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Secretary of State William Galvin holds up an information guide for voters, known as the Red Book, at a State House press conference on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026.
By Sam Dysdale |SHNS
Voter information guides will begin landing in mailboxes this week and the state's top election official says voters should read all 88 pages because the ballot questions they will decide will affect their lives in "real ways."
The general election is 56 days away, and Secretary of State William Galvin said Tuesday the nine ballot referendums that voters will have the chance to weigh in on will likely be the strongest driver to get people to the polls, along with a gubernatorial race between Republican Mike Minogue and Democrat Gov. Maura Healey bidding for a second term.
The nine questions tie for the most to ever appear on a Massachusetts ballot, though Galvin said at a press conference that the "diversity" and "complexity" of the questions makes them more difficult for voters to wrap their heads around.
The topics vary from straightforward questions, such as opening the Legislature and governor's office to public records law, to more complex ones, such as whether to redirect tax revenue from sporting goods to a new conservation fund, or creating a single primary election in which all candidates would be listed regardless of party, Galvin said.
"There's all these diverse questions that affect people not just theoretically, but where they live in very real ways," Galvin said. "And yet they're the ones going to make the decision. That's why I think the booklet is so important. It provides people with background information."
The so-called Red Book will be delivered to every household, with the state starting to mail them out Tuesday.
It includes detailed information about what a "yes" and "no" vote on each ballot question would do, a statement of fiscal consequences, and arguments written by supporters and opponents of the questions.
The explanation of what each vote would do is especially pertinent to help people understand two referendum questions, Question 8 to repeal the state's recreational cannabis legalization, and Question 9 pertaining to the 2024 firearms law.
A "yes" vote on Question 8 would be to repeal the state's existing laws legalizing recreational marijuana, while a "yes" vote on Question 9 would do the opposite — by keeping an existing law in place, a law to increase the regulation of firearms including ghost guns, machine guns and assault-style weapons.
Auditor Diana DiZoglio wrote the argument in support of Question 1 to expand the public records law, imploring voters that "you have a right to see what your government is doing with your hard-earned taxpayer dollars."
Though there is no organized group against the question, legislative leaders have a documented stance against the question, and the Secretary of State's office pulled from the Special Joint Committee on Initiative Petitions' majority report to summarize the arguments against it.
"The proposed law includes overly broad and poorly defined exemptions," it says. "It would exempt from public disclosure documents related to the development of public policy, but only during policy development. These records would become public once the policy is developed. This limited and temporary exemption will chill open communications by lawmakers, raising significant constitutional concerns, particularly around legislative speech and debate protections," says the argument against.
Though offered by the secretary's office to give voters both sides, the description is not Galvin's opinion.
Sam Drysdale is a reporter for State House News Service and State Affairs Pro Massachusetts.
