About that Beacon Hill audit. One year later, and still no action | Bay State Briefing

(*A brief scheduling note: This newsletter will be taking a breather on Monday, Nov. 17. We’ll be back in action on Nov. 24.)

Good Monday morning, everyone.

In case you weren’t keeping track, it’s been a year since Massachusetts voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot question giving state Auditor Diana DiZoglio the power to audit her former colleagues in the state Legislature.

At the time, it was hailed as a victory for transparency and accountability on Beacon Hill, which has long resisted both.

One year later, however, the audit remains undone, hitting a brick wall of resistance from senior legislative leaders who have argued that it violates the separation of powers under the state constitution.

One more complication: State Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s ongoing reluctance to let DiZoglio take legislators to court to force them to comply with an audit that’s now enshrined in state law.

During a radio interview last week, Campbell, a Democrat, said she’d asked DiZoglio’s office “for certain information” that could finally force a resolution on that litigation. For now, however, it remains in park.

“I absolutely support the will of the voters and I take that very seriously,” Campbell told GBH-FM’s “Boston Public Radio” program.

Campbell told hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagen that her office had asked DiZoglio for answers to a battery of questions that ranged from the purpose of the audit, whom she intended to sue and the sort of relief she would be seeking.

“I represent almost every state agency and state official in the commonwealth as your attorney general,“ Campbell said. ”We have not received responses to those questions. And I, then, am not able to go into court and then to bring information to the court and the judges until she gives us that information.”

Michael Leung-Tat, a top lawyer for DiZoglio, told WBUR-FM last week that “this legal dispute is ripe for litigation, and litigation is the only means of resolution given the Legislature’s refusal to comply.”

DiZoglio herself, meanwhile, has kept up a pretty relentless public pressure campaign, building support on social media and across party lines.

DiZoglio, a onetime legislative staffer and elected state lawmaker, joined transparency advocates at a rally on the State House’s steps last month.

There, she called for action on the audit and denounced her onetime colleagues as “bullies.” She also criticized Campbell, a fellow Democrat, for dragging her heels on the litigation.

“Friends, 72% of the vote, that’s no small deal,” DiZoglio said, referring to the percentage of voters who approved the ballot question. “And we expect that our elected leaders here in Massachusetts are going to respect the will of the voters and follow the law.”

In August, DiZoglio hired a high-powered Boston law firm, Donnelly, Conroy & Gelhaar, to pursue the matter in court on her behalf.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Michael Minogue is helping to foot the bill, MassLive previously reported.

Lawmakers, meanwhile, remain dug in.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Senate President Karen E. Spilka, D-Middlesex/Norfolk, said the chamber is annually audited and the results are publicly available.

“Also online is a public database of the salaries of every senator and their staff, every expense that the institution has to run operations and every dollar we appropriate around the commonwealth,” the spokesperson said.

State House Speaker Ronald J. Mariano, D-3rd Norfolk, has called DiZoglio’s attacks “inflammatory” and argued that they are “kind of a nonsensical response to the activities that happen in the legislative debate.”

“We have an honest disagreement, an honest difference of opinion. We think there are constitutional issues involved in the separation of powers, and what she wants to do and what that valid question allows her to do. And that’s the way she deals with disagreements, I guess, is … tweet,” Mariano said earlier this year, according to WBZ-TV in Boston.

Meanwhile, legislative reformers are busy gathering signatures for a brace of new government transparency ballot questions that could go before the voters on next year’s general election ballot.

That would be a full two years after voters gave DiZoglio the green light. Change, when it comes, comes slowly.

This group wants you to ‘Please, please, please’ register to vote

With data showing voters aged 18-30 turned out big in last week’s elections, one voting advocacy group is training its sights on 2026 and mobilizing those same voters again.

And to do it, New York-based HeadCount is hitting those voters where they live: At concerts for such artists as Sabrina Carpenter, Tate McRae, Brandi Carlile and Chappell Roan.

The group’s executive director, Lucille Wenegieme, took a few minutes to chat with MassLive about the 2025 results and what to expect in 2026. This conversation has been lightly edited for content and clarity.

Q: We know that [young voters] came out big for Zohran Mamdani in New York City on Tuesday. What did you see happening there with that cohort?

A: “Community is really the word that comes to mind, you know, when we’re thinking about young voters, [and] young people, in general, who are thinking about their civic identity. They’re really looking for like-minded folks that they can have a good time with and they can share their ideas with.

“And one of the things that we’ve seen with the most successful campaigns, you know, at the local level and at the national level, is a feeling of community, whether that’s in-person making bracelets, or doing a scavenger hunt or online in forums. So, definitely, finding that community of people who make you feel seen and heard is very key for young people. Of course, yes, it’s about the issues, but community is definitely that cornerstone.”

Q: What is HeadCount? What does it do?

A: “For the last 21 years, HeadCount has been one of the largest voter registration organizations in the country. I like to say that we turn music fans into voters … We work in the music and entertainment industry to get fans to register to vote, to get their friends to register to vote, and also to volunteer to help other people get registered to vote, as well as actually vote when the time comes.”

