Speaker 1: We are expecting Senator Warren's challenger, Attorney John Deaton, to
Speaker 1: speak to his supporters at about eight forty five this evening.
Speaker 1: As you heard, Elizabeth Warren has won that race for
Speaker 1: the Senate. Wbz's Mike Macklin is with the Deaton camp
Speaker 1: at the Nash Bar and Stage on Tremont Street. Obviously
Speaker 1: some wind out of the sales there.
Speaker 2: Michael, Well, we're down here in the theater district and
Speaker 2: this certainly wasn't the theatrical production that John Deaton was
Speaker 2: hoping for Tonight. He's been mixing with his supporters here
Speaker 2: at the Nash Bar, making no bones about the fact
Speaker 2: that the race is probably going to turn out the
Speaker 2: way all of the polls have suggested it would, but
Speaker 2: he's not speaking like it. Defeated candidate saying that he
Speaker 2: felt he got his message out, got his voice heard,
Speaker 2: and he says he presented himself as an alternative to
Speaker 2: Elizabeth Warren Dalton bemoaning the one party status of Massachusetts
Speaker 2: where the Republicans are virtually out of sight. He says
Speaker 2: he would like to change that. He was hoping his
Speaker 2: candidacy here in the US Senate race would help change that.
Speaker 2: And he says that perhaps there may be another run
Speaker 2: in him in the future, although he is not committed
Speaker 2: to any particular race or any particular time. But the
Speaker 2: fifty seven year old who is an attorney here in
Speaker 2: Massachusetts and was making his first run for political office,
Speaker 2: seeming fairly satisfied with the job that he did in
Speaker 2: this race, no doubt disappointed with the way the vote
Speaker 2: count will turn out, but nonetheless thinking that he got
Speaker 2: his message. Job. We expect to be hearing from him
Speaker 2: within the next hour and Deeton Headquarters by Backlan WBZ,
Speaker 2: Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 1: All right, you're listening to an election night coverag John WBZ,
Speaker 1: And as we continue along, already several states have called
Speaker 1: the presidential race a lot more to go, but Vermont, Massachusetts, Maryland, Connecticut,
Speaker 1: and Rhode Island all have gone, have all been called
Speaker 1: for Vice President Kamala Harris. She has thirty five electoral
Speaker 1: votes as it sits right now. Former President Donald Trump
Speaker 1: as one Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia, Florida, Lahoma, Mississippi, South Carolina,
Speaker 1: and Tennessee and has ninety five electoral votes. Of course,
Speaker 1: it's a long night, and we are going to be
Speaker 1: waiting to see who's won all the states and eventually
Speaker 1: who has won the White House. Independent Bernie Sanders is
Speaker 1: on his fourth term in the US Senate, but control
Speaker 1: of that chamber is still very much up for grabs.
Speaker 1: Jennifer King has everything we need to know about that.
Speaker 3: There are thirty four seats in the US Senate being
Speaker 3: contested in this election. Democrats have a fifty one to
Speaker 3: forty nine majority, with four independent senators included in their caucus.
Speaker 3: Eleven Republican held seats are up for election, all in
Speaker 3: red states. The GOP needs to flip two seats to
Speaker 3: regain control of the Senate at only one if Donald
Speaker 3: Trump wins, since JD Vance would get the tie breaking vote.
Speaker 3: In West Virginia, Governor Jim Justice dominated his Republican Senate
Speaker 3: primary and is polling at double the numbers of Democrat
Speaker 3: Glenn Elliott. Other closely watched Senate races include Montana, where
Speaker 3: Democrat John Tester is defending his seat against Tim Sheehey
Speaker 3: in a state where Republicans now dominate other statewide offices.
Speaker 3: In Ohio, longtime Senate incumbent Shared Brown is facing a
Speaker 3: strong challenge from Republican businessman Bernie Morie. With Senate control
Speaker 3: on the line. Both Montana and Ohio have seen record
Speaker 3: breaking campaign spending.
Speaker 1: I'm Jennifer King control of the US House, who is
Speaker 1: also up for grabs in this election. Republicans are trying
Speaker 1: to hold onto a slim majority. Several of the districts,
Speaker 1: though they're defending, are in deep blue states, ones like
Speaker 1: New York and California. Republicans Brenton Williams and Anthony the
Speaker 1: Espepsido of New York are both defending their seats, though
Speaker 1: the Cook Political Report says their districts are leaning Democrat. Meantime,
Speaker 1: control over Virginia's seventh districts still a toss up between
Speaker 1: Democrat Eugene Vindman and Republican Derek Anderson. Back to Massachusetts. Now,
Speaker 1: five ballot questions statewide on the ballot today, one of
Speaker 1: them to change the game for tipped workers the busiest
Speaker 1: Jay Well Let explain that one.
Speaker 4: Question five on the ballot asks if tipped workers should
Speaker 4: make an increasing wage up to the state minimum on
Speaker 4: top of gratuity. If Massachusetts voters opts know on this one,
Speaker 4: nothing changes to how they're paid. But if it is
Speaker 4: a yes majority, servers bartenders, barbers, bell hops would all
Speaker 4: work there way up to fifteen bucks an hour over
Speaker 4: the course of five years. It would also open up
Speaker 4: the door to tip pooling, where gratuity can be shared
Speaker 4: with back end staff like cooks and cleaners, though that's
Speaker 4: only optional. Those in favor say the law would protect
Speaker 4: employees vulnerable to wage theft and exploitation by their bosses.
