Maura Healey, Massachusetts attorney general. State House News Service file photo by Sam Doran.
There is a new Democrat in the race to be the next governor of Massachusetts: Maura Healey.
Healey, 50, who has served as the state’s attorney general since 2015, made the announcement on Twitter at 6 a.m. this morning.
“We’ll continue with what’s working and fix what’s not. We’ll get our economy back on track and bring job training to every part of our state so that everyone can share in our growth,” Healey said in the announcement video she posted. “We’ll make child care more affordable so that every family can have the flexibility and support they need. And we’ll modernize our schools so that our children can learn in a safe, sustainable environment. We have the best tech in the world — together we’ll take on climate change.
“And because too many have waited too long, together, we’ll bring justice and equality to everyone. I believe in Massachusetts, and I believe in our people. So join us. Let’s do this together.”
Healey has name recognition and she has won statewide elections twice before. She got 61.7 percent of the vote in her 2014 campaign for attorney general and 69.9 percent in 2018.
Healey is the third straight Democratic attorney general to run for governor; the previous two did not succeed.
Martha Coakley, who was the state’s attorney general from 2007 to 2015, unsuccessfully ran for governor in 2014. She lost to Charlie Baker, 48.4 percent to 46.5 percent. Her run came four years after Coakley lost a U.S. Senate special election in Massachusetts to Scott Brown in January 2010; Brown got 51.9 percent and Coakley got 47.1 percent in the race to fill the vacancy created when U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy died.
Before Coakley, Thomas Reilly served as the state’s attorney general, from 1999 to 2007. He unsuccessfully ran for governor in the 2006 Democratic primary. He came in third out of three candidates with 23.1 percent of the vote, as Deval Patrick won the primary with 49.6 percent of the vote. Patrick went on to win, and he served two terms.
The news comes about a month-and-a-half after incumbent Republican governor Charlie Baker said that he wouldn’t seek re-election; current lieutenant governor Karyn Polito also will not run for statewide office this year.
Healey is one of three Democrats in the race. The others are Harvard professor Danielle Allen and state Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz (D-Jamaica Plain). On the Republican side, former state representative Geoff Diehl (R-Whitman) and former Lowell city councilor Darius Mitchell are both candidates.
If Healey is the Democratic nominee, she will be the favorite to win the race, according to Sabato’s Crystal Ball. It says that the 2022 Massachusetts gubernatorial race is “likely Democratic.”
Healey’s announcement video is available to watch below:
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Maura Healey, Massachusetts attorney general. State House News Service file photo by Sam Doran. 
