With state of state and campaign launch, it’s Healey’s game

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Maura Healey landed on the cover of Boston magazine’s December edition, with a question superimposed below her face: “What’s next, governor?” The better question may have been, “What does Maura Healey want?”

That is the question circulating around Beacon Hill last year, and the long profile got at some of it. “The subject of Healey’s job satisfaction has come up, in part, because there have been whispers in power circles that Healey isn’t particularly happy as governor,” the magazine said, before inserting her emphatic denial of the rumor that she had wanted to be Kamala Harris’s attorney general.

There have indeed been doubts, privately voiced inside and outside the State House, about whether Healey enjoys the job. That could be chalked up to people’s plain observations, the usual politico chatter brought on by boredom under the golden dome, or the visual of Healey standing next to Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, whose enthusiasm for state and local government is apparent.

But close observers, including those who will be in the House chamber for Healey’s state of the state speech tonight, may feel they’ve gotten an answer in the recent months. What does Healey want? Reelection.

Going by the last twenty years, it’s rare for a governor to walk away, whether through personal preference or voters’ preference. Deval Patrick survived a recession, raised taxes and still won reelection. Charlie Baker towered over his opponent in his reelection campaign.

The entry of three GOP challengers looking to knock out a Democrat, in a state that has had a historic predilection for Republican governors, seems to have awakened Healey’s competitiveness. “We both played hoop in college,” Driscoll recently told MASSterList. “We both like getting after it.”

There also seems to be a slight echo of Baker in Healey, as she demonstrated with last year’s state of the state in her no-new-taxes talk and a focus on fixing the MBTA while keeping business groups happy. And like Baker, she didn’t mention President Trump.

This time will be different. You don’t need a consultant to tell you that blaming Trump amid a reelection run in Massachusetts is a no-brainer. (She also plans to announce a cut or discount to people's electric bills over the next two months through the deployment of $180 million from "existing funding sources.")

On the GOP side, the president isn’t making it easy with daily quotes and rambling press conferences. Presumably they would prefer he stop off-handedly mentioning the cancellation of elections – presidents do not have that power, per CNN – especially since the three gubernatorial candidates (Mike Kennealy, Brian Shortsleeve and Michael Minogue) have collectively pulled in millions of their own dollars to get this far.

As her State House aides were putting the finishing touches on her speech Wednesday, Healey’s campaign, which formally launched the reelection effort on the first anniversary of Trump getting sworn into a second term, crowed about raising $169,000 in 24 hours with help from the state Democratic Party. “In contrast, the Republican candidates raised a combined total of $167,000 in December outside of their personal loans to their campaigns,” her camp said in a release.

The campaign finance filing may be shorter than her state of the state, and it won’t mention Trump unless his in-kind donations can be tallied. But the message will likely be the same: She’s running.

Who is the last Massachusetts governor to be denied a second term by voters? Send me your answers: [email protected].

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10:15 | Massachusetts Immigrant and Refugee Advocacy Coalition hosts a forum called, "Building a Stronger Massachusetts: Immigration, Workforce, and the Economy." Mark Melnik, director of economic and public policy research at the UMass Donahue Institute, gives remarks. A panel discussion features Economic Development Secretary Eric Paley, Pedro Arce of M&T Bank, Greg Reibman of the Charles River Chamber of Commerce, and Lisa Gurgone of Mystic Valley Elder Care Services. | The Vermillion Club at the Winthrop Center, 115 Federal St., Boston

1:00 | The Massachusetts Municipal Association kicks off its three-day annual conference, Connect 351. A Women Leading Government session at 2 p.m. features local government leaders who will discuss "hot topics" facing their communities while "eating progressively spicier hot wings," according to organizers. There's a welcome reception later, as well as a fireside chat that includes Sen. Liz Miranda, Sharon Select Board Chair Kiana Baskin and Boston City Councillor Ruthzee Louijeune. | Menino Convention & Exhibition Center, 415 Summer St., Boston | More Info

6:30 | Gov. Maura Healey delivers her third State of the Commonwealth address. Likely themes include affordability for residents and businesses. A red-carpet program is set to kick off at 6:30 p.m., with the address to a joint session of the Legislature at 7 p.m. | House Chamber, State House, Boston

8:00 | Rep. Ken Sweezey delivers the MassGOP's response to Gov. Healey's State of the Commonwealth address. | MassGOP HQ, 85 Merrimac St., Boston

11:15 | Boston Mayor Michelle Wu will give remarks to kick off the city’s 46th annual Homelessness Census. | City Hall, Boston

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Democratic groups like the Democratic Lt. Governors Association (DLGA) quickly fell in line behind the Healey-Driscoll reelection campaign this week, singing from the same songbook. But the DLGA’s executive director appears to also be looking at another script, according to sources.

Kevin Holst, who has served as the group’s executive director since March 2023, has also been involved with a super PAC aiming to support Rep. Seth Moulton’s Democratic primary challenge against U.S. Sen. Ed Markey.  Holst previously worked as the national finance director for Moulton’s Serve America PAC.

Holst’s moonlighting is an awkward, and unusual, set-up, sources said, since Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll is a member of the DLGA’s executive committee. The executive committee plans to help 31 lieutenant governor elections and to spend at least $1.5 million on flipping Nevada into blue territory.

Neither Holst nor Driscoll’s political arm responded to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the DLGA said the organization is not involved with the super PAC.

DiZOGLIO VS. MASSPORT: Auditor Diana DiZoglio says she will sue Massport for information as part of her probe of settlement agreements. – MassLive

GREAT EXPECTATIONS: Six political observers, from Doug Howgate to Progressive Mass.’ Jonathan Cohn, outline what they’d like to hear in Gov. Maura Healey’s speech tonight. – WBUR

CHAMBER SPEECH: Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce CEO Jim Rooney delivered his annual business outlook, singling out concerns about restrictive zoning rules and the possible return of rent control. – Boston Herald

SENATE LITERACY REFORM: The Senate plans to vote on its own early literacy reform bill, aligning with a House priority. – State House News Service

ALLSTON MEGAPROJECT: Transportation and neighborhood advocates remain frustrated with the multibillion-dollar project in Allston, which saw a setback last year after the Trump administration blocked $327 million meant to go to it. Bids for a consultant or a consulting team to help the state Department of Transportation redo costs and engineering are due Friday. – Boston Globe

HOLYOKE COUNCILOR’S ARREST: Holyoke Mayor Joshua Garcia said City Councilor Israel Rivera’s comments captured on police body-cameras during his arrest, which involved racial slurs and threatening police department funding, are a distraction from the city’s progress. – MassLive

QUINCY PAY RAISE: Quincy City Councilor Noel DiBona sought to delay a proposal to repeal controversial raises for Mayor Thomas Koch and fellow councilors. The proposal comes after the last election took out several Koch allies. – Patriot Ledger

ANTI-POT PLOT: SAM Action Inc., an anti-pot group, which was involved in opposing a 2016 ballot question on recreational marijuana legalization, is funding efforts to roll back pot shops in Massachusetts and Maine. – CommonWealth Beacon

WORLD CUP CHATTER: Some leaders in Europe are calling for a boycott of the 2026 World Cup, citing President Trump’s obsessive talk about taking over Greenland. That could have implications for Massachusetts, which is hosting matches at Gillette Stadium in June and July and planning for an influx of tourists from Europe. – MassLive

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