(Photo via NBC News)
Staff Writer: Kamryn Kobel
Email: kkobel@umassd.edu
The official results of the Massachusetts midterm elections are in. Unsurprisingly, there was a democratic sweep throughout the state.
All 9 of the House seats were won by democrats.
District 1 elected Richard Neal, with 61.4% of the vote.
District 2 elected James McGovern, with 66.2% of the vote.
District 3 elected Lori Trahan, with 63.8% of the vote.
Jake Auchincloss ran unopposed in District 4.
District 5 elected Katherine Clark, with 73.8% of the vote.
District 6 elected Seth Moulton, with 62.8% of the vote.
District 7 elected Ayanna Pressley, with 84.5% of the vote. Pressley won with the biggest lead out of all the congressional districts, with her opponent Donnie Palmer only getting 15.5% of the vote.
District 8 elected Stephen Lynch, with 69.5% of the vote.
District 9 elected Bill Keating, with 59.4% of the vote. This was the closest race; Keating’s opponent, Jesse Brown, had 40.4% of the vote.
Maura Healy was elected as governor, with 63.7% of the vote.
Healy is America’s first openly lesbian governor, making her election a landmark event for the nation. Healy and her lieutenant governor, Kim Driscoll, were one of the three governor tickets in the nation that were entirely female.
According to Healy’s website, she plans to tackle climate change, invest in education, engage in criminal justice reform, work to protect reproductive rights, and address many other issues.
Healy’s election disrupts the eight-year-long Republican control of the governor’s office.
The previous governor, Charlie Baker, decided not to run for reelection. Baker is one of the nation’s most popular and widely approved governors – evident enough through the fact that he was able to hold the position of governor for two terms despite being a Republican politician in the fiercely democratic state of Massachusetts.
Healy is endorsed by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey, Congresswomen Katherine Clark, Ayanna Pressley, Lori Trahan, Congressman Jake Auchincloss, House Speaker Ron Mariano, along with many others.
Bill Galvin was elected as Secretary of State, with 67.8% of the vote. According to his website, “as the Commonwealth’s chief elections official, Secretary Galvin has a proven record of running fair, accurate, and secure elections.” His priorities as Secretary of State are to protect and expand voting rights.
Andrea Campbell was elected as attorney general, with 62.9% of the vote. According to her website, Campbell plans to address opioids, reproductive justice, access to healthcare and education, affordable housing, strengthening gun laws, supporting the LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities, and many more issues.
Campbell is the first Black woman to be elected as attorney general in Massachusetts.
Three out of four of the Massachusetts ballot measures passed.
Question one passed. 52% of people voted yes to increasing taxes on incomes over $1 million.
Question two passed. 71.5% of people voted yes to increased regulation on dental insurance’s spending of their patients’ premiums.
Question three did not pass. 55.3% of people voted no to making changes to retail alcohol licenses and other liquor laws.
Question four passed. 53.7% of people voted yes to allow non-citizens of the United States to obtain driver’s licenses.
For more information on the ballot questions, you can read this Torch article.