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Question 3

Question 3: All-Party (Top-Two) State Primary Elections Initiative

On the ballot

Massachusetts · November 2026 general election · Citizen initiative · Election day November 3, 2026
Topics: Elections and voting, Government structure

In plain language

Question 3 would end party primaries for state and county offices in Massachusetts and replace them with a single primary in which every candidate appears on one ballot regardless of party. All registered voters could take part, and the two candidates with the most votes would advance to the general election. Candidates for governor and lieutenant governor would run as a pair. Ballots would show each candidate’s party or political designation, and could note a party endorsement if the candidate and the party both request it. The presidential primary would not change. The law would take effect January 1, 2028.

Fiscal impact

No official fiscal note has been issued for this measure yet.

When the state publishes a fiscal analysis, it will appear here and be listed in the sources below.

What supporters and opponents say

These are summaries of arguments made by the named organizations, drawn from the sources listed below. They are their claims, not this site's, and this site takes no position on the measure.

What supporters say

  • The Coalition for Healthy Democracy, which is running the campaign and is convened by Danielle Allen, says primaries in Massachusetts are often uncontested and that an all-party primary would increase competition and turnout.
  • Former Governor Deval Patrick (D), former state treasurer Steven Grossman (D), State Auditor Diana DiZoglio (D), U.S. Reps. Jake Auchincloss (D) and Seth Moulton (D), and former Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey have endorsed the measure, as have Partners in Democracy, the Election Reformers Network and Veterans for All Voters.
  • The Lowell Sun editorial board wrote that the current primary process excludes voters and can favor candidates who appeal mainly to activists.

Attributed to Coalition for Healthy Democracy.

What opponents say

  • Voter Rights MA, the committee opposing Question 3, says the measure is funded by a small number of wealthy donors and points to California, where it argues voters felt pressure to abandon their preferred candidate to avoid a party being shut out of the general election.
  • Massachusetts Republican Party Chair Amy Carnevale says the existing party primary system is what lets voters choose between two competing political philosophies in November; the state party has formally voted to oppose the measure, as has the Democratic Party of Massachusetts.
  • The American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts argues that in top-two states the two finalists are consistently the best-funded candidates, which it says increases the role of money and weakens grassroots campaigns.
  • Two Democratic State Committee members, Martina Jackson and Ann Roosevelt, sued to keep the question off the ballot, arguing a two-candidate general election narrows the range of ideas voters can consider; the Supreme Judicial Court rejected the challenge in June 2026.

Attributed to Voter Rights MA, American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, Progressive Massachusetts.

Official ballot language

The certified ballot text is not yet available for this measure. Once the state certifies it, the verbatim wording will appear here.

Sources

Everything on this page traces to these sources. Follow them to read the original documents.

Last updated . How this page is sourced and corrected is described in the correction policy.