Sorting through ballot-mania

MA voters support stronger AI safety: AI safety requires transparency and accountability. A new poll shows that 75% of Massachusetts voters support requiring the largest AI companies to publish safety plans, report serious incidents, and face penalties for non-compliance. — See the poll.

Keller @ large

By now, every last one of you likely have a copy of the book we can’t call a bestseller because it was mailed to you for free. And while millions of us will act on its contents this fall, chances are good that few will ever read it, certainly not all the way through.

This widely distributed and ignored 88-page tome is Secretary of State Bill Galvin’s guide to the 2026 ballot questions, all nine of them. And whether or not anyone wades through it, the questions it describes may be the single biggest factor in this election’s outcome.

Even before this year’s record-setting crop, ballot questions were already well-established lynchpins of Massachusetts political culture.

Forty-six years after voters approved Proposition 2 1/2, which forces local governments to get voter approval before jacking up property taxes, it remains a political third rail, the bête noire of municipal officials, liberals and labor, fiercely protected by taxpayers and legislators who dare not defy them.

Voters struggle to name any of Gov. Maura Healey’s achievements, and the Republican brand is widely reviled here. But ballot questions like the “millionaire’s tax” in 2022 and the legislative audit in 2024 drew impressive support and continue to dominate local political discourse.

And here’s guessing some of the 2026 questions will be a key prism through which swing voters will dope out their candidate choices.

Speaking of doping out, it seems unlikely a majority of voters will throw away the easier access to their favorite vice that legal recreational marijuana offers (Question 8). What’s next - a ban on DraftKings?

Same-day voter registration (Question 4) is probably a slam dunk. So is forcing more public access to records generated by the Legislature and Governor’s office. And more money to create and preserve open space and natural resources (Question 6)? See Question 8.

You won’t see too many sentient politicians trying to hitch their wagons to those horses. But some of the others have the potential to either boost or deflate candidates…

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Jon Keller is a MASSterList columnist. He can be reached at [email protected].

Massachusetts is taking steps to lower energy costs. Let’s get the details right. Say NO to fixed charges. Learn more here.

HAPPENING TODAY

9:00 AM | Supreme Judicial Court sits with two cases on the docket| John Adams Courthouse, Room 1, Boston | More Info

11:00 AM | DoorDash and the YMCA of Greater Boston mark Hunger Action Month with an event announcing a DoorDash donation to the YMCA's food-access work. Sen. Robyn Kennedy, Rep. Jay Livingstone, Boston City Council President Liz Breadon and Councilors Ben Weber and Erin Murphy are scheduled to attend, along with YMCA of Greater Boston President and CEO David Shapiro and DoorDash's Daniela Michanie | Greater Boston Collaborative Food Access Hub, 30 Northampton St.

11:00 AM | Executive Office of Veterans' Services holds a public hearing on proposed regulatory changes for the administration of Chapter 115 veterans' benefits. The safety net program provides benefits for veterans facing financial difficulties, and eligible individuals can receive help with daily living expenses, medical costs, rental assistance, and behavioral health. | Access

2:00 PM| Gov. Healey visits Woodman’s of Essex to deliver $300,000 in relief payments to North Shore shellfish harvesters impacted by emergency closures following the Haverhill sewer overflow | 119 Main Street, Essex

2:00 PM | Hazardous Materials Mitigation Advisory Board meets. Agenda items include a fiscal 2026 incident review and support for the Big E | Access

JOB BOARD

Deputy Comptroller — NEW, City of Newton

Associate General Counsel-MRSB, Office of the State Treasurer and Receiver General

Utilities Program Manager, MassDevelopment

Climate Action Coordinator, City of Newton

Project Manager, District Services, Longwood Collective

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The Commonwealth has over 42,000 nonprofits that educate us, keep us healthy, support our most vulnerable populations, and care for our cultural, historical, and environmental treasures. With federal actions seeking to undermine this critical work, the Massachusetts Council of Nonprofits encourages you to listen to the nonprofit voices in your community and advocate for causes that help them thrive — Learn more.

AROUND BEACON HILL

DEATON MOVING FORWARD: In his quest to unseat U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate John Deaton said he’s been able to talk to unenrolled voters and “disenfranchised" Democrats on the trail, that getting attention for the race has been difficult, and that his challenge is to “get people to look past the label” of Republican and look instead at him as a person and candidate. | NBC

NEWS NEXT DOOR

FLOCK ABOUT IT: Days after the Boston Police Department entered into a pilot program with Flock Safety in 2025, officials realized Flock was distributing data it said it wouldn't to external law enforcement agencies, per the city's 2025 Surveillance Technology Report. | WBUR

MGM SPRINGFIELD FALLING SHORT: Springfield recently filed suit against MGM over its casino host agreement and some Springfield business owners suggest MGM Springfield has been a letdown from what they hoped it'd bring when it landed in the city. | MassLive

FOOD COSTS HITTING CHILDCARE: High food costs are contributing to tight budgets among childcare providers across Berkshire County, and though some programs aim to help with the costs, the administrative burden is significant. | Berkshire Eagle

911 CALL TURNS TO ICE CUSTODY: When a husband called 911 for help with his wife's mental health crisis, she was arrested, charged with domestic violence and kept for days in the Burlington ICE field office with no medication for an infection, she said. A federal judge ordered the 29-year-old Brazilian immigrant's release last week and cautioned ICE about its facility. | Boston Globe

PATRIOT MISSILE CONTRACT: Defense contractor L3Harris Technologies won a $4.7 billion missile manufacturing contract with Lockheed Martin, set to last for seven years. L3Harris operates a manufacturing facility in Northampton, but is based in Florida. | Daily Hampshire Gazette

WITHERING PARTIES: President of MassINC Polling Group Steve Koczela looks at the declining party membership among Massachusetts voters, but writes that they aren't rejecting the party system, just being funneled into an "unenrolled" category. | Commonwealth Beacon

OH CANADA: Reports show Canadians visited the U.S. in 2025 at a declining rate after President Donald Trump took office. There was a slight uptick in visitation over the summer, though in the midst of tariffs and national rhetoric, nobody is sure those gains will remain and some states are turning to promotional campaigns to encourage Canadian travel. | Boston Globe