DEMOCRAT JOHN CRONIN was clinging to a tiny lead over Republican Sen. Dean Tran of Fitchburg early Wednesday morning, but Cronin said the trendlines were enough for him to declare victory. “We are confident based on the current tally and outstanding numbers to declare victory,” said Cronin. Tran did not concede and the Associated Press […]
Elections
Posted inThe Download
Baker, McDermott fight to retain control of sheriff’s post
Two years ago, days after she stepped down in late 2018 as chair of the Massachusetts Republican Party, Kirsten Hughes landed on her feet at the Norfolk County sheriff’s office. Hughes, one of Gov. Charlie Baker’s close political allies, was given a $75,000 contract to serve as a special legal counsel, which turned into a […]
Posted inThe Download
Mail-in voting may be here to stay
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, Massachusetts allowed no-excuse mail-in voting for the first time this year as well as expanded early voting – and millions of voters took advantage. By Saturday evening, 2.28 million voters had cast their ballots, either by mail or in person – a number equivalent to more than two-thirds of all […]
Posted inPolitics
Mail-in voting may be here to stay
BECAUSE OF THE coronavirus pandemic, Massachusetts allowed no-excuse mail-in voting for the first time this year as well as expanded early voting – and millions of voters took advantage. By Saturday evening, 2.28 million voters had cast their ballots, either by mail or in person – a number equivalent to more than two-thirds of all […]
Posted inOpinion
Election highlights our collective responsibility
THIS ELECTION is unprecedented in many ways: our country is still in the grips of a pandemic; millions of Americans are voting early and by mail for the first time; and Election Day comes on the heels of a rushed Supreme Court nomination. More than any other in recent memory, this election highlights our collective […]
Posted inOpinion
Voter expression is cause for optimism
MY OLD FRIEND and congressional colleague John S. McCain liked to joke that “it’s always darkest before it’s totally black” – wryly revising notions about it being darkest just before the dawn. Of course, we want dawn to be on the horizon because we always want to have hope. In this very dark year of […]
Posted inOpinion
Vote for climate and democracy
CLIMATE AND DEMOCRACY are on the ballot this fall for hundreds of thousands of voters across the Commonwealth. Voters in all or part of 44 communities (a complete list is at the bottom of this column) will have a chance to signal an instruction to their state representative to vote for 100 percent renewable energy […]
Posted inPolitics
Enviro groups split on state Senate battle
TWO OF THE STATE’S leading environmental groups are split on which candidate is the best to represent the Plymouth and Norfolk Senate district, which includes six coastal communities dealing with climate change and a town that is home to a controversial natural gas compressor station. The Environmental League of Massachusetts endorsed the Republican incumbent, Patrick […]
Posted inPolitics
Baker calls ranked-choice voting too complicated
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER said on Tuesday that he opposes ranked-choice voting because it’s too complicated for both voters and election officials to carry out. The governor said voting is already complicated enough. “From our point of view, this thing [ranked-choice voting] is too complicated to have on top of that,” he said at a State House […]
Posted inOpinion
No excuses, find a way to vote this year
FOR THE LAST three-and-a-half years, we’ve heard the same question over and over: “What happened in 2016?“ The fact is, we know what happened. More than 100 million votes that should have been cast, weren’t. When asked why they hadn’t exercised their right to vote, more than half of eligible voting age adults responded that they […]