South Coast could be battleground in governor’s race

THE GOVERNOR WAS just getting into her remarks about the redevelopment of Route 79 and this city’s waterfront when a man driving by in a white truck leaned out his window and shouted, “Booooooo! Boo Maura Healey!”

Healey didn’t miss a beat from the podium that was set up in a grassy field between the northbound and southbound sides of Route 79.

“Good morning, [or] afternoon,” the Democrat who is asking voters next week to return her to office for four more years said, glancing quickly in the driver’s direction. Turning back to the crowd of politicians, union workers and state employees, Healey shrugged and continued, “You can’t win them all. It’s OK. If he only knew, all right?”

The governor’s stop in Fall River was her second event of the day in Bristol County, following an energy-focused stop at Attleboro’s senior center Wednesday morning. Wednesday evening, Healey and Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll were slated to headline a campaign rally in New Bedford for themselves and other Democrats on the ballot Tuesday, capping off a daylong swing through a part of Massachusetts that Republicans have eyed as fertile ground for their own revival.

“Kim Driscoll and I are running hard all over the state. We are six days out from the election. Early voting is on,” Healey told reporters in Attleboro. She added, “Around the state, I’ve seen a lot of people who’ve already voted, which I think is a good thing. There’s certainly a lot on the line.”

Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Minogue, who spent Wednesday afternoon visiting businesses and residents in Boston’s North End, has held numerous campaign events on the South Coast and plans his own campaign rally in Fall River on Friday.

Republican Party Chair Amy Carnevale told the News Service in May that Bristol County is a particular area of focus for the MassGOP in state legislative races, citing what she said was a trend of unenrolled voters registering as Republicans and a handful of municipal leaders who have switched their party affiliation to the GOP.

The Fall River Herald News reported Monday that this year’s midterms represent the first election in at least 50 years that Republicans have nominated a candidate for every state legislative seat in the greater Fall River area. It is also the first time in a half-century that a Republican is running to be district attorney for Bristol County.

“Bristol County is certainly a region we’re paying close attention to this cycle, particularly in light of some of the movement we saw in 2024 and the grassroots energy and historic slate of candidates,” MassGOP Political Director Aidan Carey told the Herald News.

Healey won every precinct of Fall River four years ago, claiming support from about 56 percent of the city’s voters. But Fall River voters also narrowly sided with Republican President Donald Trump in the 2024 election, one of nearly two dozen Bay State towns where Trump lost in 2020 but won in 2024. Surrounding towns like Westport and Somerset also went for Healey in 2022 and Trump in 2024.

In New Bedford, Healey won all but one precinct (and about 59 percent of the total vote) four years ago, and Democrat Kamala Harris edged Trump by only about 60 votes two years ago. Healey won Attleboro four years ago in her initial run for governor, claiming nearly 9,000 votes or just more than 56 percent of the Jewelry City’s total. In the last presidential election, about 54 percent of the city’s voters backed Harris.

Though her events in Attleboro and Fall River were technically “official” events and not part of her reelection effort, the campaign trail was never far off Wednesday.

“I voted for you,” an elderly woman excitedly told Healey as she grabbed the governor’s hand during a question-and-answer session in Attleboro .