Speaker 4: Those again, say all this really does is spell a
Speaker 4: pay cut to servers, arguing patrons will give less as
Speaker 4: a result, and Massachusetts already requires employers to cover the
Speaker 4: difference if it's a slow night for tips. J Willett WBZ,
Speaker 4: Boston's news radio.
Speaker 1: Among the top issues on the minds of voters this
Speaker 1: election day, abortion voters in nearly a dozen states voting
Speaker 1: today on whether to establish the right to abortion access.
Speaker 1: Ten states, Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Maryland, and Missouri among them,
Speaker 1: have measures on their ballot to protect the right to
Speaker 1: abortion access or reproductive freedom.
Speaker 5: Since Roe v.
Speaker 1: Wade was overturned in twenty twenty two, seven states have
Speaker 1: put forward measures on abortion before their voters. In all, seven,
Speaker 1: the efforts to preserve abortion rights one exit polls We're
Speaker 1: giving us a bit of a glimpse in the minds
Speaker 1: of voters as America chooses its next president.
Speaker 6: Americans nationwide how they feel about the state of affairs
Speaker 6: in our country. Americans generally are unhappy with the way
Speaker 6: things are. Seven to ten say they are dissatisfied or angry.
Speaker 6: Close to half say their famili's financial situation is worse
Speaker 6: today than it was four years ago. But six and
Speaker 6: ten Americans say America's best days are ahead of us
Speaker 6: and not in the past. More than seventy percent and
Speaker 6: our national exit polls say democracy in America is threatened.
Speaker 5: Is ABC Stephen Portnoy.
Speaker 1: Respondents to this ABC poll pointed to the economy as
Speaker 1: one of their top concerns this election. We are continuing
Speaker 1: to monitor election results from across the country. We want
Speaker 1: to get you up to speed on the presidential race.
Speaker 1: Of course, it's going to be a long night, maybe
Speaker 1: along several days. But as of right now, Donald Trump
Speaker 1: has ninety five electoral votes. He has won Indiana, Kentucky,
Speaker 1: West Virginia, Florida, Oklahoma, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee, while
Speaker 1: the northeast and a few other states belongs to Kamala
Speaker 1: Harris Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, Rhode Island all going Harris's way
Speaker 1: along with Maryland. She has thirty five electoral votes as
Speaker 1: we speak, a lot more results to come in through
Speaker 1: not only this evening, but as the days where on.
Speaker 1: We're hoping they'll be a call of this race in
Speaker 1: the early going and it won't take days upon days,
Speaker 1: but we'll see and we'll be here for you no
Speaker 1: matter how long it takes. All this campaigning over the
Speaker 1: last many months cost the candidates a pretty penny. CBS's
Speaker 1: Jim Cursula has those numbers.
Speaker 7: Candidates spent a record sixteen billion dollars on US election campaigns,
Speaker 7: according to a nonprofit called Open Secrets. That was an
Speaker 7: all time high. In the hotly contested presidential race, Vice
Speaker 7: President Kamala Harris emerged as the fundraising leader. Her campaign
Speaker 7: directly raised over one billion dollars, with forty percent.
Speaker 8: Coming from small donors.
Speaker 7: Former President Donald Trump's campaign raised three hundred and eighty
Speaker 7: two million dollars directly, with twenty eight percent coming from
Speaker 7: small donors. Jim Chriscilla CBS.
Speaker 5: It is eight thirteen.
Speaker 1: On election nights, stay with WBZ News Radio for election
Speaker 1: coverage throughout the evening wz's night Side with Dan Ray.
Speaker 1: Part of our coverage tonight, we'll be hearing from newsmakers
Speaker 1: including the President of the New England Council, Jim Brett,
Speaker 1: Congressman Seth Molten, former Congressman Mike Capuano, and New Hampshire
Speaker 1: Governor Chris Sonunu All straight ahead with Dan Ray and
Speaker 1: a whole bunch more.
Speaker 5: Stay with us. Election coverage continues.
Speaker 9: Now night Side with Dan Ray, an election night special
Speaker 9: on w b Z, Boston's news radio.
Speaker 10: Good evening, everyone, and welcome on in. My name is
Speaker 10: Dan Ray, the host of Nightside, and I have about
Speaker 10: eight people tonight that we're going to talk to who
Speaker 10: know politics inside and out from different perspectives here in
Speaker 10: New England. Going to start off with Jim Brett. He's
Speaker 10: the President of the New England Council. Jim Brett. Welcome
Speaker 10: back to Nightside, sir. How are you tonight?
Speaker 11: Always a pleasure Dan to be back.
Speaker 10: Well, this is a big night. We only have a
Speaker 10: few of these during our lifetimes. You divide by four, however,
Speaker 10: whatever it is, if you get four score years in
Speaker 10: your lifetime, you get about realistically twenty of these you've
Speaker 10: seen more than a few presidential elections, final presidential elections
Speaker 10: on that first Tuesday after the first Monday in November,
Speaker 10: and you're looking at it from the perspective of the
Speaker 10: New England Council. A lot of people don't understand what
Speaker 10: the New England Council is, but you're about to, not
Speaker 10: you personally, the New England Council is about to turn
Speaker 10: one hundred years old. Tell us about it.
Speaker 11: Well, that's an historic figure itself, one hundred years old.
Speaker 11: Where the oldest regional business organization in the United States. Obviously,
Speaker 11: it was found in nineteen twenty five, and it was
Speaker 11: founded in a little town called Poland Spring in Maine.
