Boston City Councilors voted 8-4 in favor of a home rule petition that would begin the process of implementing ranked-choice voting in the capital city, setting up a potential clash with an often disinterested Legislature.
Ballot Questions
Posted inOpinion
Question 1 delivered a harsh verdict on the Legislature
Overwhelming public support for Question 1 suggests state legislators may need to do some soul-searching about how to address the public’s concerns about state government.
Posted inBallot Questions
Political Notebook: Amid ballot fight, teachers union dipped into legislative races
THE FINAL TALLY isn’t in yet, but the latest numbers show the Massachusetts Teachers Association spent more than $15 million on Question 2, their successful ballot measure to neuter the high-stakes MCAS test. But that wasn’t the full extent of efforts by the state’s largest teachers union to influence outcomes in the election. The union’s […]
Posted inBallot Questions
An uphill climb for rideshare unionization
RIDESHARE WORKERS are celebrating the passage of Question 3, which gave them a legal framework to unionize, but the path to unionizing may still prove to be an uphill climb with rideshare companies vowing to lobby lawmakers as the successful ballot measure moves into the implementation phase. House and Senate leadership has already indicated that […]
Posted inBallot Questions
The voters have spoken on Questions 1, 2 – or have they?
With most votes counted, the legislative audit question was approved by a margin of 71.5 percent to 28.5 percent. The MCAS question’s margin was 59-41.
Posted inBallot Questions
Rideshare unionization question passes
“Tomorrow we’re ready to build a union,” said Manny Pastreich, president of 32BJ, the union leading the ballot campaign at the campaign’s election party Tuesday night. “Tomorrow, we’re ready to fight for better wages. Tomorrow, we’re going to fight for better benefits. This is the biggest victory for drivers.”
Posted inBallot Questions
Voters end MCAS graduation test requirement
Voters approved a ballot question that will remove a requirement that Massachusetts high school students pass a 10th-grade standardized test in English, math, and science to graduate.
The vote removes a central pillar of the state’s 1993 education reform law, and makes Massachusetts one of only two states with no statewide-requirements for high school graduation.
Posted inBallot Questions
Voters demand audit of Legislature, hurdles remain
In a brief interview on Tuesday night, DiZoglio said she is prepared to take on the Legislature either in court or on Beacon Hill. She said she is enlisting the support of supportive lawmakers to block any action in the Legislature that would undermine Tuesday’s vote. If that fails, DiZoglio said, she is urging the governor to side with the state’s voters.
Posted inOpinion
The long history of ballot questions influencing races between candidates
Ballot questions can energize and draw voters based on the issue being decided. Less well appreciated: The turnout they generate can affect — and perhaps even decide — the outcome of other contests on the ballot.
Posted inBallot Questions
Five ballot questions all have a workplace connection
The CommonWealth Beacon newsroom discussed the ballot sla.te this week on a special pre-Election Day episode of The Codcast. Some highlights of the conversation follow