Q: So in those states where there were big contests, what did you see in terms of interest from younger voters? And what is that signaling, do you think, going into 2026?

A: “I think NewYork is definitely one of the more interesting places. We saw the largest turnout in a local election since 1969. So, I mean, across the board, just really great interest and participation. California is another interesting one. Of course, in recent years, we have seen that local elections and special elections have actually drawn higher turnout than general elections, which is quite uncommon. And then, you know, there’s those smaller races. I mean, there were over 600 ballot measures across 24 states. And we know that a lot of those, the turnout is under 10%. So those are really places where young people’s voices can matter a lot.”

Q: Who’s been the most fun to work with?

A: “Well, I can never say the most fun, but I’ll tell you, the folks we’ve done the most with, particularly this year, is Dead & Company and Sabrina Carpenter. [They] have definitely been our top partners for this year in terms of the level of impact that they’ve had. On National Voter Registration Day, Sabrina Carpenter had over 30,000 people take action on her digital campaign with us. We’ve been on tour with her as well as Dead & Company.”

Monday numbers

Bay State voters aren’t feeling great about the state and national economy, according to a recent UMass Amherst/WCVB-TV poll, pointing to choppy waters ahead for pols facing the voters in the 2026 midterms.

Just 23% of the 800 respondents to the poll said the national economy was “excellent” or “good” compared to 77% who said it was “fair” or “poor.”

When it comes to the Massachusetts economy, residents were feeling (slightly) more optimistic: 44% said the state’s economy was “excellent” or “good” compared to 55% who said it was “fair” or “poor,” according to the poll.

Forty-two percent of respondents rated their own economic situation as “excellent” or “good,” compared to 58% said it was “fair” or “poor,” pollsters found.

And the biggest warning shot: 70% of respondents said the nation was on the wrong track, with 22% saying it was headed in the right direction. Eight percent said they weren’t sure.

There was (slightly) more unanimity when it comes to the state, with 43% saying Massachusetts was on the wrong track, compared to 40% who said it was headed in the right direction. Eighteen percent of respondents said they weren’t sure.

The response on the latter puts Bay State residents within the poll’s 4.1% margin of error. UMass pollsters were in the field from Oct. 21 to Oct. 29.

They said it

“Four years ago, we sent a message from every corner of our city that Boston is a home for everyone. We are the city of champions, the cradle of liberty, the safest major city in the country, because we honor our roots. We learn from our history, draw strength from our diversity and empower our people.”

— Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, who was reelected on Tuesday, Nov. 4, without opposition, rallies supporters during her victory speech at Grace by Nia in the city’s Seaport neighborhood.

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Mass. Gov. Healey leads all Republican challengers by double-digits in new poll

‘You’re out of line’: Emails reveal rift between Holyoke mayor, longtime city councilor

What goes on

If you’re the sort who keeps track of such things — mark your calendars: Massachusetts Democrats will hold their annual holiday reception on Dec. 15 at the Omni Parker House in Boston, just down Beacon Street from the State House.

Confirmed guests include Gov. Maura Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll, along with state party Chairperson Steve Kerrigan. So one can imagine the frivolity to follow.

Oh, and you’d better be prepared to dig deep: The minimum ask is $100 running all the way up to $10,000, depending on how badly you want to bask in all that reflected glow.

You can find RSVP information here.

Turned up to 11

Pop combo Katseye plays the MGM Music Hall in Boston on Nov. 19 (tickets and more info here). The Los Angeles-based group made headlines earlier this year with an ad campaign for Gap amid the culture war over denim. Here’s their mega-single “Touch.”

Your Monday long read

The Mandeans, a little-known religious sect that believes they are descendants of the disciples of John the Baptist, have found a home in Texas after fleeing religious persecution in the Middle East, Religion News Service reports.

Some of the group’s members tell the wire service that the central Texas climate matches that of Ahvaz, the southwestern Iranian city in which many of Iran’s Mandaeans originate.

While the rest of us celebrated Halloween on Oct. 31, the Mandeans celebrated one of their holiest feasts, known as “Dehwa Hanina.”

Here’s the germane bit:

“Meaning ‘Little Feast’ in Mandaic, a dialect of Aramaic, Dehwa Hanina commemorates the creation of the world and the return of Hibil Ziwa — an angelic being identified as Gabriel in the Mandaean scriptures — from the underworlds to the worlds of light.”

“According to Mandaean tradition, Hibil Ziwa leaves the world of light at God’s behest and travels to defeat the evil entities inhabiting the worlds of darkness. Descending into the depths of the underworld, Hibil Ziwa subdues the forces of darkness and prepares the world for the creation of Adam, the first man.”

While they feel welcome in the U.S., some members of the group tell RNS they’re hoping for the day they can return home.

That’s it for today. As ever, send me your comments, questions and tips at jmicek@masslive.com. Have a good week, friends.