Speaker 11: And there was the governors and the leading CEOs at
Speaker 11: the time who were involved in manufacturing of textile and
Speaker 11: shoe and they were saying that we need to find
Speaker 11: ways of working together because in nineteen twenty five a
Speaker 11: lot of the workers were leaving the New England region
Speaker 11: going down south to the Carolina's warmer climate, lower taxes,
Speaker 11: and they said that we are well situated in our
Speaker 11: own individual states. We know the Senators, we know the congressmen,
Speaker 11: they know us, but it's more important that we know
Speaker 11: more of the elected officials throughout New England that could
Speaker 11: help us and be our voice in Washington. And that
Speaker 11: was really the genesis, saying, if we work together as
Speaker 11: a region, even though we're a very small region of
Speaker 11: the United States, we're only about five percent of the
Speaker 11: nation's population and about thirteen and a half million people,
Speaker 11: half of them in one state. But the genesis was,
Speaker 11: if we work together. Vermont's population is no bigger than
Speaker 11: the city of Boston, but they have two United States Senators.
Speaker 11: So they said, if we're five percent of the nation's
Speaker 11: population and we have twelve percent of the United States
Speaker 11: Senate in New England, that's a great asset. But we
Speaker 11: have to find ways of keeping them engaged, involved and
Speaker 11: working together on New England issues. And it's something that
Speaker 11: has developed into a very successful advocacy organization. And what
Speaker 11: we do is we are engaged with all the members
Speaker 11: of Congress, the twenty one members of Congress, and whether
Speaker 11: they're Democrats or Republicans today they're Democrats. When I first
Speaker 11: started in nineteen ninety six, you know, there's two senators
Speaker 11: in New Hampshire, Republicans Bob Smith and Judd Gregg, and
Speaker 11: New Ginridge was the Speaker of the House, so they
Speaker 11: needed someone who could go to Washington and be their voice,
Speaker 11: who could work both sides, both sides of the aisle,
Speaker 11: and advocate on behalf of New England, whether it be
Speaker 11: on higher ed energy tax policy.
Speaker 10: I also assumed, Jim, that there must be issues, for example,
Speaker 10: fishing issues that whether you're a Democrat or a Republican
Speaker 10: on that issue, you want to make sure that whatever
Speaker 10: restrictions they are imposed on our fishing industry, they're done fairly. Obviously,
Speaker 10: you have many regulatory agencies that you have to contend with.
Speaker 10: Interesting enough, you talked about the population. I will bet
Speaker 10: you that as great as your organization is today, over
Speaker 10: time you've lost population and also representation in Congress. I
Speaker 10: suspect that back in the day when the New England
Speaker 10: Council started, we probably had sixteen or seventeen, maybe even
Speaker 10: eighteen members of the House of Representatives, and that figure
Speaker 10: has diminished, which means.
Speaker 11: That I think you could double that. In the nineteenth
Speaker 11: twenties it was over thirty members, thirty members that we're
Speaker 11: advocating on behalf of New England and Washington, and now
Speaker 11: we have twenty one and every dessential every ten years
Speaker 11: when they do resistrict and someone seems to lose, Rhode
Speaker 11: Island seems to lose the seat, Massachusetts seems to lose
Speaker 11: the seat. That's why it is so important that they
Speaker 11: the members of the delegation work as a region. And
Speaker 11: someone like Ritchie Neil, who's the dean who's elected nineteen
Speaker 11: eighty eight to Congress from Springfield, he has really truly
Speaker 11: led the effort to inform and educate all new members
Speaker 11: of Congress from New England that we work together as
Speaker 11: a region. Because when we do that, we have a
Speaker 11: lot of clout. And we've had a lot of successes
Speaker 11: in areas such as tax policy and energy and health care.
Speaker 11: And that's because people in other parts of the country
Speaker 11: marvel at how well coordinated and cohesive. The New England
Speaker 11: delegation is both the House in the Senate, and it's
Speaker 11: been that way, whether they're all Democrats are all Republicans,
Speaker 11: it's just working together. So it's a joy for me
Speaker 11: to work with them because they understand and strength and unity.
Speaker 11: We have an awful lot of clout, and as I say,
Speaker 11: we've had people from other parts of the country come
Speaker 11: to us and say we would like to duplicate what
Speaker 11: you do. We would love to have a mid Atlantic Council,
Speaker 11: our Southeast Council, but they've been unsuccessful and achieving that.
Speaker 11: So we're unique and able to do what we do.
Speaker 11: And I think one of the reasons we do as
Speaker 11: well is that New England pretty much you know, it's
Speaker 11: rich Ox Nation, it's patriots, you know, New England patriots.
Speaker 12: There are many.
Speaker 11: People that live in New Hampshire that work in Massachusetts.
Speaker 11: Many people in Massachusetts work in New England in New Hampshire,
Speaker 11: many people live in Massachusetts work in Rhode Island. Some
Speaker 11: even work in Maine and live here, so we are
Speaker 11: a little more cohesive. But I think also we're an
Speaker 11: organization that is very unique in this time and era
Speaker 11: where there's so much gridlock, so much polarization in Washington,
Speaker 11: our organization is able to access Democrats and Republicans to
Speaker 11: sit together and to see if we can find common
Speaker 11: ground on issues that would be of importance to New England.
Speaker 11: It's not the New England Democratic Council, it's not the
Speaker 11: New England Republican Council. It's the New England Council. And
Speaker 11: who's the New England Council. It's the community health centers,
Speaker 11: it's hospitals, it's colleges, it's the biotech, it's the industries
Speaker 11: that you could think of. They're part of the New
Speaker 11: England Council, all with the mission statement to improve the
Speaker 11: economic conditions in New England and have a voice at
Speaker 11: the table in Washington. And what I'm very proud of
Speaker 11: is to be able to say that we don't give money,
Speaker 11: we don't have a pack, we don't give endorsements, we
Speaker 11: don't give a grade. And that's why we're able to
Speaker 11: get leaders of both parties and Jim white House, Jim.
