Gov. Maura Healey won a second four-year term on Tuesday, Nov. 3, defeating Republican Michael Minogue in a race shaped by affordability concerns and President Donald Trump's unpopularity in Massachusetts, WBUR reported. The Associated Press declared Healey the winner at 8:01 p.m. EST, one minute after polls closed.
Andover voters cast ballots at three locations: the Youth Center on Whittier Court, Wood Hill Middle School and the Andover High School Collins Field House. North Andover voters went to North Andover High School on Osgood Street, according to Patch voter guides for both towns. Polls were open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The governor's race was one of several contests on a long ballot that included nine statewide ballot questions, the U.S. Senate race and local legislative races. Andover Democrat Dan Koh faced Republican Micah Jones for the open 6th Congressional District seat, and state Sen. Barry Finegold, an Andover Democrat, faced Republican Theodore Semesnyei of Amesbury, WHAV reported.
Early returns
With about a third of votes counted as of 10:52 p.m., unofficial AP results showed Healey with more than 64 percent of the vote to Minogue's 32 percent, boston.com reported, citing AP data. Independent candidate Andrea James received about 3 percent. Those numbers will change as more ballots are counted.
Healey, a Democrat, will serve alongside Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, the former Salem mayor who joined the ticket in 2022. Healey previously served two terms as attorney general before winning the governor's office in 2022.
Election night reaction
Healey told supporters she has an obligation "to get up every day and to drive change with urgency and action," WBUR reported.
"I'm gonna work my hardest every single day for the things that matter in your lives," she said, according to WBUR.
Minogue congratulated Healey at his own event. "An election determines who holds the office. It does not determine what we believe in, what we stand for, and how much we care about the commonwealth," he said, according to WBUR.
How the race played out
Affordability and the candidates' ties to Trump dominated the contest. Healey emphasized efforts to reduce housing and energy costs while criticizing Trump's tariffs. Minogue, a Hamilton Republican and former CEO of Danvers-based medical device company Abiomed, argued Massachusetts needs an outsider to address spending and the cost of living, GBH News reported.
Minogue put $19.5 million of his own money into the race, a record for a statewide candidate in Massachusetts, WBUR reported. Healey and her allies linked Minogue to Trump throughout the campaign. Minogue donated about $1 million to Trump and other Republicans, the Boston Globe reported. Trump did not publicly endorse Minogue, the Globe reported.
The final weeks brought turmoil to the Republican ticket. Minogue's running mate, New Bedford City Councilor Shawn Oliver, suspended his campaign Oct. 18 after police arrested him following a crash involving five parked vehicles, according to PBS NewsHour. Oliver pleaded not guilty to operating under the influence charges. His name remained on the ballot because the deadline to remove a candidate had passed weeks earlier.
"He will not be my lieutenant governor. Period," Minogue told reporters, the Globe reported Oct. 20.
What's next
Healey faces high costs and surging energy bills in her second term, the Globe reported. She will also manage the state's response to the Trump administration for the president's final two years in office. Certified results will be available through the secretary of state's Massachusetts Election Statistics database.
