Less than half of all Massachusetts residents say they approve of Democratic Gov. Maura Healey’s job performance as Bay State Republicans rev their engines ahead of the 2026 campaign.

Forty-nine percent of respondents to the new University of New Hampshire poll said they approve of Healey, compared to 45% who said they disapproved. With the poll’s 3.3% margin of error, that’s a statistical dead heat.

Still, the Arlington Democrat, who’s had to fend off GOP criticisms of her management of the state’s shelter crisis among other issues, did see her popularity decrease from the last UNH poll in March.

There, 54% of respondents approved of Healey’s job performance, compared to 43% who said they disapproved.

Two Republicans, Mike Kennealy and Brian Shortsleeve, both former aides to GOP Gov. Charlie Baker, are vying for the party’s nomination in 2026.

Healey maintained support among Bay State Democrats (78%) while nearly 4 in 10 independents (39%) and 5% of Republicans said they approved of her.

UNH pollsters sampled the opinions of 907 respondents between May 22 and May 26.

Twenty-one percent of respondents listed the state’s high housing costs as the top issue facing Massachusetts, while 12% each pointed to immigration and the state’s high cost of living.

Healey, in multiple public appearances, has touted her administration’s efforts to rein in the cost of housing and to lower the cost of living.

Barely a third of respondents (37%) said Healey deserves a second term, while 40% said she does not — another statistical dead heat given the poll’s margin of error.

Twenty-three percent of respondents said they had no opinion.

Sixty percent of self-identified Democrats said Healey deserved four more years in the corner office, compared to 32% of independents and 4% of Republicans.

Another candidate facing reelection next year — Democratic U.S. Sen. Ed Markey — encountered similarly choppy waters, with just 33% saying he deserves another term, compared to 43% who said he does not.

More than half of all respondents (55%) said they’re concerned about Markey’s age.

The Malden Democrat will be 79 in the thick of the 2026 campaign season. And among respondents who think he deserves another term, 48% said they were concerned about his, according to the poll.

Among those who think Markey does not deserve reelection, more than 7 in 10 respondents (71%) said they were concerned about his age.

Meanwhile, only about a third of respondents said they approved of Republican President Donald Trump’s handling of such key issues as the economy and foreign policy. And a similar number said they approved of his job performance, according to the poll.

Six in 10 respondents said they disapproved of Trump’s ongoing war with Harvard University over its internal operations and the administration’s efforts to withhold federal funding from the Cambridge-based institution.

Both residents and school officials at a Massachusetts high school were left stunned after a senior prank took an unexpected turn from harmless fun to chaos.

Senior prank gone wrong

Around 90 students descended on Hanover High School on Thursday night to complete the prank, according to school officials.

“I know it involved pineapples in classrooms. Somewhere in between, something happened,” said Tracy Loughlin, a Hanover resident and former student at the school.

The aftermath of the prank included scattered toilet paper, confetti, plastic wrap, and paper towels littering the ground. Loughlin noted that they were “no big deal” in the grand scheme of things. But rumors began to circulate throughout the town about broken glass in a science lab.   

Hanover Public Schools superintendent Matthew Ferron and Hanover High School principal Matthew Mattos clarified that there was no permanent damage to the building and that the most time-consuming part was cleaning up the smashed fruit.

“Windows were not broken, floors were not damaged, and there was no graffiti,” the joint statement read. “The damage was largely superficial.”  

Mattos and Feeron did call the prank “immature, disrespectful, and falling short of the typical creativity or humor typically associated with senior pranks.” 

The class of 2025 has apologized for the mess and has agreed to pay for any damages, staff overtime, and cleaning services required. The incident is being investigated by the school and Hanover Police, but any disciplinary actions will stay confidential.

“While the actions of those involved were clearly inappropriate, we also recognize that young people make mistakes, and this moment presents an important opportunity for learning, growth, and accountability,” Mattos and Ferron said in a statement.

Residents say that diplomas should be withheld

Despite the lack of lasting damage, some residents were less forgiving.

“The kids that were involved should not have been able to walk,” resident Mark Fanning said, suggesting the students’ diplomas be withheld as punishment. 

But some residents were more sympathetic to the students.

“I think people need to relax and give kids a little bit of slack. It’s clean fun; they could be doing worse things,” Michaela Fin said.

“It’s a little town. All the kids are good kids, I don’t know how this happened or why it happened,” Laughlin said.