Cumulative Public Policy Question Results
One way of using this Page: 1) write a letter advocating a more rational drug policy. 2) look up the names of your “leaders” using the Secretary of State’s “Election Information” tool. 3) Note the name of your District. 4) Then check this page and see if the voters of your District have endorsed the policy you are advocating. 5) If so, point this out. Emphatically. (Note, however, that there was a redestricting after the 2000 election. Some cities and towns might no longer be in the District that voted on a given PPQ. However it is unlikely that the entire political character of the District will have changed. And remember — you are writing as a constituent and have slack coming for that reason alone.)
| Representative Districts | ||||||
| District | Yes | No | Y/N%* | # | YR | Current Incumbent 2009-2010 |
| Fourth Barnstable | 14,315 | 8,804 | 62% | (5) | 2000 | Sarah K. Peake (D) |
| Third Berkshire | 10,909 | 4,173 | 72% | (1) | 2004 | Christopher Speranzo (D) |
| First Essex | 9,223 | 5,811 | 61% | (2) | 2002 | Michael A. Costello (D) |
| Second Essex | 9,658 | 6,762 | 60% | (2) | 2002 | Harriett L. Stanley (D) |
| Fourth Essex | 11,481 | 7,023 | 62% | (2) | 2000 | Bradford Hill (R) |
| Eighteenth Essex | 8,397 | 5,681 | 60% | (2) | 2002 | Barbara A. L’Italien (D) |
| Second Franklin | 5,965 | 5,471 | 52% | (7) | 2002 | Christopher J. Donelan (D) |
| First Hampshire | 11,494 | 8,393 | 58% | (4) | 2004 | Peter V. Kocot (D) |
| First Middlesex | 15,677 | 5,423 | 74% | (1) | 2008 | Robert S. Hargraves (R) |
| Sixth Middlesex | 9,883 | 4,781 | 67% | (3) | 2000 | Pam Richardson (D) |
| Twenty-First Middlesex | 14,154 | 5,915 | 71% | (1) | 2008 | Charles A. Murphy (D), |
| Twenty-Fourth Middlesex | 14,551 | 4,705 | 76% | (1) | 2004 | William N. Brownsberger (D) |
| First Norfolk | 7,425 | 5,173 | 59% | (6) | 2002 | Bruce J. Ayers (D) |
| Second Norfolk | 6,817 | 4,559 | 60% | (6) | 2002 | A. Stephen Tobin (D) |
| Sixth Norfolk | 10,791 | 4,506 | 71% | (1) | 2004 | William C. Galvin (D) |
| Seventh Norfolk | 8,386 | 4,820 | 64% | (1) | 2006 | Walter F. Timilty (D) |
| Tenth Norfolk | 11,568 | 7,625 | 60% | (2) | 2004 | James E. Vallee (D) |
| Twelfth Norfolk | 8,538 | 5,388 | 61% | (6) | 2002 | John H. Rogers (D) |
| Thirteenth Norfolk | 16,372 | 6,125 | 73% | (1) | 2008 | Lida E. Harkins (D) |
| First Plymouth | 9,320 | 5,863 | 61% | (3) | 2006 | Viriato M. deMacedo(D) |
| Third Plymouth | 15,215 | 6,956 | 69% | (3) | 2004 | Garrett J. Bradley (D) |
| Fifth Plymouth | 9,467 | 6,339 | 60% | (3) | 2002 | Robert J. Nyman (D) |
| Sixth Plymouth | 15,267 | 6,155 | 71% | (1) | 2008 | Daniel K. Webster (R) |
| Seventh Plymouth | 13,784 | 5,902 | 70% | (1) | 2004 | Allen J. McCarthy (D) |
| Twelfth Plymouth | 8,862 | 5,919 | 60% | (3) | 2006 | Thomas J. Calter (D) |
| Second Suffolk | 4,227 | 2,914 | 59% | (3) | 2002 | Eugene L. O’Flaherty (D) |
| Fourth Suffolk | 4,923 | 3,907 | 56% | (3) | 2002 | Brian P. Wallace (D) |
| Tenth Suffolk | 7,734 | 5,164 | 59% | (3) | 2002 | Michael F. Rush (D) |
| Eleventh Suffolk | 5,616 | 2,436 | 70% | (3) | 2002 | Elizabeth A. Malia (D) |
| Thirteenth Suffolk | 3,672 | 2,627 | 57% | (3) | 2002 | Martin J. Walsh (D) |
| Fourteenth Suffolk | 3,944 | 3,596 | 52% | (3) | 2002 | Angelo M. Scaccia (D) |
| Fifteenth Suffolk | 6,429 | 2,423 | 74% | (3) | 2002 | Jeffrey Sanchez (D) |
| Seventeenth Suffolk | 3,846 | 1,749 | 69% | (3) | 2002 | Kevin G. Honan (D) |
| Eighteenth Suffolk | 4,202 | 2,109 | 67% | (3) | 2002 | Michael Moran (D) |
| Second Worcester | 6,647 | 4,783 | 59% | (3) | 2002 | Robert L. Rice, Jr. (D) |
| Fifth Worcester | 7,409 | 5,230 | 59% | (3) | 2002 | Anne M. Gobi (D) |
| Sixth Worcester | 10,005 | 5,829 | 63% | (3) | 2004 | Geraldo Alicea (D) |
| Twelfth Worcester | 12,618 | 6,008 | 68% | (3) | 2004 | Harold P. Naughton, Jr. (D) |
| Fourteenth Worcester** | 6,717 | 4,197 | 61% | (5) | 2002 | James J. O”Day (D) |
| Fourteenth Worcester** | 6,298 | 4,420 | 59% | (3) | 2002 | James J. O”Day (D) |
| *Calculated as a proportion of all persons actually voting on the questions, i.e., not counting blanks. | ||||||
| **In 2002 The Fourteenth Worcester voted on two questions. | ||||||
| Senate Districts | ||||||
| Second Essex | 45,956 | 26,612 | 63% | (2) | 2004 | Frederick E. Berry (D) |
| Third Essex & Middlesex | 36,505 | 19,752 | 65% | (2) | 2004 | Thomas M. McGee (D) |
| Second Middlesex | 33,403 | 17,185 | 66% | (8) | 2000 | Patricia D. Jehlen (D) |
| Third Middlesex | 38,187 | 17,674 | 68% | (8) | 2006 | Susan C. Fargo (D) |
| Worcester & Norfolk | 48,739 | 22,611 | 68% | (1) | 2004 | Richard T. Moore (D) |
Total voting yes – 546,261; total voting no – 300,903; Proportion voting yes across the state as a whole – 64.5%.
