Sudbury Democratic Town Committee

If you received one of these 88-page “red books” in the mail, you might be feeling a bit overwhelmed. Why does a “yes” on Question 8 get rid of a law that’s presently in place but a “yes” on Question 9 keep a law that’s presently in place? Don’t worry! Help is at hand with our team’s handy-dandy guide to life, the universe, and ballot questions…

DID YOU KNOW THERE ARE 9 MEASURES ON THE MASSACHUSETTS BALLOT THIS NOVEMBER? 

This year, on November 3, Massachusetts voters will vote on an unusually high number of ballot measures. Some of these measures can be confusing!

The Sudbury Democratic Town Committee (Sudbury Dems for short) has prepared this handy reference guide to the Ballot Measures. For more detailed information, click this link to access a powerpoint presentation that summarizes the measures, together with handy information about sponsors and funding sources. Additionally, the Center for Policy Analysis at Tufts University  provides detailed non-partisan analysis  of the questions. 

Sudbury Dems recommends voting Yes on questions 1, 2, 4, 7, and 9 and recommends voting No on questions 3, 5, and 8. We are not taking a formal position on question 6 because of lack of consensus. 

Here is a quick summary of the ballot questions:

Question 1: Public Information: Yes! Makes records held by the state Legislature and the Governor’s Office official, public records. This question does not have significant opposition and has broad support from organizations and individuals including The League of Women Voters, Progressive Massachusetts, Governor Healey and State Auditor Dizoglio. There is already a law making public records held by government agencies. This measure expands that rule. 

Question 2: Collective bargaining for public defenders: Yes! Public defenders in Massachusetts are underpaid compared to other states. This has led to serious problems finding legal representation for defendants so cases can move forwards. Sudbury Dems supports the right of public defenders to unionize and negotiate a fair contract. 

Question 3: Eliminate Party Primary Elections: No! This measure would eliminate party primaries, with open primaries that would select the top two candidates to run against each other. This would be similar to recent primary elections in California. Both the Democratic and Republican parties in Massachusetts are opposed to this measure. 

In the 2026 California governor’s race, there was a large field of Democratic candidates, leading to fears the Democratic vote would be split between all the potential Democratic options, leading to a potential scenario in which a majority Democratic electorate would end up with two Republican front runners. This led to highly qualified candidates dropping out. In other words, this measure can lead to chaotic primaries with results that do not represent the wishes of the electorate. 

Question 4: Same Day Voter Registration: Yes! Right now, you cannot register to vote for 10 days before the election in Massachusetts. Many people are not aware they need to re-register after moving, changing their name (including through marriage), or if they haven’t voted recently. About 70% of all rental leases in the city of Boston start or end on September 1st, meaning that many people are ineligible to vote in the state’s September Primary Election. Allowing people to register on Election Day is a simple change that can make voting available to more people. 

Question 5: Change State Tax Revenue Limit: No! This measure limits how much revenue the state can collect depending on a formula based on the previous year’s collection. This would significantly restrict the ability of the state to respond to new needs or crises, and would give large tax refunds to the wealthy while making huge cuts for services like schools and firefighters more likely in the next recession. 

Question 6: Parks, Land and Conservation Revenue Allocation: No recommendation. This measure proposes the creation of a fund to support nature conservation. Sudbury Dems enthusiastically supports nature conservation, but this measure does not provide a new funding source and it is debatable whether the state budget should be managed by ballot measure. Since there are strong arguments both for and against this measure, we are not making a recommendation. 

Question 7: Reduce Lot Size Requirements. Yes! This measure reduces minimum lot size requirements to 5000 square feet for single family homes in communities with public water and sewer. Reducing minimum lot requirements allows more flexibility in construction of new homes, which can help increase availability of housing throughout the state. This will not directly affect housing in Sudbury, as we do not have public sewers, but will indirectly lead to potentially reduced housing costs for everyone in Massachusetts. 

Question 8: Recriminalize Marijuana: No! This measure, which does not address medical marijuana use, would recriminalize recreational marijuana use, and prevent sales, regulation and taxation of recreational marijuana. This would be a move back to policy prior to decriminalization, with unnecessary legal consequences for ordinary recreational users, as well as risks of unsafe use due to loss of regulation of marijuana, and the loss of billions of dollars of tax revenue to the state. Concerns about marijuana would be better addressed through regulation, testing and research, which would all be undermined by this measure. 

Question 9: Gun Safety: Yes! This is a vote to keep gun safety laws in Massachusetts (Bill H.4885, passed in 2024). These include a ban on assault rifles, requirements for serial numbers on guns, requirements for safety training and permitting courts to order firearm surrender for prevention of risk orders. This can be confusing, because you are voting “yes” just to keep the existing law in place. We urge you to vote “yes” to protect commonsense gun safety laws!

ABOUT THE SUDBURY DEMS:

The Sudbury Democratic Town Committee represents the Massachusetts Democratic Party in town. Members of the Committee are elected on the Democratic primary ballot or appointed by existing members, but anyone is welcome to join our meetings and participate.

The Committee holds regular hybrid meetings, generally on the first Thursday of the month, at Sudbury Meetinghouse (First Parish of Sudbury). We discuss a wide range of political issues and candidates and we advocate for Democratic values, policies, and candidates. More information about the Committee can be found here: https://sudburydemocrats.org/about-us/. 

Thanks to the 400+ people who attended. And thanks, Henry for these photos!

