2018 MA Governor's race: on Government Reform
Charlie Baker:
Automatic voter registration via RMV and MassHealth
Hundreds of thousands of new voters could join the state's rolls in the coming years after Governor Charlie Baker signed legislation that adopts automatic voter registration. The voting measure registers eligible residents when they get their driver's
licenses or health insurance through the state.The automatic voter registration law makes Massachusetts the 14th state to adopt such a measure. Under the new law, eligible residents who interact with the Registry of Motor Vehicles or the MassHealth
program will have to opt out if they don't want to join the voter rolls, rather than opt in.
The law also allows the secretary of state to reach agreements with state agencies to automatically register voters if they meet certain criteria, potentially
further expanding the net the state can cast to reach eligible residents.
Baker previously said he had confidence that the state could install automatic voter registration with a "fairly high degree of integrity" at the Registry of Motor Vehicles.
Source: Boston Globe on 2018 Massachusetts gubernatorial race
Aug 9, 2018
Bob Massie:
Organized people can beat organized money
I reject the idea that our political future should be determined by elites. I know, as does Our Revolution Massachusetts, that organized people can beat organized money and entrenched power.The grassroots power of 10,000 Our Revolution
Massachusetts members and friends will be critical to successful caucuses, as well as building momentum toward the primary and general elections. We will work to employ their creativity and energy in a genuine people-powered campaign.
Source: ORMA questionnaire on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Dec 20, 2017
Jay Gonzalez:
Special interests and big money have no place in elections
Special interests and big money have no place in our elections. As Governor, I will work to curtail the influence of moneyed interests in politics and increase disclosure requirements that will bolster transparency around how campaigns and outside
groups raise and spend their funds. I support passage of a federal constitutional amendment that will expressly permit Congress and states to regulate campaign contributions and expenditures, including corporate contributions.
I am proud to be one of the first candidates in the country to sign the American Promise pledge to use my office to advance this amendment. I also propose creating new disclosure requirements for donors to independent expenditure groups and closing
existing loopholes in state campaign finance laws that allow special interests & big donors to exert undue influence. I'm the only candidate that has published a detailed campaign finance reform policy that includes these and other proposals.
Source: ORMA questionnaire on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Dec 20, 2017
Setti Warren:
Supports automatic voter registration
Of the eight specific federal legislative proposals in ORMA's "People's Platform," I am fully comfortable supporting the first five, including the Automatic Voter Registration Act, and I will work to implement each of these in Massachusetts as governor.
SummerForProgress.com summary of H.R. 2840, the Automatic Voter Registration Act:
We fought for elimination of superdelegates coming from Massachusetts, as well as a Ranked Choice Voting (RCV) system.
Both measures are included in the platform and RCV will be on the 2020 ballot. We support the pending legislation in the state house for Automatic Voter Registration.
Our goal is to revitalize democracy here in the commonwealth by supporting legislation that would increase civic engagement and remove barriers to voting.
Source: ORMA questionnaire on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Dec 20, 2017
Jay Gonzalez:
Strong campaign finance policies ensure democracy's promise
Let's aim high on campaign finance reform. "We the people" is a cornerstone of our American political identity. America is its people. But we know that our democracy is not self-fulfilling. It takes us, all of us, to breathe life into it and protect it.
We cannot take it for granted.Our collective well-being depends on a strong, healthy and responsive democratic government. We need to aim high to ensure that our elections and government are open and responsive to all of us.
We need to make it easier for regular people to impact elections and policy, and to participate equally in the political process, regardless of their income and resources.
We need strong campaign finance policies to ensure that our democracy
fulfills its promise to each and every one of us, to the people. Unfortunately, the current system for funding elections falls far short of the ideal, both nationally and right here in Massachusetts.
Source: 2018 Massachusetts gubernatorial campaign website jay4ma.com
Dec 12, 2017
Jesse Gordon:
Reform campaign finance to stop protecting incumbents
Q: Citizens United, a 5-4 Supreme Court decision, resulted in enabling the wealthiest people and largest corporations in this country to contribute unlimited amounts of money to campaigns.