Policy Questions
Shall the (Representative or Senator) from this district be instructed to vote in favor of legislation…
(1)… that would allow seriously ill patients, with their doctor’s written recommendation, to possess and grow small amounts of marijuana for their personal medical use?
(2)… making possession of marijuana a civil violation, like a traffic ticket instead of a criminal offense, and requiring police to hold a person under 18 cited for possession until the person is released to a parent or legal guardian or brought before a judge?
(3)… that would make possession of less than one ounce of marijuana a civil violation, subject to a maximum fine of $100 and not subject to any criminal penalties?
(4)… that would allow the state to regulate the taxation, manufacture and sale of marijuana to adults 21 and older provided that outlets are state licensed, do not sell alcohol, and are not within 500 yards of a school?
(5)… that would allow patients with certain diseases, who have a written doctor’s recommendation, to possess and grow small amounts of marijuana for their personal use, until such time as the federal government puts into place an effective distribution system for these patients?
(6)… that would make possession of less than one ounce of marijuana a civil violation, subject to a maximum fine of $100 and not subject to any criminal penalties?
(7)… that would allow licensed farmers in Massachusetts to grow cannabis hemp (a crop containing 1% or less THC, the active ingredient in marijuana) for legitimate agricultural and industrial purposes?
(8)… that would make the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana a civil violation, subject to a fine of no more than $100.00. The effect of this proposed legislation would be to amend existing law by repealing all criminal penalties for possession of less than one ounce of marijuana.
Results by Cities and Towns
It is hard for anyone not a political junkie to know what these results mean in terms of cities and towns. Districts are often composed of bits and pieces of several municipalities and redistricting changes the definition of each District from time to time. There follows a list of cities and towns in which reform has had a electoral presence. Each municipality is followed by a letter signifying whether the question appeared in a Senatorial or Representative District. If the letter is followed by a number that number represents the number of Districts (S or R) in that town in which citizens voted on Public Policy Questions. If the letter has no number that means the entire municipality voted for reform. THIS LIST IS NO LONGER BEING UPDATED AFTER 2006 ELECTION BECAUSE QUESTION 2 won in all towns and cities except Clarksburg and Lawrence.
Abington (R), Amesbury (R), Andover (R1), Arlington (R1), Ashburnham (R), Ashby (R), Athol (R), Avon (R), Barre (R), Bellingham (S), Belmont (R1), Beverly (S), Blackstone (S), Boston (R9), Boxford (R2), Boylston (R), Brookfield (R), Brookline (R3), Cambridge(R1), Canton (R), Charleton (R), Chatham (R), Clinton (R), Cohasset (R), Danvers (S), Douglas (S), Dudley (S), Duxbury (R2), East Bridgwater (R), East Brookfield (R), Eastham (R), Erving (R), Framingham (R1), Franklin (R), Gardner (R), Georgetown (R2), Gill (R), Groveland (R), Halifax (R1), Hamilton (R), Hanover (R), Hardwick (R), Harwich (R), Hatfield (R), Haverhill (R2), Hingham (R), Hopedale (S), Hull (R), Ipswich(R), Kingston (R), Lancaster (R1), Lynn (S), Manchester-by-the-Sea (R), Marblehead (S), Medford (S), Medway (R1), Melrose (S1), Mendon (S), Methuen (R1), Middleborough (R2), Middleton (R1), Milford (S), Milton (R9), Milville (S), Montgomery (R), Nahant (S), New Braintree (R), Newburyport (R), North Andover (R1), North Brookfield (R), Northborough (R), Northhampton (R), Northridge (S), Norwell (R), Orange (R), Orleans (R), Oxford (R1,S), Peabody (S), Petersham (R), Phillipston (R), Pittsfield (R1), Plymouth (R), Plympton (R), Provincetown (R), Quincy (R2), Randolph (R6), Rockland (R), Royalston (R), Salem (S), Salisbury (R), Saugus (S1), Scituate (R1), Somerville (S1), Southbridge (R,S), Southhampton (R), Spencer (R2), Sterling (R1), Stoughton (R1), Sutton (S), Swampscott (S), Templeton (R), Topsfield (S), Truro (R), Uxbridge (S), Ware (R), Warwick (R), Webster (S), Wellfleet (R), Wenham (R), West Boylston (R), West Brookfield (R), Westhampton (R), Whitman (R), Winchendon (R), Woburn (S1), Worcester (R1).