Speaker 10: Maybe with a little bit of luck, Congress can take
Speaker 10: the New England Council as an example and as a
Speaker 10: model and maybe work together in the Congress that will
Speaker 10: assemble a January. Jim Brett of the New England Council,
Speaker 10: present and CEO, thanks so much for joining us tonight
Speaker 10: here on nightside in a very important night. And we'll
Speaker 10: have you on some night and spend some time taking
Speaker 10: phone calls from listeners.
Speaker 2: Thanks so much, love you, thanks very much.
Speaker 11: I appreciate Thank you.
Speaker 13: Dan.
Speaker 10: All Right, Jim Brett, back to our other programming here.
Speaker 9: On Nightside Campaign twenty twenty four America Votes. This is
Speaker 9: wb Z Boston's news.
Speaker 1: Radio, sixty five degrees in Boston at eight thirty eight.
Speaker 1: Good afternoon, make that good evening. I'm Ben Parker. Here's
Speaker 1: what's happening. The polls are closed in Massachusetts. In fact,
Speaker 1: they closed about a half hour ago. So far, Senator
Speaker 1: Elizabeth Warren has one re election, as have five unopposed
Speaker 1: members of the House, and Kamala Harris has won Massachusetts
Speaker 1: in the presidential race. Right now, there is a focus
Speaker 1: on the city of Boston, where many voters had to
Speaker 1: wait in line past eight o'clock because they're polling places
Speaker 1: ran out of ballots.
Speaker 14: I'm at the Phineas Bate School, Ward eighteen, and as
Speaker 14: you can see, the line is very long here. The
Speaker 14: good news is that the ballots have arrived, but at
Speaker 14: some point throughout the day they ran out of ballots.
Speaker 8: I'm here with Megan Sweeter, and give me a sense.
Speaker 8: What time did you get here and how long did
Speaker 8: you have to wait?
Speaker 15: So we got here about five twenty and we waited
Speaker 15: for about an hour and a half before the ballots
Speaker 15: showed up. And when we got here they said that
Speaker 15: the ballots were. They were out of ballots, but the
Speaker 15: line was moving pretty fast, so we were a little confused.
Speaker 15: But we were about ten people behind where they ran
Speaker 15: out of ballots.
Speaker 8: How frustrating was that? Did it make you nervous?
Speaker 10: You know what?
Speaker 15: It didn't, because this is a very important election.
Speaker 16: There's a lot at stakes.
Speaker 15: So we had our two kids here, two and four,
Speaker 15: and we just hunkered down. They had their little notepad
Speaker 15: as stuffed animal, and we just waited it out.
Speaker 8: How relieved were you when the ballots did get here?
Speaker 16: Very relieved.
Speaker 15: Yeah, we were very happy when we saw the cop
Speaker 15: walk through with the ballots.
Speaker 8: And finally, why was it important for you to wait?
Speaker 15: It was important, as decided to. It's a crucial election.
Speaker 15: It's I think it's important to participate in civic duties
Speaker 15: like this and to have your voice heard.
Speaker 14: Megan Sweeter, thank you so much. So that's the situation
Speaker 14: here in Rossendale. The good news is that the ballots
Speaker 14: have arrived. They're still waiting on more to arrive. But yes,
Speaker 14: you can see this line is very long, but people
Speaker 14: are waiting patiently and they cannot wait to cast their ballots.
Speaker 1: I was w to bctvs Paul Burton and Rosalindale on
Speaker 1: those ballot problems Earlier today, Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren winning
Speaker 1: her third firm as Massachusetts Senator. Of the vz's Madison
Speaker 1: Rodgers is at Warren's campaign watch party in Madison. Apparently
Speaker 1: it is a party.
Speaker 13: It is a party. Indeed, Ben, it was only a
Speaker 13: matter of moments between Poles closing here in the Bay
Speaker 13: State and Democrats notching a victory. Projections do now stay
Speaker 13: that Massachusetts has picked Kamala Harris for the next president
Speaker 13: and reelected Senator Warren to her third term.
Speaker 16: I'm here with the.
Speaker 13: Senator, the Warren campaign and mass DEM's at a watch
Speaker 13: party at a power station. The crowds are celebrating, though
Speaker 13: there is some anxiety for running through the crowds. We're
Speaker 13: expecting Warren to take the stage for an acceptance speech,
Speaker 13: and when she does, you can listen live right here
Speaker 13: on WBZ News Radio. Warren appears to have handily defeated
Speaker 13: the challenge from Republican John Deaton, but it is anything
Speaker 13: but clear which party.
Speaker 16: Will win Senate control.
Speaker 13: Live from the South End, I'm Madison Rogers, WBZ Boston's
Speaker 13: news radio.
Speaker 5: All right, tivatuity WBZ.
Speaker 1: We will keep you up to date on all of
Speaker 1: the happenings, including reaction from John Deaton's campaign party.
Speaker 5: This evening.
Speaker 1: We do have an update though on the presidential race,
Speaker 1: as a couple more states have been called. New Jersey
Speaker 1: goes to Vice President Kamala Harris, while Arkansas goes to
Speaker 1: former President Donald Trump. As it stands right now, the
Speaker 1: electoral vote count Donald Trump with one hundred and one
Speaker 1: and Kamala Harris with forty nine eight thirty three. Let's
Speaker 1: get you out on the roads. It's traffic and weathered
Speaker 1: together the Subaru retailers of New England all wheel drive
Speaker 1: traffic on the three is zach, what are you seeing?
