--- title: "Healey vs. Minogue: 2026 Massachusetts governor’s race" url: "https://www.2026election.com/race/2026-governor-ma" updated: "2026-09-02" source: "Candidates' campaign sites and Ballotpedia, quoted verbatim" publisher: "Pluribus" --- # 2026 Massachusetts governor’s race: Maura Healey (D) vs. Michael Minogue (R) Rating: Safe D · Election: November 3, 2026 · Ballot checked: October 9, 2026 · Positions captured: September 2, 2026 Incumbent Democratic Governor Maura Healey faces Republican business executive Michael Minogue in the 2026 Massachusetts gubernatorial general election. Healey is running on her administration's first-term legislative record, emphasizing major investments in clean energy, housing production, early education, and family tax relief. Minogue is campaigning on a platform of fiscal accountability, tax cuts, deregulation, ending sanctuary state policies, and auditing the state legislature and budget. ## Candidates - **Maura Healey** (Democrat) · [Campaign site](https://maurahealey.com/) · [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) - **Michael Minogue** (Republican) · [Campaign site](https://minogueforma.com/) · [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) ## Issues ### Cost of living, taxes, and government spending Salience: high Minogue pledges to cut taxes and eliminate unfunded state mandates to curb government spending, while Healey highlights her signed tax package and proposed permanent $600 per child tax credit. **Maura Healey:** Supports targeted tax relief and family tax credits Healey emphasizes tax relief for families through her proposed Child Tax Credit, providing $600 per child, alongside investments in free community college and universal school meals. She advocates using tax policy to address wealth disparities and lower living costs. - Proposes a permanent $600 per child tax credit for Massachusetts families. - Highlighted passage of a state tax relief package and permanent free school meals during her first term. > “Under Maura’s Child Tax Credit, more than 700,000 families would receive $600 per child.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “We wanted to get after housing, and we wanted to get after transportation, we wanted to cut taxes, we wanted to make investments in education.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports tax cuts and spending reductions Minogue proposes cutting taxes and state spending by targeting waste, fraud, and abuse in the state budget. He opposes single-party overspending and advocates canceling unfunded state mandates. - Pledges to cut taxes and eliminate budget waste, fraud, and abuse. - Vows to stop overspending and address the state's accumulated debt. - Promises to cancel unfunded state mandates. > “Mike Minogue will cut taxes, lower energy and utility fees by using gas pipelines and other safe and reliable sources, and lower housing costs by making it easier to rent, buy, or build a home.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “Mike will do the audit of the Legislature and the entire budget, stop overspending, and provide transparency on the one-party system.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Campaign site](https://minogueforma.com/) ### Housing Salience: high Minogue aims to reduce housing costs by easing developer regulations and repealing the MBTA Communities Act, whereas Healey established a Cabinet Secretary of Housing to expand state-led housing production. **Maura Healey:** Supports expanding affordable housing production and state oversight Healey created a dedicated Cabinet-level Secretary of Housing to streamline state housing policy and expand affordable housing production. Her plan includes public education campaigns, technical support for municipalities, and expanding overall housing stock. - Established a dedicated Secretary of Housing position within the Governor's Cabinet. - Prioritizes increasing housing production and preserving existing affordable housing stock. > “The Healey-Driscoll Administration will establish a Secretary of Housing position to lead the growth of housing in the Commonwealth.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “Their Administration will prioritize dramatically increasing production, preserving existing housing stock, supporting individuals and families struggling with homelessness, and fully harnessing the power of housing to create economic mobility for all.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports deregulation and repealing housing mandates Minogue seeks to lower housing costs by streamlining regulations for builders and developers, leasing or selling state land, and repealing state housing mandates such as the MBTA Communities Act. - Calls for repealing the MBTA Communities Act. - Proposes streamlining regulations for developers and builders to spur home construction. - Advocates leasing and selling state-owned land for housing development. > “He will cancel unfunded mandates, such as MBTA Communities Act and Net Zero Mandate.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “streamline regulations for builders, developers, and businesses; lease and sell commonwealth land” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) ### Immigration and public safety Salience: high Minogue pledges to end sanctuary state policies, deport illegal immigrants convicted of crimes, and end shelter benefits for undocumented residents, while Healey focuses on criminal justice reform and police oversight. **Maura Healey:** Supports criminal justice reform and police accountability Healey supports criminal justice reforms including full implementation of the 2020 police reform law, POST Commission oversight, bail reform, and repealing mandatory minimums. She also advocates for multidisciplinary crisis response teams for behavioral health emergency calls. - Supports full implementation of the landmark 2020 police reform law and independent commission oversight. - Advocates for multidisciplinary crisis response teams and removing employment re-entry barriers. - Backed bail reform and repealing mandatory minimum sentences. > “Maura will be committed to seeing through full implementation of the landmark 2020 police reform bill.