WE GET IT: achieving a strong-enough understanding to feel confident voting on nine ballot questions is a tall task. Making it easier is the animating principle of much of our coverage since campaigns launched more than a year ago.
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But new questions always come up, so this week on The Codcast, we tried to answer them. CommonWealth Beacon senior reporters Jennifer Smith and Chris Lisinski fielded inquiries submitted by listeners, touching on many of the dense topics voters will need to decide this election season.
Could adopting an all-party primary system lead to general elections featuring two Republicans? What would cities and towns do to address housing shortages if a zoning reform measure fails? And why are voters even being asked to weigh in on the complex formula used to calculate the annual limit on state tax collections before rebates kick in?
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Listen along to hear answers to those questions and more.
For more insight as you weigh “yes” and “no” on the nine measures, check out our in-depth guide to the ballot questions, packed with information about what each proposal would do, the top donors putting big money into campaigns, and the ways Beacon Hill might respond.
On this episode, Smith and Lisinski discussed the prospect that wealthier candidates will gain a bigger advantage under an all-party primary system (7:00), which communities would be most affected by a proposal intended to kickstart more production of “starter homes” (15:00), and what’s different about the two repeal measures on the ballot (25:00).