Speaker 17: Well, I'm looking right now in the north here starting
Speaker 17: on ninety five in Woovern, we just got a report
Speaker 17: of a two car crash on the northbound side at
Speaker 17: Washington Street Route one. Little tap of the brakes here
Speaker 17: on the northbound side from Copland Circle, sorry, Copeland Circle
Speaker 17: to lynn Street one twenty eight ninety five Okay, from
Speaker 17: Lexington to Lynnfield ninety three Route three, no issues around
Speaker 17: their four ninety five merges downtown. ZAKEM. LeVert and Tobin.
Speaker 17: No trouble there. Airport tunnels, no delays to and from
Speaker 17: Logan River Road. Smooth sailing on those south of town Expressway.
Speaker 17: Nothing in your way between the split and the tunnel
Speaker 17: Route three twenty four to ninety five, all the speed
Speaker 17: limit ride getting by ninety three and out west on
Speaker 17: the Pike. No issues in either direction between Natick and
Speaker 17: the expressway. Zach Transport to b bzy's twenty four hour traffic.
Speaker 1: We got some record temperatures that they hit our way tomorrow.
Speaker 1: Plenty of sunshine, temperatures well into the seventies.
Speaker 9: Your complete coverage of campaign twenty twenty four continues now
Speaker 9: on WBZ Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 5: A busy day at the polling places today.
Speaker 1: The ballots in Massachusetts had more than just races on it.
Speaker 1: Five ballot questions to consider in the commonwealth. Wbus's Nicole
Speaker 1: Davis is here and what are you saying when it
Speaker 1: comes to these ballot questions?
Speaker 18: Nicole, Yeah, but we're just starting to get our first
Speaker 18: results in on the ballot questions. It is early, but
Speaker 18: here is what we have, starting with Question one, which
Speaker 18: if passed, would allow the legislature to be audited with
Speaker 18: a fraction of cities in towns reporting here, Yes on
Speaker 18: one has a big lead, seventy two to twenty eight percent.
Speaker 18: Ballot Question two on the mcast a bit closer, but
Speaker 18: again with a fraction reporting Yes on two is leading
Speaker 18: sixty two to thirty eight percent. Question three to allow
Speaker 18: right share drivers to unionize Yes fifty nine and a
Speaker 18: half percent, No, forty and a half percent. We did
Speaker 18: have a feeling Question five was going to be close.
Speaker 18: That is the one about tipping in restaurants and other
Speaker 18: tipped wages. So far is closer than the rest of
Speaker 18: the questions. No on top with fifty eight percent, Yes
Speaker 18: coming in at forty two percent, So again, still pretty early, Ben,
Speaker 18: But here's what we have on those. And we did
Speaker 18: have another question, Question four that's been the source of
Speaker 18: a lot of controversy.
Speaker 1: Sure has the cold. Question four is all about the
Speaker 1: ability to grow and use certain psychedelics. Wbz's Jared Brosnan
Speaker 1: has more.
Speaker 19: Question four asks voters to consider the legalization of naturally
Speaker 19: occurring psychedelic drugs like DMT, mescalin, and psilocybin aka what's
Speaker 19: found in magic mushrooms. If passed, anyone over twenty one
Speaker 19: years old can grow, share, or use psychedelics at home
Speaker 19: as long as they stay below the legal threshold for
Speaker 19: each substance, But outside of growing them yourself, the only
Speaker 19: way to get the substances is through licensed professionals, so
Speaker 19: it wouldn't be as easy as going to a dispensary
Speaker 19: for marijuana or a liquor store for alcohol. Those against
Speaker 19: legalization point to the potential health risks from adverse reactions
Speaker 19: to the drugs and say they're unsure how the state
Speaker 19: can regulate at home use. They also worry about a
Speaker 19: lack of a breathalyzer type device that can instantly detect
Speaker 19: whether someone's under the influence. Those in favors say psychedelics
Speaker 19: psilocybin in particular, can help treat things like post traumatic
Speaker 19: stress disorder and anxiety. They also argue that expensive treatment
Speaker 19: costs would mitigate any rampant recreational use. Jared Brosnan WZ
Speaker 19: Boston's News Radio.
Speaker 1: Marijuana, by the way, also a top issue a lot
Speaker 1: of states in the selection. Massachusetts legalized recreational pod in
Speaker 1: twenty sixteen. This year, though voters in Florida, North Dakota,
Speaker 1: South Kota all deciding whether or not to legalize recreational
Speaker 1: marijuana in their states. Nebraska is voting on whether or
Speaker 1: not to legalize medical cannabis. Nebraska is just one of
Speaker 1: six states where marijuana is still completely outlawed, even in
Speaker 1: a medical setting. One of the more hotly contested governor's
Speaker 1: races is playing out right across the border today in
Speaker 1: New Hampshire, WZ. Sherry Small is here now with the
Speaker 1: very latest from the Granite State.
Speaker 16: Sherry Hi Ben.
Speaker 20: Yeah, that's right. Polls showing this race to be neck
Speaker 20: and neck. Republican candidate Kelly Aot versus Democrat Joyce Craig.
Speaker 20: Aon has statewide name recognition that could give her a
Speaker 20: leg up. She's a former one term US senator. Before that,
Speaker 20: she was a prosecutor then attorney general for the state.