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “And she’ll continue to advocate for reforms to protect the confidentiality of crime victims.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Opposes sanctuary state policies and state benefits for illegal immigrants Minogue opposes sanctuary state status for Massachusetts and supports deporting illegal immigrants convicted of violent crimes or drug offenses. He pledges to terminate free Right to Shelter and Medicaid access for undocumented immigrants. - Declares Massachusetts will not be a sanctuary state. - Supports deporting illegal immigrants convicted of crimes, gang activity, or drug dealing. - Pledges to eliminate free Right to Shelter, Medicaid, and benefits for undocumented immigrants. > “MA will not be a sanctuary state. Criminal, violent, gang-member or drug dealer illegal immigrants will be deported from our state and country.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “Illegal immigrants will not have free Right to Shelter, Medicaid, or benefits.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) ### Energy and environment Salience: medium Minogue vows to repeal the Net Zero Mandate and expand natural gas pipeline usage, whereas Healey targets 100% clean electricity by 2030 and banning new gasoline car sales by 2035. **Maura Healey:** Supports aggressive clean energy targets and net-zero emissions Healey promotes a rapid transition to renewable energy, aiming for 100% clean electricity supply by 2030 and net-zero state operations by 2030. Her plan includes expanding offshore wind, installing 1 million heat pumps, building EV infrastructure, and ending new gas passenger car sales by 2035. - Targets 100% clean electricity supply by 2030 and net-zero emissions across state operations by 2030. - Plans to increase offshore wind procurement target to 10,000 MW by 2035. - Ends the sale of new gasoline-powered passenger vehicles by 2035. > “Under a Healey Administration, Massachusetts will achieve 100 percent clean electricity supply by 2030.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “The Healey Administration will end the sale of new passenger cars and light duty trucks powered by gasoline or diesel by 2035.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports natural gas pipelines and repealing clean energy mandates Minogue pledges to lower energy and utility fees by utilizing natural gas pipelines and other reliable energy sources. He opposes state climate mandates, calling specifically for the cancellation of the Net Zero Mandate. - Vows to cancel the state Net Zero Mandate. - Advocates expanding natural gas pipeline usage to lower utility fees. > “lower energy and utility fees by using gas pipelines and other safe and reliable sources” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “He will cancel unfunded mandates, such as MBTA Communities Act and Net Zero Mandate.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) ### Government accountability and audits Salience: medium Minogue promises to audit the state Legislature and state budget to counter single-party control, while Healey defends her administration's legislative agenda and public investments. **Maura Healey:** Supports administration accomplishments and state investments Healey highlights her administration's progress in education funding, housing policy, tax cuts, and public infrastructure, emphasizing collaborative governance to address state challenges. - Touts legislative achievements in education funding, free school meals, and family tax relief. - Emphasizes state investments in housing and public transportation. > “We laid out in our inaugural address things that we wanted to do. We wanted to get after housing, and we wanted to get after transportation, we wanted to cut taxes, we wanted to make investments in education.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports auditing the Legislature and state budget Minogue makes legislative oversight a core theme, pledging to audit the Massachusetts Legislature and the state's $62 billion budget. He promises transparency to counter single-party Democratic governance. - Pledges to perform a complete audit of the Legislature and state budget. - Cites voter approval (72%) for auditing the state Legislature. - Vows to expose single-party overspending and state debt. > “72% of our voters supported the audit of the Legislature, but the AG and Maura Healey will not enforce the will of the people.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “Mike will do the audit of the Legislature and the entire budget, stop overspending, and provide transparency on the one-party system.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Campaign site](https://minogueforma.com/) ### Education Salience: medium Minogue supports expanding parental school choice through federal tax credit scholarships, whereas Healey supports full public school funding and the Common Start child care plan. **Maura Healey:** Supports public school funding and universal early education Healey advocates for fully funding the Student Opportunity Act, expanding early college programs, and updating school facilities. She supports the Common Start proposal to make child care free for low-income families and cap costs at 7% of income for most families. - Commitment to fully fund the Student Opportunity Act for K-12 public schools. - Supports the Common Start proposal to expand affordable early education and child care. - Promotes expanding Early College programs and recruiting educators of color. > “As Governor, she will continue to advocate for federal funding for early education and care, as well as explore state solutions to the child care crisis.