The Massachusetts State House with its gold dome on Beacon Hill in Boston, Massachusetts election 2026

Massachusetts Election 2026: Governor Race and Nine Ballot Questions

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Key takeaways

  • The Nov. 3, 2026 ballot has nine binding statewide questions, according to the Secretary of the Commonwealth, plus non-binding questions in some legislative districts.
  • In a CommonWealth Beacon/MassINC Polling Group survey of 800 likely voters (Sept. 14-22; margin of error about 4 points), Gov. Maura Healey led Republican Mike Minogue 54% to 32% and Sen. Ed Markey led Republican John Deaton 54% to 28%.
  • The same poll found the marijuana repeal (Question 8) trailing 27% to 61% and the 2024 firearms law (Question 9) leading 70% to 18% among likely voters; several other questions were near or below 50% support with many undecided.
  • The $63.4 billion FY27 state budget was signed July 9 with no vetoes, per State House News Service. The Legislature’s remaining agenda and any post-election actions are not covered here.

Massachusetts voters will choose a governor, a U.S. senator, U.S. House members, state legislators and county officials on Nov. 3, and will decide nine statewide ballot questions, a record-tying number, per the Lexington Observer. This report summarizes the contests and ballot questions using official election materials and attributed polling. Polls are snapshots with margins of error, not forecasts, and we cite each with its field dates.

The governor’s race

Healey, a Democrat seeking a second term, had no primary opponent on Sept. 1. Her Republican challenger is Mike Minogue, a former chief executive of Abiomed, who beat Brian Shortsleeve in the primary with more than 75% of the vote, according to WBUR. Minogue’s running mate is New Bedford City Councilor Shawn Oliver, who won the Republican primary for lieutenant governor; WBUR reported that Minogue’s preferred running mates were blocked from the ballot over signature-gathering issues. CommonWealth Beacon reported that Minogue has contributed more than $15 million to his own campaign. Healey has agreed to two debates, per WBUR; WCVB reports that the final televised debate, hosted by WCVB, WBUR and The Boston Globe, is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 15 from 8 to 9 p.m.

The CommonWealth Beacon/MassINC survey, conducted Sept. 14-22 among 800 likely voters with a credibility interval of 4 percentage points, found 54% would pick Healey or lean toward her and 32% would pick Minogue. Healey’s favorability was 52% favorable and 33% unfavorable. Twenty-seven percent of respondents had not made up their mind about Minogue and 16% had not heard of him, according to CommonWealth Beacon. The same report said only 25% of likely voters viewed President Trump favorably and 67% unfavorably. Respondents named the cost of living as the area where Healey had been least successful, with about six in 10 saying so, and nearly half citing housing costs. CommonWealth Beacon also noted that a June Suffolk University/Boston Globe poll found more than half of voters could not name a signature Healey accomplishment. Mayor Michelle Wu endorsed the Healey-Driscoll ticket earlier this month; see our report, Wu Endorses Healey, Driscoll Ticket for Reelection.

Senate and House races

Markey won the Democratic Senate primary over Rep. Seth Moulton with about 65% of the vote, WBUR reported, and faces Republican John Deaton in November. The CommonWealth Beacon poll showed Markey at 54% and Deaton at 28%. WBUR reported that Markey, 80, has pledged this would be his final term if he wins. In the House, WBUR reported that all five incumbents who faced primary challengers won, though Rep. Richard Neal’s challenger came within single digits in the 1st District. In the open 6th District, Democrat Dan Koh faces Republican Micah Jones; WBUR noted the district has not sent a Republican to Congress in over three decades.

The nine ballot questions

All nine are described in the official summaries below, which come from the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The percentages are from the MassINC poll except where noted.

  • Question 1 (public records): would make most records of the Legislature and the governor’s office public records, with exemptions for policy-development documents and certain constituent communications. Poll: 63% yes, 14% no; an August UMass Amherst/WCVB poll found 84% to 7%, per the Lexington Observer.
  • Question 2 (public defender union): would permit employees of the Committee for Public Counsel Services to bargain collectively. Poll: 48% yes, 25% no.
  • Question 3 (all-party primary): would replace party primaries for state elections with a single primary in which the top two candidates advance. Poll: 43% yes, 36% no, about 20% undecided.
  • Question 4 (Election Day registration): would let eligible people register or update their address at the polls, effective Jan. 1, 2028. Poll: 53% yes, 33% no. Our report on a Boston City Council resolution about it is here: Question 4 Resolution Heads to Boston City Council Vote.
  • Question 5 (revenue cap): would limit annual state revenue growth to average wage growth, with rebates of any excess. Poll: 47% yes, 26% no.
  • Question 6 (Nature for All Fund): would direct sales taxes on sporting goods, recreational vehicles and golf to a conservation fund, subject to appropriation. Poll: 56% yes, 24% no.
  • Question 7 (single-family homes): would allow single-family homes on lots of at least 5,000 square feet with sewer and water access in residential zones, subject to local regulation. Poll: 51% yes, 24% no.
  • Question 8 (marijuana): would repeal retail adult-use sales while allowing possession of up to an ounce and keeping medical marijuana. Poll: 27% yes, 61% no.
  • Question 9 (2024 firearms law): a referendum on the existing law; a yes vote keeps it. Poll: 70% keep, 18% repeal.

MassINC’s Steve Koczela told CommonWealth Beacon that for ballot questions, “the yes percent tends to be the best predictor,” and that undecided voters generally break toward the status quo; his colleague Rich Parr said questions in the “gray area” could move. More than three-quarters of respondents said it is a good thing for voters to decide such issues.

Beacon Hill and the budget

Healey signed the $63.4 billion fiscal 2027 budget on July 9 without vetoes, according to State House News Service. The budget, a 3.9% increase over fiscal 2026, draws on $2.7 billion in surtax revenue on high earners and raises no taxes or fees, the outlet reported, and sends $51 million into the rainy day fund, projected to reach $8.2 billion by the end of FY27. Unrestricted local aid rises $40 million to $1.363 billion. Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation president Doug Howgate called the agreement “remarkably aligned” with Healey’s January proposal. The report noted that a federal law reshaping public benefit programs poses financial risks, and that MassBudget raised concerns about caseworker funding at the Department of Transitional Assistance, which the department disputed. State legislative primaries on Sept. 1 included several contested Senate races in which Wu backed challengers, with mixed results, per WBUR. For Boston-specific coverage, see Boston news and politics and government.

What to watch

  • The Oct. 15 gubernatorial debate and any new polls from UMass, Suffolk, MassINC or others, each with its dates and margin of error.
  • Campaign spending on the ballot questions; most spending comes late, according to MassINC.
  • Election Day, Nov. 3, and the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s official results.

Sources