Massachusetts
Massachusetts Republicans celebrate gains made across the state and look forward to 2026
BOSTON – The Republican Party in Massachusetts has struggled in the state for years but after this Election Day, they’re celebrating some gains they made throughout the Bay State.
GOP makes gains
Kelly Garrity of Politico, author of the daily Massachusetts Playbook, says Massachusetts Republicans are “very excited” about the vote, in which their long-struggling party flipped several seats in the House and won an open Senate seat in Southeastern Massachusetts that had been held by Democrats for decades.
Those gains – combined with an unusually strong 40% showing by GOP Senate nominee John Deaton in a loss to Sen. Elizabeth Warren and the rebuke to the Democrat-dominated Legislature of Question 1, which called for broader audit powers over the House and Senate, give the local GOP something to “seize on” as they head into 2026, a re-election year for Gov. Maura Healey, said Garrity.
“I think the Governor has had a lot of challenges that are out of her control her first term,” she says. “Obviously, cost of housing is very high in Massachusetts. And the economy – it seems, nationwide – is really important to voters. There’s also the migrant crisis, again another problem that is largely out of the governor’s control, but whether or not voters will be willing to take that out on the incumbent. The governor hasn’t said if she does intend to run again; I think it’s largely expected at this point that she will.”
Rockier times ahead?
After a stretch where the Legislature’s approval ratings have been relatively healthy in polls, rockier times may be ahead. “I think after this …. the end of the legislative session, when there’s a lot of bills still tied up in Beacon Hill, I think that definitely caught some people’s attention,” says Garrity. “They’re still waiting on an economic development bill to pass. And I do think that, especially when it comes to question one, the question for voters was, ‘Do you want more transparency?’ or that’s what it appeared to be for voters. And I think that, for most people, was a pretty easy yes.”
Garrity also discussed the landslide victory for the Massachusetts Teachers Association on Question 2, dropping a passing score on the MCAS as a statewide high-school graduation requirement. “Voters did decide pretty overwhelmingly to vote yes on that one as well, despite opposition from all of the big power players on Beacon Hill,” she notes.
Massachusetts
A magical holiday village is tucked inside Massachusetts’ most famous candle store
Yankee Candle is a staple in the Bay State, famous for its colorful jars full of fragrance and warm light.
And while its candles can essentially be bought from anywhere, the mothership of the iconic candles lies in South Deerfield at Yankee Candle Village.
The flagship store, known for its ginormous collection of Yankee Candle scents and retail goods, is a winter holiday destination for those in New England.
- This is the most popular candle scent in Massachusetts, according to The Loupe
Leading up to Christmas, the store turns into a complete holiday stop.
Now on prominent display are the brand’s many different winter scents, including such classics as Red Apple Wreath and Balsam & Cedar, and such holiday scents as Christmas Cookie and North Pole Greetings.
Bavarian Christmas Village, arguably the most festive room in Yankee Candle Village, is Christmas all year. Guests will stroll through an enchanted forest featuring a 25-foot-tall Christmas tree, nutcrackers, winter village displays and even indoor snow that falls every 4 minutes.
- ‘Disneyland’ Leverett estate of Yankee Candle founder Michael J. Kittredge II for sale at $23 million
But scattered throughout the flagship store are hints of Christmas and a winter wonderland — from the home section filled with holiday kitchen decor to the Toy Shop filled with jolly trinkets.
Santa even pays a visit to the Yankee Candle Village, hosting a storytime with kids every Monday through Thursday at 11:30 a.m.
And if the shopping and holiday joy become overwhelming, the store even has cafes that offer a bite to eat. Guests can also indulge in sweet treats in its candy store or try freshly made fudge.
Yankee Candle Village is located at 25 Greenfield Road in South Deerfield. It is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
- Yankee Candle will close 20 stores; parent to lay off 900 employees
Massachusetts
Two stranded dolphins rescued from Massachusetts marsh
It swims in the family.
A mother and calf wandered off the beaten path and got stranded in a Massachusetts marsh, forcing an emergency mammal rescue crew to save the wayward dolphin pair.
On Dec. 8, the Wareham Department of Natural Resources responded to a report of two stranded dolphins in the area of Beaverdam Creek off of the Weweantic River, a 17-mile tributary that drains into Buzzards Bay, which directly connects to the Atlantic Ocean.
When crews arrived, two common dolphins were located alive and active, but partially out of the water stranded in the marsh, according to the Wareham Department of Natural Resources.
Responding authorities alerted the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Marine Mammal Stranding Response Team, based in Cape Cod.
IFAW team members put the dolphins on stretchers and brought them to safety, where they conducted preliminary tests on the wayward dolphins.
“Our teams were easily able to extract the animals and transport them via our custom-built rescue vehicle,” Stacey Hedman, senior director of communications for IFAW, said.
The dolphins were weighed; the smaller of the two weighed approximately 90 lbs, and the larger mammal around 150 lbs.
Upon further analysis, it was revealed that the dolphins were an adult female and a socially-dependent juvenile female, a mother and calf pair.
According to Hedman, IFAW had some concerns over the mother’s decreased responsiveness and abnormal blood work, though it was deemed the pair was healthy enough to release back into the ocean at West Dennis Beach in Dennis, Mass.
“By releasing them into an area with many other dolphins around, this would hopefully increase their chances of socialization and survival. Both animals have satellite tags that are still successfully tracking,” Hedman said.
Massachusetts
Man seriously injured after being thrown from moving vehicle during domestic dispute
A 19-year-old Massachusetts man was seriously injured after he was thrown from a moving vehicle he had grabbed onto during a domestic dispute Thursday morning.
Duxbury police said they responded to a report of an injured male who might have been struck by a vehicle on Chandler Street around 5:22 a.m. and found a 19-year-old Pembroke man lying in the roadway with serious injuries.
Through interviews with witnesses, officers learned that the man had gone to his ex-girlfriend’s residence on Chandler Street to confront her current boyfriend. An altercation ensued, during which police said the 19-year-old appears to have jumped on the hood of a vehicle and was then thrown from the moving vehicle.
The incident remains under investigation, police said. At this time, they said no charges have been filed.
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