patrick campaign. But before we get to that, a few preliminaries.

In the wake of Bob Reich’s 2002 campaign for governor, PDM set out to establish a statewide network of activists who could provide a base of active support — in effect, a standing field organization — for whomever emerged as the logical choice for progressive, reform oriented Democrats. The candidate turned out to be Deval Patrick — and PDM has become the organization it set out to be. I am proud to have been one of the founders, and am currently a member of the executive committee. I have come to understand that it is not enough to know about candidates and then vote. Or even to volunteer for candidates. There is no substitute for making activism in electoral politics a part of our lives as citizens. If we don’t, we abandon the playing field to the monied interests, campaign consultants and TV ad agencies. Deval Patrick is the candidate of the engaged citizenry, as the PDM endorsement rationale makes clear. The document is now available on the PDM web site.

The endorsement press release is also featured on the Deval Patrick campaign site.

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Proving that his focus on the issues that matter to voters is connecting with grassroots activists, Deval Patrick has today been endorsed by The Progressive Democrats of Massachusetts. A unanimous vote of the PDM coordinating committee, representing progressive voters and volunteers from all over the state, is putting all of the organization’s efforts behind Deval Patrick’s historic candidacy.

“We are proud to be one of the first organizations to endorse Deval Patrick for governor,” said Peter Dolan, chair of PDM. “We not only enthusiastically support Deval Patrick’s candidacy, but we pledge to work hard to ensure that he is the Democratic nominee – and the next governor of Massachusetts.”

The PDM endorsement comes on the heels of endorsements by former Labor Secretary Robert Reich and former Labor Secretary Alexis Herman, as well as that of Congressman Jim McGovern (D-MA). PDM is committed to building both on Patrick’s 2000 volunteers from all over the state, as well as on his campaign’s fundraising efforts which recently topped a million dollars and have engaged over 10,000 people.

The grassroots fervor created by Reich’s 2002 Democratic primary campaign for governor was the moving force behind the founding of PDM. It has since built a network of dedicated and knowledgeable activists across the state to provide a base of support for progressive Democratic candidates.

“It is said that in politics, whichever side has the best ground game wins,” said Frederick Clarkson of Northampton, a member of the PDM coordinating committee. “We bring to the Patrick campaign a statewide network of seasoned, knowledgeable and dedicated activists who are able to work together in a way that is far greater than the sum of its parts.”

Patrick released his “Moving Massachusetts Forward” economic development and jobs plan last week, including 10 ideas to grow the state’s economy and create jobs. He will be continuing to talk about the plan this week at a number of events.