Please join the Sudbury Democratic Town Committee in honoring the life of Martin Luther King, Jr. by donating to the Sudbury Food Pantry.

Monday, January 19, 2026 

10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Drop off at 30 Meadowbrook Circle, Sudbury

Items Needed:

• TOMATO SAUCE 
• CANNED BEEF STEW & CHILI
• COOKIES & CRACKERS 
• CEREAL 
• CAKE & BROWNIE MIX
• TUNA

We also need volunteers for various tasks. Sign up here:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1w2SN8RgBjZlpHyRSoCZbtpG9UruVN5xE-fqEVYvKMmk/edit?usp=sharing

More info:

https://www.mobilize.us/mobilize/event/847920

Tips:

• Sign up at the above link.
• Send the link to everyone you know near and far! Email it. Post it on your social media.
• Bring a sign if you have one, bring yourself if not. We will be handing out little flags too.
• Do you have colonial era garb from a play or a battle reenactment? Dress up! It’s fun!
• Thank the people next to you for coming. We will save our country from autocracy together!
• Our movement is non-violent. In the unlikely event of trouble, de-escalate and/or ask one of our marshals for (yellow florescent jackets) for help. Worst case; call 911.

Pictures from the Sudbury TV video this year:

July 4 Parade

Here are some photos from previous years:

What: A community forum featuring short presentations on local organizing to fight climate change, followed by a conversation with the audience

RSVP Form: Click here to RSVP for the event

Details:

Also, please see this related info from our friends at 350 Mass, MetroWest Node:

“Starting this Wednesday, May 14, and continuing on Wednesdays throughout the summer and fall, the individual trials of the 21 defendants from the non-violent civil disobedience action at Hanscom Field in April of 2024. We hope to pack the courtroom with supporters at Concord District Court starting at 8:15 am, with each trial starting at 9:00am.

Check out this TV news video of the event last year:

https://www.cbsnews.com/boston/video/group-gathers-at-bedford-airport-to-protest-new-private-jet-expansion/

SUDBURY — On Thursday, April 3rd at 7:00pm, Democrats will convene at First Parish of Sudbury, (2nd floor Commons, 327 Concord Rd, Sudbury, MA 01776) to elect 13 delegates and 4 alternates to represent Sudbury at the 2025 State Democratic Convention.

Doors open for registration at 6:30pm for a prompt 7pm start. You must be registered by 7:15p in order to vote.

Individuals aged 16 and above who have registered or pre-registered as Democrats in Sudbury by Saturday, March 29th, 2025 may vote and be elected as delegates or alternates during the caucus. Youth (age 16 to 35), people with disabilities, people of color, veterans, members of the LGBTQ+ community not elected as delegates or alternates are encouraged to apply to be add-on delegates at the caucus or by visiting:

massdems.org/massdems-convention.

The 2025 Convention itself will be in person at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, MA on Saturday, September 13th.

Those with questions or interested in getting involved with the Sudbury Democratic Committee should contact Ravi Simon (Co-Chair of the Sudbury Democratic Town Committee) at ravisimon@gmail.com or info@sudburydemocrats.org

Sudbury Stands for Democracy is back. We will be peacefully protesting Friday, Feb. 21, 4:30-5:30, at our usual spot in front of the Sudbury Town Hall.

Please bring your signs and banners against “President” Musk and his minions, the felonious Trump, and the supine Republican Congress and Senate. And given the latest news, we will be bringing SUDBURY FOR UKRAINE signs.  https://sudburydemocrats.org/ukraine/ Please join us!

Please join Senator Eldridge, Rep. Gentile, and three guest speakers (see below) at “Reimagining Healthcare: A Community Forum”

When: Thursday, February 27th 2025 at 7pm

Where: Goodnow Library, 21 Concord Rd, Sudbury, MA 01776

The forum, hosted by the Sudbury, Maynard, Lincoln, and Wayland Democratic Town Committees, will feature three experts on healthcare and an in-depth discussion and Q&A on universal healthcare and Medicare-For-All.

Please RSVP here: www.tinyurl.com/reimagininghealthcareforum

The panelists:

Kimberley Connors is the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Campaign for Single Payer Health Care. A Maynard resident, she has a strong background in Massachusetts progressive politics and the Single Payer movement. She chairs the Maynard Democratic Committee and is a member of the Progressive Mass Issues Committee and Three Rivers Progressive Mass, where she was Chair. Connors’s interest in health care reform started in 2015 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer, and since then, she has been an organizer for Medicare-For-All.

Michael Doonan, PhD, is Professor and Associate Dean for Academics and Online Learning for The Heller School for Social Policy and Management, Brandeis University. He is the Executive Director of the Massachusetts Health Policy Forum and Director Schneider Institute Collaboration Committee. Michael founded the Heller School’s Master’s in Public Policy (MPP) program and served as Program Director for sixteen years. His Ph.D. from Brandeis is in both Political Science and Health Services Research. His research and publications focus on issues related to access to health care reform, federalism, Medicaid, federal/state relations, public health, and the politics and economics of health system change.

Vivian Kobusingye Birchall, MSc, is the founder of Health Care Blind Spots, an initiative dedicated to identifying overlooked areas in healthcare and proposing effective solutions to enhance the well-being of all individuals, particularly those often neglected in traditional healthcare interventions. An Acton resident, she is a health and medicine communication expert with an MSc in Media, Medicine, and Health from Harvard Medical School, and has over six years of experience in healthcare communication and biotech business management.