Islanders will weigh in on the governor’s race, Massachusetts’ federal representation in Washington, D.C. and an array of ballot questions at the midterm elections next week.
Polls will be open on Tuesday, Nov. 3 in each of the towns from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., and clerks urged people to study up beforehand so they can get through the multi-page ballot.
“Do your homework ahead of time because it is a long ballot,” said West Tisbury town clerk Tara Whiting-Wells. “My recommendation is come to the polls prepared with the red [voter guide] booklet.”
At the statewide level, Gov. Maura Healey is facing off against Republican challenger Mike Minogue. Island seasonal resident Andrea James, who made a campaign stop in Oak Bluffs in May, is also running as an independent.
Democratic U.S. Sen. Edward Markey is looking to retain his seat. He faces off against Republican John Deaton. There are also contested races for attorney general, secretary of state and auditor.
The Island’s longtime representative in the U.S. House of Representatives, Bill Keating, a Bourne Democrat, is vying for another four-year term. He faces Tyler Macallister, a five-time Mattapoisett select board member.
Further down the ballot, there is little competition in the local races. The Island’s state senator, Julian Cyr, and state representative, Thomas Moakley, had no challengers in the primary or in Tuesday’s election. Cape and Island’s district attorney Robert Galibois is also running unopposed after beating Michael Giardino in the Democratic primary in September.
Seven candidates – Tristan Israel, Randal Milch, Doug Ruskin, Christine Todd, Richard (Peter) Wharton, Michael Bellissimo and Katherine Putnam – are running for seven spots on the Dukes County Commission.
There are five candidates – Benjamin Robinson, Ernest (Doug) Sederholm, Brian Smith, Frederick Khedouri and Katherine Putnam – on the ballot for the Martha’s Vineyard Commission. There are at least four additional write-in candidates who are seeking to fill out the nine open seats, including three incumbents.
Bernadette Cormie, of Tisbury, Michael MacKenty of Edgartown and Jannette Vanderhoop of Aquinnah are all current commissioners seeking re-election as write-ins, with the support of MVC chair Peter Wharton.
“These are all [people] who put a tremendous amount of work into their seats this year,” Mr. Wharton said at the Nov. 15 commission meeting.
Newcomer Maria Krokidas of West Tisbury also is campaigning as a write-in.
Robert Lionette, Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter and Alexander Salop, are running for three of the five open seats on the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School committee.
Islanders will also have the chance to voice their opinion on 10 ballot questions, some of which have garnered much debate on the Vineyard.
Question 1 would make public most records held by the state legislature and governor’s office. The two branches of government are currently exempt from public records laws that towns, cities and other public officials have to comply with.
Question 2 asks if voters wish to allow employees of the Committee for Public Counsel Services, which provides attorneys to people who need representation in court cases, to engage in collective bargaining with their employer.
Question 3 seeks to eliminate political party primaries for state elections. Instead there would be one central primary in which all the candidates, regardless of party, would be listed on the ballot. Voters could vote for any candidates. The two candidates with the most votes would proceed to the general election ballot.
Question 4, if passed, would allow residents to register to vote on election day. Currently, the last day to register to vote is 10 days before the election, and registration for the Nov. 3 election closed on Oct. 24.
Island clerks didn’t voice strong feelings on the issue. Some declined to comment, saying they didn’t want to weigh in on ballot questions. Others said not many voters come in seeking to register the same day, but if it was allowed the clerks didn’t foresee it being a problem logistically.
“I don’t think it’s going to make it that much harder for us,” said Aquinnah town clerk Kayla Darcy.
Question 5 seeks to limit how much revenue the state can collect in a given year.
The three questions that have generated the most debate on the Vineyard are 6, 7 and 8.
Question 6 would divert sales tax on sporting goods, RVs and golf courses for a new nature fund to promote conservation. The ballot question was initiated by Mass Audubon, with the support of The Trustees of Reservations and other organizations.
The groups previously told the Gazette that this fund would create a consistent stream of revenue for the outdoors, though some lawmakers noted that any funding would still need approval from the state legislators.
Question 7 could have wide-ranging effects on the down Island towns. The proposal asks voters if they want to open up traditionally undersized lots to home development.
If passed, the ballot question would allow single-family homes to be built in residentially zoned areas as long as the land is at least 5,000 square feet, has 50 feet of land bordering a road, and has access to public sewer and water.
Island planners said that this could open up many smaller lots in Oak Bluffs, Vineyard Haven and Edgartown to development. Some worried the measure could create even more short-term rentals. State Senator Cyr said he would explore restrictions to require homes be used year-round in the future.
The future of the Island’s lone recreational marijuana store also hangs in the balance on next week’s ballot.
The Coalition for a Healthy Massachusetts put forward Question 8 in hopes of rolling back the legalization of adult use marijuana sales, as well as change the laws around the possession of non-medical marijuana.
If passed, Island Time would either have to close or convert to a medical dispensary. Island Time proprietor Geoff Rose worried that Vineyard residents would have few options in the legal market if the ballot initiative gained favor.
“There is no operating medical dispensary here on the Vineyard,” Mr. Rose previously told the Gazette. “If this was passed, there would be no retail medical marijuana on the Vineyard. You wind up going to the illicit market.”
Question 9 asks voters if they wish to keep the existing law that requires guns to have serial numbers. Enacted in 2024, the law banned “ghost guns” and modifications that turned semi-automatic weapons into automatic. A yes vote would keep the tighter restrictions in place; a no vote would repeal the regulations.
Island voters will also face a tenth ballot question that was not in the voter handbooks sent out by the secretary of the commonwealth. The non-binding referendum question asks if voters think the lawmakers from the district should vote in favor of legislation that would reduce the state house speaker’s and senate president’s control over legislators’ stipends and to provide stipends only to legislators who do significant extra work.
Polls will be open Nov. 3 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Louisa Hufstader contributed to this article.