Massachusetts Voters Face a Record-Tying Nine Ballot Questions, Led by Public Records and Gun Law Measures
Massachusetts voters will decide a record-tying nine ballot questions on November 3, with polls open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. In Cambridge, Middlesex County, large numbers of residents have already voted early in person or by mail.
The questions span legislative transparency, unionization of public defender staff, the state tax revenue cap and gun control. The most closely watched is Question 1, which would bring the state Legislature and the governor's office under the public records law. If it passes, members of the public could request financial documents, contracts and administrative correspondence from both, starting January 1, 2027.
Massachusetts has long been the only state where the Legislature, the governor's office and the judiciary are all exempt from the state public records law. State Auditor Diana DiZoglio, who is pushing the measure, won more than 70% of the vote in 2024 for her ballot question expanding her power to audit the Legislature. Three committees backing Question 1 have raised more than $1.4 million.
Question 2 would let staff of the Committee for Public Counsel Services unionize; Question 5 would change how the state tax revenue cap and rebate are calculated; and Question 9 asks voters whether to keep the 2024 gun control law, which added restrictions on homemade firearms and expanded the categories of regulated weapons. Results will be reported after election night.
(Source: The Harvard Crimson)
Source: The Harvard Crimson
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
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