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Your recap of the 2024 election results across Massachusetts and New England
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It happened again. Donald Trump has been declared the winner of the 2024 presidential election, capping off a whirlwind campaign and an unprecedented comeback for the Republican former president.
The Associated Press called the race this morning just before 6 a.m., after projecting Trump as the winner over Vice President Kamala Harris in several critical swing states, including Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The win makes Trump the first convicted felon to be elected president, and the second president (after Grover Cleveland) elected to two non-consecutive terms.
We’ll have lots more in the coming hours and days on the ramifications of Trump’s return to power. But first, let’s recap yesterday’s biggest results across Massachusetts and New England:
In the Senate: Sen. Elizabeth Warren easily won a third term in the Senate, but Democrats are poised to lose their 51-49 majority in the chamber come 2025. Republicans flipped seats in West Virginia and Ohio, and they’re leading in Montana, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Nevada and Wisconsin are close, too. And Democrats haven’t picked up any GOP-held seats. Here are the Senate races in play.
In the House: Democrats actually have a chance to flip the House. In fact, NPR reports it’s more likely than not. While it will take some time before we know how all the races fall, the House could be a critical tool for Democrats to push back against GOP control of the White House and Senate. Follow the key House races here.
Mixed results in Massachusetts
Question 1 passed by a wide margin, giving Auditor Diana DiZoglio the authority to audit the Legislature. Now, we wait to see what type of audit DiZoglio pursues — which could lead to a legal battle with State House leaders over what the state constitution actually allows.
Question 2 also passed by double-digits, eliminating the MCAS exam graduation requirement for high school students. (They’ll still need to take the test, but won’t need to pass it to graduate.)
- That means individual school districts are the only ones setting graduation requirements, based on state standards. Education Secretary Patrick Tutwiler recently said the state may need to get a little bit more specific about how those standards are defined. There’s also talk on Beacon Hill about making a set of courses known as MassCore the new statewide graduation requirement.
Question 3 is the state’s closest ballot question race. The “yes” campaign to give Uber and Lyft drivers the right to unionize is up 54% to 46%, with 87% of precincts reporting. (The AP had not called a winner as of 6:50 a.m.) It would introduce to Massachusetts a sector-based approach to unionization that’s more common in Europe. It’s also likely to face a court challenge, according to some experts.
Meanwhile, voters rejected both Question 4 to legalize psychedelics and Question 5 to raise the minimum wage for tipped workers.
Zoom in: Look up how your community voted on the presidential race, ballot questions and more with our town-by-town Massachusetts election results map. (And compare it with the 2020 map.)
On Beacon Hill: Local Republicans flipped at least three State House seats, putting a small dent in the state Legislature’s Democratic supermajority. You can find your local state senator or rep race here.
Around New England
New Hampshire: The nation’s most competitive gubernatorial race went to Republican Kelly Ayotte, a former U.S. senator and state attorney general. She beat former Manchester mayor Joyce Craig in a race that featured a lot of debate over abortion — and Massachusetts.
Democrat Maggie Goodlander, a former government lawyer who’s married to President Biden’s top national security advisor, won the open race for New Hampshire’s 2nd Congressional District.
Connecticut: Democratic Rep. Jahana Hayes fended off Republican challenger George Logan in a rematch of their razor-thin 2022 race. Nutmeggers also approved a ballot question to allow no-excuse mail-in voting.
Maine: Trump earned his sole New England electoral vote in Maine’s 2nd Congressional District, where there’s a close race between sitting Democratic Rep. Jared Golden and Republican Austin Theriault. Mainers also appear to be on the verge of rejecting a ballot question to replace their state flag.
Read the latest updates on key races around New England here.
P.S. — NPR’s election live blog has continuing updates this morning from across the nation as results and reactions come pouring in. We’ll stay with Morning Edition through noon, and then turn to Here and Now until 4 p.m.
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