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Boston's Morning Newsletter
Missing mail, including vote-by-mail ballots, reported across Boston
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It’s almost un-bull-lievable. There’s another bovine on the loose in Massachusetts less than a month after Moodini, an escaped steer, made the news.
That's not the only thing we're on the search for:
Missing mail: If you’re a resident of Boston who hasn’t been receiving your mail on time, you’re not alone. In the last two weeks, residents in Dorchester, Mattapan, Brighton, Roxbury and Mission Hill have filed reports of late and undelivered mail from the U.S. Postal Service, including a few missing vote-by-mail ballots. The delays have prompted three Boston city councilors to call for an emergency hearing on the matter. “Knowing where we are in election season, not having a reliable postal system at this specific juncture is critically important,” said Sharon Durkan, district counselor for Mission Hill, who’s a part of the group requesting the hearing.
- In the 2024 Massachusetts state primary, more than 60% of voters cast their ballot by mail. “Unreliable post office service threatens the very foundations of our democracy,” Durkan told WBUR’s Cici Yongshi Yu. Though some people may be able to get to the polls in-person, some cannot due to disability or other vulnerabilities. “It’s particularly important they have access to their fundamental right to participate in democracy,” Durkan said.
- What’s next: The hearing has not yet been scheduled, according to Durkan. “This is a tricky one… because the Postal Service is out of the city’s jurisdiction,” she said. In the meantime, she’s urging constituents to reach out to their councilors if more mail is lost.
- Zoom out: U.S. Postal Service delays are a nationwide problem, with some states suggesting those who do vote-by-mail turn in their ballots early to avoid missing the count.
Temp check: Vice President Kamala Harris is strongly supported in Massachusetts among Democrats and independents, according to a recent WBUR/CommonWealth Beacon poll of 800 likely voters. The poll, conducted by The MassINC Polling Group, shows Harris and her running mate Gov. Tim Walz have a 28-point lead in Massachusetts over former president Donald Trump and Sen. JD Vance. This may seem unsurprising for a state that’s historically blue — but there are some important nuances when we drill into the results.
- Weak spot: Harris is not resonating as well with young voters in Massachusetts. Among those under 45, Harris touts a 46%–51% favorable to unfavorable rating (that’s compared to 65%–32% for those over 45). One surveyed 29-year-old said she’s considering not voting as an act of protest due to Harris’ role in the Biden administration’s handling of the conflict in Gaza.
- On the senate race: Sen. Elizabeth Warren has strong support among voters in her reelection bid, according to the poll. Only 35% of respondents said they’d vote for her Republican competitor John Deaton, a cryptocurrency advocate and attorney. Nearly half of the likely voters surveyed had not even heard of him, according to reporting from WBUR’s Walt Wuthmann.
- Zoom in: Rich Parr, MassINC polling group’s senior research director, told Walt that candidates like Walz and Vance had much higher name recognition than some Massachusetts politicians. “Tip O’Neill used to say all politics is local,” Parr said. “I think that’s flipped. And recently now, it’s all politics is national.”
- Go deeper: From little overlap in top issues for Republican and Democratic voters, to a deep partisan divide when it comes to trusting November’s election results, here are the rest of the poll findings.
Methuen Mayor Neil Perry, who presided over the city since 2020, died this weekend at the age of 65. Flags outside of Methuen City Hall will be at half-staff today in his honor.
- Perry struggled with several illnesses, including kidney disease. The late mayor is credited with restoring confidence in city government after ousting a corrupt chief of police, WBUR’s Paul Connearney reports. In the next 60 days, the city will hold a special election. Until then, Methuen City Councilor David Beauregard will serve as acting mayor.
Don’t love that dirty water: A fall kayak around Boston and Cambridge may sound nice, but you might want to steer clear of the Charles River for a while. A harmful bloom of cyanobacteria has been detected between the Longfellow Bridge and Charles River Dam. It’s the first major bloom in the last four years, according to the Charles River Watershed Association.
- Health risks: Coming in direct contact with the blue-green algae (or water it’s in) can cause skin irritation. The airborne toxins can also have harmful effects on your respiratory system. Ingesting the water can lead to nausea, cramping or liver failure.
- Go deeper: What’s the reason for the bloom? WBUR’s Barbara Moran explains what environmental factors allow the algae to develop.
P.S. — If your red voter information booklet left you with more questions (or, perhaps, never arrived in the mail), don’t fret. We’ve published five new ballot question explainers to help you feel well-informed on everything from the measure on MCAS as a high school graduation requirement to the push for higher minimum wages for tipped workers. Find all our guides here.