Speaker 20: She's pushing her anti tax agenda, new Hampshire being a
Speaker 20: no income tax and no.
Speaker 16: Sales tax state.
Speaker 20: She's also touting pro business economic policies one of our slogans,
Speaker 20: don't mass it up. She has the endorsement of outgoing
Speaker 20: Republican Governor Chris Sanunu. Democrat Joyce Craig, meanwhile, is the
Speaker 20: ex mayor of Manchester In twenty seventeen, she was elected
Speaker 20: the first woman mayor of the city, holding the office
Speaker 20: until January of this year. Prior to that, she served
Speaker 20: as an alderman for six years. Her platform, she says
Speaker 20: she'll strengthen public schools, increased affordable housing, and protect access
Speaker 20: to abortion. Either way, New Hampshire will see its third
Speaker 20: woman governor, following Democrats Jen Shaheen and Maggie Hassen, both
Speaker 20: are now senators.
Speaker 1: Been all right, Shery, We've got a couple of congressional
Speaker 1: races going on in New Hampshire as well. District one
Speaker 1: right now, Chris Pappas, who is the Democratic incumbent. He
Speaker 1: is leading Russell Presscott fifty one to forty nine percent.
Speaker 1: Still very low in the voting tallies. Only nine percent
Speaker 1: of the votes have been counted in District one. District
Speaker 1: two same deal, very low, under ten percent of the
Speaker 1: votes counted, and Maggie Goodlander is leading Lily Tang Williams
Speaker 1: by about fifty one to forty eight percent. Seven states
Speaker 1: have been won by Kamala Harris so far in this
Speaker 1: election day twenty twenty four, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and Rhode
Speaker 1: Island among them. So far in terms of electoral voting
Speaker 1: counts fifty two electoral votes for the vice president. While
Speaker 1: former President Donald Trump has won ten states, he just
Speaker 1: most recently picked up Arkansaw's votes. He has one hundred
Speaker 1: and one electoral votes. It's been a busy day at
Speaker 1: the polling places all across the country. In fact, many
Speaker 1: young Americans casting their ballots for the first time.
Speaker 16: Eighteen year old Tim cast his first ballot and says
Speaker 16: it's a big deal.
Speaker 4: I really feel like my voice is being heard, even
Speaker 4: though it's one vote.
Speaker 16: He was initially turned away from the polling place because
Speaker 16: he was wearing a Trump van's T shirt and political
Speaker 16: attire isn't allowed at the polls, but he is proud
Speaker 16: of Trump.
Speaker 8: I just I think he did better for our country.
Speaker 16: And being from Texas, Tim says, I.
Speaker 8: Really think the biggest thing for me is immigration.
Speaker 16: Allison Keys, CBS News.
Speaker 1: Some polls are starting to close all across the country.
Speaker 1: Massachusetts closed forty minutes ago, so did up many states
Speaker 1: along the eastern seaboard. But as we move off to
Speaker 1: the west, there are still hours to go before the
Speaker 1: pollings closed. CBS's Nicole Skanga tells us today's voting was
Speaker 1: also not without its shriff scalers.
Speaker 21: Officials in at least two states, made in Georgia say
Speaker 21: police have responded to threats against schools and polling places today,
Speaker 21: none of them credible. Brad Raffensberger, the Georgia Secretary of State,
Speaker 21: saying in a news conference that officials had identified the
Speaker 21: source that it was from Russia. The FBI also putting
Speaker 21: out a statement indicating many of the threats appear to
Speaker 21: originate from Russian email domains.
Speaker 1: The meantime, officials say the US Capital Visitors Center was
Speaker 1: closed this afternoon after a man tried to get into
Speaker 1: that building with a torch and a flare gun. All
Speaker 1: eyes are on the outcome of this election day, lots
Speaker 1: of drama, lots of freight nerves. But Americans are not
Speaker 1: the only ones with a close eye on the polls.
Speaker 22: China has no official position but perverse stability, and I.
Speaker 5: Think that probably means Harris.
Speaker 22: A Trump presidency, of course would mean the tariffs that
Speaker 22: would further hurt a slow in Chinese economy and a
Speaker 22: potential trade war, And of course questions remain. I think
Speaker 22: about how far either candidate would support Taiwan.
Speaker 1: That is ABC's Ian Pannell. Kamala Harris has picked up
Speaker 1: another state in the race for president eight states now
Speaker 1: including Illinois and New Jersey. Massachusetts was called early four Harris,
Speaker 1: who now has picked up a few more electoral votes
Speaker 1: up to seventy one. Donald Trump sits at one hundred
Speaker 1: and one electoral votes. And we should tell you about
Speaker 1: Massachusetts congressional races. Elizabeth Warren won the Senate race over
Speaker 1: John Deaton today. There are some congressional seats up for
Speaker 1: grabs well in terms of the incumbents facing challengers. Five
Speaker 1: incumbents didn't face any sort of challenge. They of course won.
Speaker 1: Richard Neil in District one has been declared the winner.
Speaker 1: He did face a challenge today. There are a few
Speaker 1: other challenged seats and we'll keep you posted on those
Speaker 1: as the evening goes on. Former President Donald Trump is
Speaker 1: trying to do something that hasn't been done since the
Speaker 1: late eighteen hundreds become president for a second non consecutive term,
Speaker 1: the last and only person to do it. Hello, dear,
Speaker 1: this is your old Palgrover, Old pal Grover Cleveland.
Speaker 5: He's the one who turned the trick.