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “Maura supports the Common Start proposal, which would make child care free for the lowest-income families, limit child care costs for most families to no more than 7 percent of their income” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports parental school choice and tax credit scholarships Minogue advocates for parental school choice, particularly for families with children in underperforming schools. He supports opting Massachusetts into the Federal K-12 Tax Credit Scholarship Program. - Supports parental school choice options for students in underperforming schools. - Pledges to opt Massachusetts into the Federal K-12 Tax Credit Scholarship Program. > “give parents choice for kids in failing schools by opting into the Federal Tax Credit Scholarship Program.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “And as governor, he will give parents choice to get their kids in better schools by opting in to the new K-12 Federal Scholarship Tax Credit.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Campaign site](https://minogueforma.com/) ### Healthcare Salience: low Minogue calls for auditing healthcare spending, which represents 54% of the state budget, while Healey focuses on prescription drug price transparency and behavioral health coverage parity. **Maura Healey:** Supports healthcare affordability, drug transparency, and mental health parity Healey focuses on lowering prescription drug costs through pharmaceutical industry transparency and expanding behavioral health services. She advocates for health equity benchmarks and mandatory bias training for healthcare providers. - Proposes pharmaceutical industry transparency to curb prescription drug costs. - Treats mental and behavioral health care with statutory coverage parity. - Establishes health equity benchmarks during annual state cost hearings. > “Lowering the cost of prescription drugs by increasing transparency in the pharmaceutical industry and exploring ways to ensure that prices correlate with the value new drugs add to available treatment regimens.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) > “Treating mental and behavioral health care as seriously as all other forms of health care.” > — Maura Healey, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Maura_Healey) **Michael Minogue:** Supports auditing healthcare spending and protecting healthcare workers Minogue proposes auditing the state healthcare industry, noting that healthcare consumes 54% ($32.5 billion) of the state budget. He advocates supporting physicians and nurses to maintain accessible, high-quality care. - Proposes auditing the state healthcare industry, which accounts for 54% ($32.5B) of the state budget. - Pledges support for physicians and nurses to ensure affordable, quality care. > “audit our healthcare industry (54% of budget- $32.5B); support our physicians and nurses to maintain accessible, affordable, and exceptional care for our citizens” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) ### Abortion and reproductive rights Salience: medium Healey actively expands state abortion protections and shield laws, while Minogue does not detail a specific stance on abortion in the provided sources. **Maura Healey:** Supports state abortion access and shield laws Healey strongly defends reproductive health care and abortion rights in Massachusetts. She signed a comprehensive shield law protecting providers and patients, stockpiled mifepristone, mandated free over-the-counter contraception, and issued an executive order protecting emergency abortion care. - Signed a state Shield Law protecting abortion providers and patients from out-of-state investigations. - Stockpiled mifepristone and made over-the-counter contraception free. - Issued an executive order protecting emergency abortion care in Massachusetts. > “In her first term, Governor Healey signed one of the strongest Shield Laws in the country to strengthen protections for patients and providers” > — Maura Healey, via [Campaign site](https://maurahealey.com/) > “While Donald Trump and his allies defund and criminalize reproductive care, I am committed to ensuring every person has access to quality and affordable health care, including abortion and contraception” > — Maura Healey, via [Campaign site](https://maurahealey.com/) **Michael Minogue:** No documented position in our sources ### Gender policies in sports Salience: low Minogue explicitly advocates restricting high school girls' sports competitions to biological females, whereas Healey does not address sports eligibility policies in the provided sources. **Maura Healey:** No documented position in our sources **Michael Minogue:** Opposes transgender participation in female high school sports Minogue advocates for restricting high school girls' athletic competitions strictly to female-born athletes to guarantee safety and fairness. - Advocates for fair and safe sports competition strictly for high school female athletes. > “ensure high school girls have fair and safe competition in sports.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Ballotpedia](https://ballotpedia.org/Michael_Minogue) > “We need safety in our schools and sports too - girls need fair and safe sports.” > — Michael Minogue, via [Campaign site](https://minogueforma.com/) [View this race on 2026election.com](https://www.2026election.com/race/2026-governor-ma)