Be wary if you plan to host a Memorial Day barbecue, as rainstorms are forecast throughout Massachusetts on Monday.
A frontal storm system will bring widespread showers to the state next week, especially late Monday into early Tuesday. Significant, heavy rainfall is possible, according to the National Weather Service. There could be isolated thunderstorms at night on Memorial Day as well.
Temperatures will remain near to below normal on Memorial Day. Highs on Monday should reach 65 degrees in Hyannis on Cape Cod, 69 degrees in Boston, 70 degrees in Worcester and 72 degrees in Springfield, the weather service said.
The weather should dry out briefly Tuesday into early Wednesday before it turns unsettled once again by mid to late next week with hit-or-miss showers, according to the weather service.
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“[T]he exact timing of this is still tricky this far out, but signals are there that it will be a pretty nice [Tuesday],” the weather service said. “Ahead of that dry slot there is the potential for strong winds and heavy downpours.”
Keller: Here’s why 11 Massachusetts communities flipped for Trump
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Keller: Here’s why 11 Massachusetts communities flipped for Trump
01:19
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The opinions expressed below are Jon Keller’s, not those of WBZ-TV, CBS News or Paramount Global.
BOSTON – Massachusetts has long been known as a Democratic state, but the 2024 election showed a Republican shift.
Presidential election
Vice President Kamala Harris won the state’s 11 electoral votes Tuesday, but former president Donald Trump improved his vote total from 2020. Trump won in 75 cities and towns in Massachusetts. Eleven of those communities voted for Democrat Joe Biden four years ago.
So what’s behind the shift?
Saugus, one of those towns that flipped for Trump, is a great example of a longstanding reality here in Massachusetts. We may be a reliably Democratic state in federal elections, but independents are the dominant voters, and plenty of them, as well as a significant number of Democrats, are to the right of our liberal elected officials.
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“In this two-year cycle we will have gained two state senate seats. We did that in a presidential election year which is often very difficult for the Republican Party,” MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale told WBZ-TV.
Donald Trump supporters dance during a Massachusetts for Trump 2024 election night watch party in Westport on Nov. 5, 2024.
Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Massachusetts Trump voters
It’s no accident that voters in Massachusetts have elected Republican governors in seven of the last ten elections. Voters of all kinds have been feeling the pinch of inflation lately. And this year, controversial subjects like the influx of migrants into Saugus public schools, surely drove some local voters to vote for Trump, who made immigration his signature issue.
One thing’s for sure – voters here and elsewhere are fed up with extraneous so-called “wokeness,” policies that may be well-intentioned but often strike people as gratuitous political correctness. Real or imagined and exaggerated, that sort of thing is catnip to politicians like Trump who brand themselves as the antidote to wokeness.
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Jon Keller
Jon Keller is Political Analyst for WBZ-TV News, and his “Keller @ Large” reports on a wide range of topics are regularly featured during WBZ-TV News at 5 and 6 p.m. Keller’s commentaries are also seen weekday mornings at 5:30 a.m. on WBZ This Morning.
Here’s a look at how the federal holiday might impact your plans, from altered store hours and train schedules to heavier traffic and shifts in local services on Monday.
Holiday observed: Monday.
Retail stores: Open at owners’ discretion after 1 p.m., unless retailer obtains permit to open earlier.
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Liquor stores: Closed until 1 p.m. Monday.
Supermarkets: Open at owner’s discretion.
Convenience stores: Open at owners’ discretion.
Taverns, bars: Open at owners’ discretion.
Banks: Closed.
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Municipal buildings: Closed.
Libraries: Closed.
Schools: Closed.
Mail: Post offices closed. UPS and FedEx will operate as usual.
MBTA: All modes of public transit will operate on a regular schedule.
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Boston traffic rules: Parking meters are free with no time limit. All other parking rules apply.
Trash/recycling collection: Collections will be delayed in some neighborhoods.
Kiera McDonald can be reached at kiera.mcdonald@globe.com.
Psilocybin mushrooms stand ready for harvest in a humidified “fruiting chamber” in the basement of a private home on July 28, 2023 in Fairfield County, Conn.
John Moore/Getty Images North America
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John Moore/Getty Images North America
This piece originally appeared as part of NPR’s live coverage of the 2024 election. For more election coverage from the NPR Network head to our live updates page.
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BOSTON – Massachusetts voters rejected a proposal to legalize natural psychedelic drugs, according to a call by The Associated Press, representing a setback for what’s been a growing legalization movement.
The measure would have allowed people 21 and older to consume psychedelics like psilocybin mushrooms at licensed therapy centers, as well as grow small amounts at home.
The proposal came on the heels of successful campaigns to legalize and regulate psilocybin in Oregon and Colorado. The New Approach PAC, a national advocacy group, poured millions of dollars into all three states’ campaigns, and will likely keep pushing similar proposals across the country.
Opponents, including several large medical associations, argued these drugs can be harmful, especially for people at risk for schizophrenia or psychosis. They also feared the law would fuel a black market of home-grown psychedelics.
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Advocates point to a growing body of research that shows psychedelics’ potential as a treatment for conditions like depression and PTSD.