Speaker 1: He was elected as the twenty second president and served
Speaker 1: from eighteen eighty five to eighteen eighty nine. After being
Speaker 1: defeated by Benjamin Harrison, Cleveland won the presidency again in
Speaker 1: as the twenty fourth president. He served then in term
Speaker 1: number two, from eighteen ninety three to eighteen ninety seven.
Speaker 1: Cleveland's loss in eighteen eighty eight featured and winning the
Speaker 1: popular vote but losing with fewer electoral votes. He also
Speaker 1: was on the only president who was married in the
Speaker 1: White House. He married Francis Fulsom in June of eighteen
Speaker 1: eighty six while he was the president. We are following
Speaker 1: results here on WBZ throughout the evening. The presidential race
Speaker 1: continues on Many polls still open across the country, so
Speaker 1: we will have to wait a while longer before we
Speaker 1: even start getting counts from there, but we are seeing
Speaker 1: some of the results coming in from some of the
Speaker 1: races across parts of the country. We do have a
Speaker 1: governor's race in New Hampshire that is underway, a Senate
Speaker 1: race in Massachusetts that is over. Elizabeth Warren wins her
Speaker 1: third term on Capitol Hill. Will continue to keep you
Speaker 1: up to date, and we'll continue to check in with
Speaker 1: Dan Ray. He's got some exciting guests on this election night,
Speaker 1: So stay with us on WBZ. I'm Ben Parker.
Speaker 9: Nights Side with Dan Ray continues now on WBZ News Radio.
Speaker 10: Welcome back. We are interviewing a number of political leaders
Speaker 10: from different perspectives and with different experiences and different emphasize
Speaker 10: emphasis with us now a state representative, David Lynskey. He's
Speaker 10: a Democrat, been in the House Chamber here in Massachusetts
Speaker 10: for many, many years. Representative. Welcome to night's side.
Speaker 5: Welcome.
Speaker 10: How are you welcome to w b z's special election coverage.
Speaker 12: Thank you, Dan. It's a big night for America tonight
Speaker 12: and I'm very happy to be part of it.
Speaker 10: Well delighted you with us. You have been a state
Speaker 10: representative for I know Natick, but do you have other
Speaker 10: communities in your in your district as well?
Speaker 12: Yeah, currently I represent all of Natick and half of
Speaker 12: the town of Whaleland. I formerly represented Sherburn and Millis too,
Speaker 12: but I picked up Whaleland and I'm very happy to
Speaker 12: have that too. And I've been in the state legislature
Speaker 12: now for twenty five years in Massachusetts and been involved
Speaker 12: in a variety of issues.
Speaker 5: And I'm now you have.
Speaker 10: Some seniority then twenty times through.
Speaker 12: Well, one of the things you think, as we're saying,
Speaker 12: goes when I first ran that, my slogan was give
Speaker 12: a young man a chance, and now it's turned into
Speaker 12: there's no substitute for experience.
Speaker 10: No question about that. Perspective always makes us feel that way,
Speaker 10: a little bit of age, nothing wrong with that. So look,
Speaker 10: one of the things you mentioned was that your district
Speaker 10: changes periodically, and of course congressional districts change, and one
Speaker 10: of the things that you're very much involved in now
Speaker 10: nationally you're a state representative from Massachusetts, but you're involved
Speaker 10: with the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, the DLLCC, and you
Speaker 10: told me that the Republicans nationally have been i guess
Speaker 10: out maneuvering the Democrats when it comes to controlling state legislatures,
Speaker 10: not so in Massachusetts. Tell us what's going on and
Speaker 10: what you and other members of the DLCC are trying
Speaker 10: to do about it.
Speaker 12: Well, so, Dan, I think the reality is is that
Speaker 12: because of the dysfunction in Congress for the last many years,
Speaker 12: and then also a whole series of Supreme Court decisions
Speaker 12: that push decisions down to the state level, including quite
Speaker 12: frankly abortion, the importance of state legislatures became magnified immensely,
Speaker 12: and so state legislatures now have an enormous impact on
Speaker 12: everybody's day to day lives. But the Republicans quite frankly
Speaker 12: beat us to the punch about fifteen years ago with
Speaker 12: a program to get people elected. Republicans elected the state legislatures,
Speaker 12: and what it turned into, quite frankly, was they then
Speaker 12: controlled congressional redistricting because that's generally done by state legislators
Speaker 12: out there. Now, did you know, for example, that way
Speaker 12: more people in this country vote for Democratic congress people
Speaker 12: than Republican congress people, but that's never reflected because the
Speaker 12: way the maps have been drawn. So we and the
Speaker 12: Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee over the past few years have
Speaker 12: decided to meet the Republican challenge and put a lot
Speaker 12: of emphasis in trying to get Democratic majorities in state legislatures.
Speaker 12: So tonight is yeah, my colleagues around the country, Yeah.
Speaker 10: On that issue. There are some states, some sparsely populated states,
Speaker 10: I think maybe South Coda in Wyoming where they have
Speaker 10: two US Senators but only one member of Congress. So
Speaker 10: it doesn't make a big difference in states that just
Speaker 10: have one member of Congress because there's going to be
Speaker 10: really no redistricting. The list as a dramatic increase in population, but.
Speaker 12: It makes them a difference in a Michigan or Wisconsin,
Speaker 12: or New York or North Carolina. You know that really
Speaker 12: the swing states. So what happens is is, as we
Speaker 12: know from what's going on in the in the presidential
Speaker 12: electric tonight, in the swing states, the votes are pretty
Speaker 12: much split fifty to fifty. But because of redistricting at
Speaker 12: both a state legislature level and the congressional level, the
Speaker 12: Republicans have really had majorities in those states and in
Speaker 12: the congressional delegation and in the state legislature. And so
Speaker 12: they've done a great job at it, and we in
Speaker 12: the Democratic Party are now trying to match it. And
Speaker 12: I expect we're going to have some good news tonight.
