Common party angst

It’s never going to be considered one of the most stress-inducing jobs, like firefighter, cop or Starbucks barista. But this might be the most stressful time in decades to be the chair of a major Massachusetts political party.

After back-to-back interviews with Democratic Party head Steve Kerrigan and Republican Party chair Amy Carnevale, we needed an extra beer to blunt the stress vibes they were throwing off. And the interesting thing is how much their angst has in common.

For Kerrigan, recovery from the 2024 debacle requires paying more attention. “You have to be willing to talk to the voters and to listen,” he says, which begs a question: setting aside Senate candidate Martha Coakley’s infamous 2010 remark that standing out “in the cold, shaking hands” was a waste of her time, when and why did Democrats stop being willing to do that?

Kerrigan says Democrats had failed to “understand what the Trump voter was all about.” And now? “[Those voters] feel like they did not have their voice heard. We've got a Washington, DC [where] the last time anyone fought for or increased the minimum wage, my former boss, Ted Kennedy led that battle, and he died in August of 2009. You've got a Congress that doesn't pass a budget through regular order since 1997. The American people are frustrated, and they're showing it by saying you're in power. We now are going to try the other guy.”

Kerrigan rejects the notion that this could spell trouble for Gov. Maura Healey’s re-election, even though the cost of living has proven resistant to her containment efforts and the Democrat-dominated legislature can’t get its business done on time. He takes solace in the fact that you can’t beat somebody with nobody, and the “other guys” have problems of their own.

Carnevale is also struggling to reconcile her party’s agenda with what she hears voters saying.

As GOP gubernatorial candidates Mike Kennealy and Brian Shortsleeve obsessively hammer away at Healey’s handling of the migrant crisis (Shortsleeve: “Maura Healey rolled out a welcome mat for dangerous career criminals and gang members;” Kennealy: “Healey simply does not understand…public safety.”), Carnevale treads much more carefully on the topic as Trump’s ICE storm unfolds…

Reconsidering your political affiliation? How are you feeling about the race to 2026? Get in touch: [email protected].

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9:00 | The four-day BIO International Convention kicks off in Boston, with nearly 20,000 industry leaders from across the globe expected to attend | Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, 415 Summer St., Boston | More Info

9:45 | U.S. Sen. Markey is the guest for the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce's government affairs forum, where he plans to discuss energy, environmental protection and telecommunications policy | Boston Marriott Long Wharf Hotel, 296 State St., Boston

Top Massachusetts officials spoke out over the weekend after former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark were shot and killed at their home Saturday morning, and Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife Yvette were also shot that day. Gov. Healey called the situation “not normal,” writing that “Lawmakers and their loved ones getting shot for their beliefs is yet another sickening act of political violence in a country where it’s become all too common.”

Hortman had Massachusetts ties. In the wake of the shootings, Democratic Congressional leaders have started calling for increased security measures.

Senate President Karen Spilka wrote that “America’s founders envisioned a country where we address our differences through debate, not violence.” And House Speaker Ron Mariano said similarly that “Political violence of any kind has no place in America, nor does the kind of inflammatory rhetoric that can often incite that violence.”

CANADIANS CONVENING IN BOSTON: Gov. Healey and governors from Maine, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont (and representatives for Connecticut and New Hampshire) are convening with Canadian premiers at the State House Library at noon to discuss the impacts of President Trump’s tariffs “and how American and Canadian leaders can continue to work together to maintain economic relations that benefit local businesses and residents.” Discussions will revolve around partnering on energy, trade, tourism and manufacturing.

NIH ARGUMENTS: Attorneys will deliver arguments this morning at 10 a.m. at the Moakley Courthouse in Boston in Public Health Association v. National Institutes of Health — a lawsuit challenging the abrupt cancellation of research grants through the NIH.

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Something was wrong. The due date for their twins was still months away. Twenty-six weeks was far too soon. With emotions and fear running high, Molly and Maddy Needham were born weighing less than two pounds, and it wasn’t until day seven that their parents were able to hold their daughters for the first time — READ MORE

"NO KINGS" SHOWS OUT: Thousands of protesters gathered across Massachusetts and the nation to protest President Trump and his administration's policies on Saturday. Rallies spanned from the South Coast to western Massachusetts and from Martha's Vineyard to the Berkshires, and at Boston's rally, there was a convergence of the city's annual pride parade and the “No Kings” protest on Boston Common. In the backdrop: Trump held a parade celebrating the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary on Saturday, the day of his 79th birthday.

STRIKE AHEAD AT FENWAY? UNITE HERE Local 26 workers at Fenway Park and MGM Music Hall voted to authorize what would be their first labor strike in the history of Fenway. The workers, employed by Aramark, include barbacks, beer sellers, cashiers, catering servers, cooks, utility workers, souvenir vendors and others. The union has been bargaining with Aramark since early 2025 after its contract expired in December 2024, but according to the union, the two parties “remain far apart on key issues.”

A BROKEN HOUSING MARKET: The gap between housing costs and income growth has become more pronounced in Massachusetts, as the price of a typical home in the state is six times the average annual household income. — Boston Globe

MOUNT HOLYOKE GEOTHERMAL PAUSE: Mount Holyoke College has indefinitely paused construction of a hub for its $180 million geothermal heating system. The location of the hub has been a topic of concern by some in the community abutting the project, though that's not the reason behind the pause. — Greenfield Recorder

MEDS & EDS APPROVALS: The Boston Planning & Development Agency directors approved a $1.7 billion, 14-story Dana-Farber Cancer Institute hospital during their June meeting, alongside three other approved developments. — Banker & Tradesman

$9.5 MILLION TO PROTECT OPEN SPACE: In the organization's largest-ever purchase, the Buzzards Bay Coalition acquired 1,652 acres of land that runs through areas of Carver, Wareham, Rochester and Middleboro from the Slocum-Gibbs Cranberry Company for $9.5 million. The land will open to the public in spring of 2027 and stay protected as open space. — New Bedford Light

ICE SAYS MASS. "TOUTED LAWLESSNESS": ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons wrote in a statement Sunday that “Politicians like Mayor Wu and Governor Healey have loudly touted lawlessness over law and order,” adding that ICE's focus is on “public safety.” Healey responded in a Sunday statement that “ICE should be focusing on those with criminal backgrounds, like they said they were going to do.” The agency says Marcelo Gomes da Silva is lying to the public about his experience in ICE custody. — Boston Herald

Homeless camp near Fall River rail trail demolished. Has city's ordinance been enforced?

Healey meets with recently detained Milford teen, gives him beaded rosary blessed by Pope Francis

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