By Bob Katzen
Secretary of State Bill Galvin announced that petitions for five potential ballot questions have been determined to contain the 74,754 certified signatures needed to advance another step toward going on the November 2026 ballot for voters to decide.
The proposed laws that were certified and the numbers of certified signatures are:
Allow prospective voters to register and cast a ballot in a single trip to the polls on Election Day (87,408). Current law does not allow same-day registration.
Impose rent control by establishing a limit on any annual rent increase — capping the increase to an amount not to exceed the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index or 5 percent, whichever is lower (88,132).
Reduce the personal income tax rate from 5 percent to 4 percent over a three-year period (86,970).
Repeal the laws that legalize, regulate and tax the retail sale of adult recreational use marijuana in Massachusetts. (78,301).
Implement All-Party State Primaries that would eliminate political party primaries for state elections and instead establish a system where there would be a single, all-party primary in which all candidates, regardless of their party affiliation, would be listed on one ballot, and voters could vote for any candidate on the ballot. The two candidates receiving the most votes in the primary would advance to the general election ballot (79,032).
The proposals will be sent by the secretary of state to the Legislature by January 7, 2026 and if not approved by the Legislature by May 6, 2026, proponents must gather another 12,429 signatures by July 1, 2026, in order for the question to appear on the November 2026 ballot.
Five additional proposals are being reviewed to see if they contain sufficient signatures.