The pressure campaign to get Brian Shortsleeve to drop out

On May 4, Massachusetts REALTORS® unite as one powerful voice at the annual Margaret C. Carlson REALTOR® Day on Beacon Hill. This year, REALTORS® are fighting to increase housing access by advancing zoning reform, housing production, fair housing education, funding for crumbling concrete foundations, and pre-service board & commission training—and opposing real estate transfer taxes and rent control.

Mike Minogue’s campaign is moving quickly down the tracks after winning a 70% share of GOP delegates in Worcester, hosting a “unity rally” in Danvers earlier this week and packing a room full of hundreds of Republicans, and top party officials. They are ready to “transition” to the November general election against Maura Healey, the incumbent Democrat.

The one hangup with the so-called transition is there’s still a primary challenger for the Sept. 1 primary: MBTA chief Brian Shortsleeve, who qualified for the September ballot with support from 15.5% of delegates. (Mike Kennealy, a former Charlie Baker cabinet chief, fell just short of the 15% threshold.)

“No candidate who has earned 70% or more of the delegate vote has ever lost a primary, and no candidate receiving 15% has ever gone on to win,” the Minogue campaign said in a release Wednesday.

Minogue has also brought into his campaign people tied to President Donald Trump, and launched an intro ad, which Axios Boston noted is titled “Momentum” and doesn’t mention Trump or Healey.

Minogue allies are less subtle in trying to throw Shortsleeve from the moving train. Massachusetts First, the super PAC run by Minogue’s childhood friend, posted to X this week a call for Shortsleeve to “do the right thing, suspend his campaign, and unite the party to focus on firing” Healey.

Along the same lines, Minogue supporter Jim Lyons, who ran the state GOP into a financial ditch during his time as chair, posted to Facebook the delegate numbers from the Worcester convention and wrote, “Is this all about you Brian? Your consultant?”

That was a reference to the combative Holly Robichaud, and neither she nor her client seem inclined to back down. (In a 2010 state rep race, Robichaud worked on a Republican campaign which gained notice for sending a mailer to voters that, when opened, played a sound file of the incumbent Democrat’s incendiary comments on the House floor in opposition to stronger mandatory minimum sentences for sex offenders.)

Shortsleeve hit back at Minogue in an Instagram video. “Congratulations to Mike Minogue for winning the insider game which is the state convention,” he said. “Now, 300,000 Republican primary voters will decide this race. They’re not going to settle for slick TV ads and empty rhetoric, no matter how much money gets spent.”

Shortsleeve has his own super PAC, led by a former Sen. Scott Brown aide. Commonwealth Unity, which recently in addition to boosting Shortsleeve and criticizing Healey – turning her into Godzilla in one image and digitally altering another to clothe her in a sombrero and poncho –  also began taking aim at Minogue.

“Fun fact: In 2013 Mike Minogue donated $12,000 to the Markey Grassroots Victory Fund, an [Ed Markey] fundraising committee and that’s not the only Democrat he’s helped out,” said one of the super PAC’s X posts. Could a Minogue-as-Mothra post be next?

Reached on the phone, Shortsleeve reiterated his calls for debates with Minogue, and pushed back when asked about GOP Senate nominee John Deaton’s claim on social media that the campaign to knock out Markey is more important because a Republican governor would run into  Democratic supermajorities on Beacon Hill. 

“For me, the complete focus is on September 1st,” Shortsleeve said.

A Sept. 1 primary is a bracing way to come out of a summer break for most voters. Should primaries be held earlier in the year? Let me know what you think: [email protected].

Senators Michael J. Rodrigues, Chair of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means, and Paul R. Feeney, Assistant Vice Chair and Chair of the Joint Committee on Financial Services, join REALTORS® from across Massachusetts at the annual Margaret C. Carlson REALTOR® Day on Beacon Hill to advocate for policies that increase access to homeownership and protect private property rights.

9:00 | Opportunity Boston, formerly the Boston Opportunity Agenda, hosts an event to release "Cradle to Career Outcomes Report: Partnerships Driving Progress." The report looks at Boston Public Schools and Commonwealth Charter Schools students and how they're faring across areas of kindergarten readiness, early grade reading, middle grade math and several metrics related to high school graduation, and into postsecondary success. The event will feature remarks from BPS Superintendent Mary Skipper. | Bruce C. Bolling Building, 2300 Washington St., Boston | Register

10:00 | The MBTA Board holds a hybrid meeting. | Transportation Building, 2nd Floor, 10 Park Plaza, Boston | More

10:30 | Gov. Maura Healey tours Assabet Valley Regional Vocational High School and hosts a press conference about "the expansion of career technical education seats for high school students across the state," according to her office, which said the announcement "will reduce waitlists and help meet the needs of regional employers." Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, Education Secretary Stephen Zrike, Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Pedro Martinez,  and local elected officials join. | Assabet Valley Regional Vocational Technical High School, 215 Fitchburg St, Marlborough

