The Massachusetts general election, 2008 were held on November 4, 2008 throughout

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

. Among the elections which took place were those for the office of

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician, and diplomat who served as the 68th United States secretary of state from 2013 to 2017 in the Presidency of Barack Obama#Administration, administration of Barac ...

's seat in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, all ten seats in the Massachusetts delegation to the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

, all eight seats in the

Massachusetts Governor's Council The Massachusetts Governor's Council (also known as the Executive Council) is a governmental body that provides advice and consent in certain matterssuch as judicial nominations, pardons, and commutationsto the Governor of Massachusetts. Council ...

, and all of the seats of the

Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...

and

Massachusetts House of Representatives The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from 14 counties each divided into ...

. There were also three ballot questions: to eliminate the commonwealth's

income tax An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...

; to decriminalize possession of a small amount of

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

; and to prohibit

greyhound racing Greyhound racing is an organized, competitive sport in which greyhounds are raced around an oval track. The sport originates from Hare coursing, coursing. Track racing uses an artificial lure (usually a form of windsock) that travels ahead of th ...

. Numerous local elections also took place throughout the state.

President

United States Senate

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...

(D) defeated Democratic challenger Edward O'Reilly in the primary on September 16, 2008. He defeated Republican Jeff Beatty and Libertarian Robert Underwood in the general election. The seat was considered safe for

United States House of Representatives

All 10 members of the delegation to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

in Massachusetts were up for re-election in 2008. All 10 seats were under Democratic control. Republican candidates contested four of the races. In District 1, Republican Nathan Bech opposed Democratic incumbent

John Olver John Walter Olver (September 3, 1936 – February 23, 2023) was an American politician and chemist who was the U.S. representative for Massachusetts's 1st congressional district from 1991 to 2013. Raised on a farm in Pennsylvania, Olver grad ...

. (

defeated a Democratic challenger, Robert Feuer, in the primary on September 16, 2008.) In

District 4 District 4 can refer to: * District 4, Düsseldorf, in Germany * District 4, Grand Bassa County, in Liberia * District 4 (Ho Chi Minh City), in Vietnam * District 4 (New York City Council), in the United States * IV District, Turku, in Finland *Aus ...

, Republican Earl Sholley and Unenrolled candidate Susan Allen opposed Democratic incumbent

Barney Frank Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a retired American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, Frank served as chairman of th ...

. In

District 6 District Six is a place in Cape Town, South Africa. District Six may also refer to: :Government divisions * District 6, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam * District 6 (New York City Council), in the United States * VI District, Turku, in Finland * Dist ...

, Republican Richard Baker opposed Democratic incumbent John Tierney. In

District 7 District 7 could refer to: *District 7, Ho Chi Minh City District 7 () is an Districts of Vietnam, urban district of Ho Chi Minh City, the largest city in Vietnam. As of 2024, the district had a population of 456,789 and an area of 36 km². ...

, Republican John Cunningham opposed Democratic incumbent

Ed Markey Edward John Markey (born July 11, 1946) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Massachusetts, a seat he has held since 2013. A member of ...

. Despite these challenges, all ten seats were considered safe for their incumbents.

Governor's Council

All 8 current members of the

were up for re-election in 2008. The Governor's Council's most important role is to approve the governor's judicial nominees, serving as an important check on the power of the Governor. Because Governor's Council districts are so large, and because the office of Governor's Councillor has very little awareness in the state, it is notoriously difficult to unseat an incumbent. In 2008, six of the eight incumbent Governor's Councillors defeated a Democratic challenger in the primary on September 16, 2008. One of the eight incumbents, Thomas Merrigan, faced a Republican challenger, Michael Franco, in the general election. One of the seats was uncontested.

Massachusetts Senate

All 40 seats in the

were up for election in 2008. The

Massachusetts Democratic Party The Massachusetts Democratic Party (MassDems) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in Massachusetts. It is chaired by Steve Kerrigan and is the dominant party in the state, controlling all nine of the state's ...

maintained a

supermajority A supermajority is a requirement for a proposal to gain a specified level of support which is greater than the threshold of one-half used for a simple majority. Supermajority rules in a democracy can help to prevent a majority from eroding fun ...

of 35 seats, with the remaining 5 seats under the control of the

Massachusetts Republican Party The Massachusetts Republican Party (MassGOP) is the Massachusetts branch of the U.S. Republican Party. Originally, the party was formed in 1854. Soon after its founding, the party quickly became the dominant party in the state with Massachuse ...

Massachusetts House of Representatives

All 160 seats in the

were up for election in 2008. The

maintained a

of 144, with the remaining 16 seats under the control of the

Local races

Register of probate

Each of Massachusetts' fourteen counties elected a Register of

Probate In common law jurisdictions, probate is the judicial process whereby a will is "proved" in a court of law and accepted as a valid public document that is the true last testament of the deceased; or whereby, in the absence of a legal will, the e ...

, who will administer the county's family and probate court. Races in Barnstable County, Bristol County, Hampden County, and Nantucket County are expected to feature more than one candidate in the general election.

County treasurer

Bristol County, Duke's County, Norfolk County and Plymouth County each elected a County Treasurer in the 2008 Massachusetts general election. Only the race in Plymouth County featured more than one candidate for the position.

County Commissioner

Barnstable County, Bristol County, Duke's County, Norfolk County and Plymouth County will each elect one or two County Commissioners in the 2008 Massachusetts general election. Every race will feature more than one candidate for the position.

Ballot questions

Source:

References

External links

*
Imagine Election
— Sample ballots, candidate profiles and polling place information for Massachusetts voters.
Project Vote Smart
— Candidate information including issue positions and voting records. {{DEFAULTSORT:Massachusetts General Election, 2008 2008 elections in the United States by state