This decision must be overturned and corruption in politics must end. This means fighting to pass a constitutional amendment making it clear that Congress and the states have the power to regulate money in elections.
We must also eliminate super PACs and other outside spending abuses and work to aggressively enforce campaign finance rules. A: Agree.
Candidate's position on this issue:
Campaign finance reform should focus on fighting the system that protects incumbents and the wealthy; realistically the only solution is public campaign financing.
Source: ORMA questionnaire on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Jul 31, 2017
Jesse Gordon:
Why require in-person voting? Why register? Why Tuesday?
Q: In order to protect our democracy, we must fight for a publicly financed, transparent system of campaign financing that amplifies small donations. We must also ensure that all Americans are guaranteed an effective right to vote.
A: Agree.
Candidate's position on this issue: On the right to vote, every restriction should be questioned: Why require pre-election registration at all? Why require in-person voting? Why Tuesday?
Source: ORMA questionnaire on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Jul 31, 2017
Bob Massie:
Rigged political system addressed by democratic engagement
Q: How do you deal with what Bernie Sanders referred to as the rigged political system? A: I think the founders would be horrified by the level of power exerted by the wealthy and by corporations. And if the founders had been able to anticipate them,
they would certainly have denied corporations the idea that they were somehow a person with constitutional rights.
Q: What can be done?
A: I don't understand why people ignore politics. The one thing that can overcome the [corporate] forces is
democratic engagement. But [corporate forces] understand that, so they do everything they can to dishearten us, to disenfranchise us, to suppress voters, to change the rules. In fact, I believe that the Republican Party has realized that the only way it
can stay in power is by continuing to cheat--cheating in voter suppression, cheating in Citizens United, in redistricting, cheating in just about every way they can, to make sure that only the people who are likely to vote for them get to vote.
Source: Commonwealth Magazine on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Jun 16, 2017
Setti Warren:
Public records laws for open and transparent governing
As Mayor of Newton, Setti Warren governed in an open and transparent way because people deserve to know what their government is doing in their name.
Massachusetts lags the nation in government transparency, but nowhere is sunshine needed more than the annual state budget making process.
Setti Warren believes that a budget is not only a statement of values, but that the process of writing this values statement requires public input.
That's why he will make public records laws apply to the governor's office and has endorsed the Massachusetts Budget and Policy Center's recommendations to make our budget process more transparent.
Source: 2018 Massachusetts governor campaign website SettiWarren.com
Jun 1, 2017
Bob Massie:
Supports same-day voter registration
The Cambridge Dems asked for stances on charter schools, sanctuary cities/states, the millionaire's tax, and money in politics (Not every candidate was asked about every issue): -
Warren supports extending Newton's newly passed "welcoming ordinance" across the entire state but stopped short of supporting a full-on sanctuary state designation.
-
Massie is for same-day voter registration and is "not for expanding charter schools at a huge rate," and didn't support Question 2.
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Wolf supports becoming a sanctuary state and pursuing additional taxes beyond the millionaire's tax.
- Gonzalez supports same-day voter registration, and believes single-payer health care "needs to be on the table."
Source: Politico.com on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Feb 1, 2017
Jay Gonzalez:
Supports same-day voter registration
The Cambridge Dems asked for stances on charter schools, sanctuary cities/states, the millionaire's tax, and money in politics (Not every candidate was asked about every issue): -
Warren supports extending Newton's newly passed "welcoming ordinance" across the entire state but stopped short of supporting a full-on sanctuary state designation.
-
Massie is for same-day voter registration and is "not for expanding charter schools at a huge rate," and didn't support Question 2.
-
Wolf supports becoming a sanctuary state and pursuing additional taxes beyond the millionaire's tax.
- Gonzalez supports same-day voter registration, and believes single-payer health care "needs to be on the table."
Source: Politico.com on 2018 Massachusetts governor race
Feb 1, 2017
Page last updated: Dec 11, 2018