10:30 | Boston Mayor Michelle Wu joins developer Pennrose, the Hyde Square Task Force, MassDevelopment representatives and local elected officials to celebrate the groundbreaking of the redevelopment of Jamaica Plain’s Blessed Sacrament Church. The church will be turned into 55 mixed-income homes. Wu also plans to sign a home rule petition for a real estate transfer fee to fund affordable housing. | 30 Sunnyside Street, Boston

10:30 | Local officials announce the first-ever “Ambassador City” partnership between the National Hispanic Cultural Center, the city of Salem, and the operator of the Punto Urban Art Museum.  The event will include Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo, Rep. Manny Cruz and Zack Quintero, the executive director of the National Hispanic Cultural Center Foundation. | North Shore Community Development Coalition, 96 Lafayette Street, Salem

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Planning for the World Cup’s arrival in Massachusetts appears to have stabilized after some bumpiness, according to state officials involved in the effort. Matches are set for June and July, during an already busy summer for the region, ranging from celebrations marking America’s 250th birthday, the Tall Ships, and the usual concerts and Red Sox games that are a highlight of the season. Jeevan Ramapriya, a top official in the Executive Office of Economic Development, acknowledged the challenges at a Wednesday meeting of Massachusetts Marketing Partnership, which was created to coordinate marketing efforts between state agencies. That included the well-documented fundraising troubles of Boston Soccer 26, the nonprofit helping local organizing of the World Cup. “We got through it,” Ramapriya said, noting that the matches are now roughly 40 days away.

Daniel Lander, the Michelle Wu aide running against incumbent Belmont Sen. William Brownsberger, has pulled a dozen endorsements from elected officials and activists in Watertown. His campaign touted the backing of Will Pennington, the former Watertown Democratic City Committee chair, and Merrie Najimy, a former president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association. Two members of the Watertown School Committee, Sheila Krishnan and Lisa Capoccia, are also on the list. Brownsberger, whose district also includes Belmont and part of Boston, picked up the support of Gov. Maura Healey in March.

Mass General Brigham’s commitment to improving community health beyond hospital walls continues as we address food insecurity. Through our partnership with the Greater Boston Food Bank, we’re expanding access to nutritious food across the communities we serve.

HOUSE PASSES BUDGET: House lawmakers voted 149-9 to pass their version of the state budget, adding roughly $81 million over the course of three days, and rejecting Republican proposals for tax relief or spending cuts. The addition of $81 million is below average; a Mass. Taxpayers Foundation Found between fiscal 2024 and fiscal 2026, $102 million was the average amount in additional spending added. – State House News Service (gift link)

EVICTION PREVENTION: Advocates of a state program to help tenants facing eviction are looking for more funding, saying there’s high demand amid the ongoing housing crisis. – CommonWealth Beacon

MASS SAVE: Whether the Mass Save program – now at the center of a Beacon Hill debate over energy affordability – is a “resounding success” or a “money suck” depends on who you talk to. – Boston Globe

CAMBRIDGE BUDGET: The city of Cambridge’s budget could hit $1 billion this year. City Manager Yi-An Huang submitted a $1.03 billion spending proposal, which if enacted would make it the first city in the state, after Boston, to hit 10 figures. – Cambridge Day 

TROOPER SCANDAL WIDENS: The handling of a State Police trooper’s 2023 crash that left a man dead is continuing to ripple, as a probe into the crash and its aftermath could touch more than 100 criminal cases. – MassLive

ICE DETAINER RECORDS: After a WBUR appeal to the state supervisor of records, the Boston Police Department released 300 pages of ICE detainer records, offering some insight into the agency’s push for local authorities to turn over immigrants in their custody. – WBUR

WEALTH TAXES: The idea of new taxes on wealthy residents is spreading throughout the country, picking up steam in about a dozen states, including Illinois, Rhode Island, Virginia and Minnesota. – Stateline

DeMARIA ALLEGATIONS: Former Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria violated conflict of interest laws by improperly getting payments from a program he jumpstarted, and then sought to hide the payments from the public, the State Ethics Commission alleged in a filing. – WCVB-TV

RETURN TO OFFICE: Financial services giant Fidelity has ended its hybrid work policy, mandating that employees return to the office five days a week. – Bloomberg

PROPERTY TAX LAWSUIT: Lawyers for the city of Boston and the commercial real estate sector faced off in Suffolk Superior Court over whether there’s a disagreement on a property’s market value or there are retaliatory tactics happening. – Boston Business Journal

CHARTER CHANGE: A group that includes former Rep. Matt Muratore is seeking to eliminate Plymouth Town meeting through a 2027 ballot question. – Plymouth Independent

Mayor Wu selected for AI forum with other city executives

World Cup host cities could get little return on investment in matches

Boston Properties president sees demand for lab space returning

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Executive Operations and Coordination Manager, Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities

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