Seth Moulton vs Brian Shortsleeve

In the September 1st primary election this year, the biggest showdown isn’t on a ballot — it’s on two ballots. With 2/3rds of registered voters in Massachusetts now “unenrolled” (the technical term in MA for independent voters), the vast majority of the voters need to decide which party’s ballot to cast before they even choose which individual candidates vote for.

Notably, the Democratic ballot will only have 1 choice for Governor (Maura Healey) and the Republican ballot will only have 1 choice for Senator (John Deaton). Therefore, during the primary election, independent voters need to decide which office (Governor or Senator) they prefer to “throw away” their vote on a choice that is already decided.

Is it more important to add the weight of your vote to the Democratic Senate race (deciding between the 80 year-old Ed Markey and the 47 year-old Seth Moulton) or the Republican Gubernatorial race (deciding between the overtly pro-abortion-rights Brian Shortsleeve or the “I don’t do hypotheticals” Michael Minogue)?

For independently minded voters, this can be a real conundrum in a year where (for example) even the Boston Globe editorial board has endorsed both Seth Moulton and Brian Shortsleeve in their respective primary races.

And how does the importance of a primary vote in those statewide races compare to the Middlesex DA primary where the choice between challenger David Solet and incumbent Marian Ryan will be decided solely on the Democratic primary ballot?

This conundrum is a real selling point in favor of Ballot Question 3 to implement an “all party” single ballot primary in Massachusetts. Allowing us to cast a meaningful vote in every contested race during the primary rather than deciding which votes to throw away.

Sean Diamond