Speaker 10: Well, it'll be interesting. I know that it's one point.
Speaker 10: Later in the week, we'll find out that across the
Speaker 10: country the Republicans or the Democrats either picked up a
Speaker 10: lost so many state Senate seats or so many state
Speaker 10: legislative seats, state representative seats. State I know it's called
Speaker 10: the legislatures are a little different In New York. I
Speaker 10: know it's the Assembly, if they're not mistaken, but that's
Speaker 10: the equivalent I guess of our House of Representatives. And
Speaker 10: do you think that the Democratic Party can turn this around? Obviously,
Speaker 10: in Massachusetts, the Democratic Party has a super majority in
Speaker 10: both the House and Senate and nothing's going to change
Speaker 10: as of tonight. Republicans are hoping to pick up a
Speaker 10: seat here, a seat there, but the Democrats run Beacon
Speaker 10: Hill in Massachusetts. But it's not always the same way
Speaker 10: in the other forty nine state capitals. And that's really
Speaker 10: for ex.
Speaker 12: In Pennsylvania right now, the Democrats have a one seat
Speaker 12: majority in the in the state House of Representatives and
Speaker 12: they're down one seat in the state Senate up in
Speaker 12: our neighbors in New Hampshire. That's within three or four
Speaker 12: seats in the state Legislature and just a couple of
Speaker 12: seats in the state Senate. You know that the changing
Speaker 12: the majority in these states can really have a major
Speaker 12: effect on people's lives, on democracy, on their right to vote,
Speaker 12: on the right to control their bodies. It has enormous impact.
Speaker 12: Like I said, the Supreme Court has pushed these decisions
Speaker 12: down to the state legislative level.
Speaker 10: Yeah, there's a lot of cases that work their way
Speaker 10: up to the Supreme Court to deal with, you know,
Speaker 10: apportionment and how districts are constructed, and you'll see those
Speaker 10: cases percolate up. The other thing which people need to
Speaker 10: understand and maybe you can explain it better than I
Speaker 10: that different legislatures around the country are quite different. Meaning
Speaker 10: Massachusetts for the most part, members of our legislature, that's
Speaker 10: your prime career. You're a legislative you know, elected official.
Speaker 10: Whereas in New Hampshire, I think that people it's more
Speaker 10: than one.
Speaker 12: Hundred and fifty dollars a year.
Speaker 10: Yeah, right, and no one's going to be able to
Speaker 10: live even in New Hampshire on one hundred and fifty
Speaker 10: dollars a year, so.
Speaker 12: Of them too, yeah yeah, so very different situation. The
Speaker 12: reality is, when you have a situation like that, it
Speaker 12: gives the governor a lot more power. When you have
Speaker 12: a very part time, inexperienced legislature with no staff and
Speaker 12: no expertise, that that's what happens. It hands it hands
Speaker 12: the control away from the people, away from the legislature
Speaker 12: into the hands of the governor.
Speaker 10: But doesn't it make that a little easier for your
Speaker 10: organization of this Legislative Campaign Committee Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee
Speaker 10: to go into a state like New Hampshire and find
Speaker 10: good candidates who you would approve of and help them
Speaker 10: get elected because it's an easier lift, I guess, is
Speaker 10: what I'm saying, to turn to flip a state legislature
Speaker 10: like New Hampshire than it would be for the Republicans
Speaker 10: to in any way shape or form flip a more
Speaker 10: professional legislature like Massachusetts.
Speaker 12: Or Now that's exactly right, right. We're putting a lot
Speaker 12: of resources into New Hampshire today, obviously, and we've been
Speaker 12: doing it for months, but we're also trying to to
Speaker 12: get control of state legislatures this session in Minnesota, in Arizona,
Speaker 12: and then increase some seats where we're in the minority,
Speaker 12: and trying to be able to at least sustain a vetol.
Speaker 12: North Carolina as an example of that. They have a
Speaker 12: democratic governor, they just elected another democratic governor tonight, but
Speaker 12: the legislature down there is overwhelmingly Republican, and when the
Speaker 12: governor of Vito is something in North Carolina, they aren't
Speaker 12: enough Democratic votes to sustains vetail. So there the Republican
Speaker 12: super majority in both the House and the Senate are
Speaker 12: really able to control them. So we're trying to pick
Speaker 12: up some seats in North Carolina to give that governor
Speaker 12: a little help down there.
Speaker 10: And what this shows is that so many of the
Speaker 10: states in America, at the legislative level and at the
Speaker 10: state level are just very different, the PP dishes of
Speaker 10: democracy different, but all of them have impact. And again,
Speaker 10: your group, if people want to check it out as
Speaker 10: the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, or if they're more interested,
Speaker 10: they could get in test with your office at the
Speaker 10: State House, Representative David. Great to have you on. Get
Speaker 10: you on some night and maybe we'll get some callers
Speaker 10: involved as well. But this was a pretty interesting happensity
Speaker 10: this lesson tonight. Thanks so much, Representative.
Speaker 12: Thank you, Dan. Have a good evening, and democracy prevail tonight.
Speaker 10: I think it will, there's no question in my mind.
Speaker 10: And the show will prevail and continue right after this
Speaker 10: quick break right here on WBZ, Boston's news radio