Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Minogue laid out his political agenda before a friendly crowd in Amesbury Thursday, a crowd that cheered repeatedly throughout his speech — including at its close, when Minogue urged the audience to believe he can beat incumbent Democrat Maura Healey.
“I don’t believe Massachusetts is beyond repair, and I call on all of you to have the courage to put in the work to elect a new kind of governor to save the commonwealth,” Minogue said.
“To everyone out there watching or listening: Have the courage to seek the truth, and use the truth to give you courage,” he added. “I have hope, and we all should still have it, because we are going to win in November.”
The event — held at Shea Concrete, a local business that’s supporting his candidacy — served as a de facto general election kickoff for Minogue. He trounced Brian Shortsleeve in last week’s Republican primary, winning with 76% to Shortsleeve’s 24%.
It constituted either an introductory or a refresher course, depending on the viewer, on Minogue’s “AAOK” blueprint, which he’s been articulating for months. The acronym refers to the four pillars of Minogue’s pitch: accountability, affordability, opportunity, and keeping communities safe.
In his speech, Minogue outlined a vast range of proposals within that framework, including auditing the state Legislature and budget, ending enforcement of the controversial MBTA Communities Act, and letting cities and towns retain more of their tax dollars if they expedite the permitting process for single-family homes.
Minogue also proposed expanding charter, technical and vocational schools statewide and using artificial intelligence to mitigate traffic congestion, among other things.
In a media scrum afterward, Minogue distilled the “AAOK” pitch down to its fundamentals.
“Let’s make sure that we highlight why accountability’s important — we voted for the audit,” Minogue said, referring to the successful 2024 ballot question giving the state auditor the power to audit the Legislature. “We have a $70 billion budget, so we have waste, fraud and excess in there.
“On affordability, [Massachusetts is] one of the most expensive places to live, from all the taxes we have to our energy costs to our gas taxes,” he added. “We need to lower that so people can afford to live here.
“On opportunity, we’re last in the nation in job growth,” Minogue continued. “It is hard to be last out of 50. We’re second worst in debt per person, and we’re last in the nation in permits per capita. So that’s overspending, overtaxing and overregulating. We need to fix that — that’s how we’re going to grow jobs and rebuild the economy.
“And on the ‘K,’ that is just keep communities safe. That’s the basic function of the government, to protect our people, and I will do that as the governor.”
Asked if the blueprint he unveiled Thursday was essentially the same one he’s been touting for months, Minogue demurred, saying the new framework offers both more detail and several new proposals.
He cited protecting qualified immunity for members of law enforcement, ending cashless bail, mandating jail time for anyone convicted of violence against a member of law enforcement, and allowing Massachusetts residents who move to other states to continue donating to Massachusetts charities without being taxed.
An August poll conducted by the University of New Hampshire suggested Minogue has an uphill climb to top Healey in November. More than half — 54% — said they’d vote for Healey, 30% said they’d vote for Minogue and another 14% were undecided.
Afterward, rally attendees — many of whom were already supports of Minogue — spoke glowingly of his candidacy.
“We love this man,” said Pam Santorelli Foley of Bedford. “This man gives us hope.
”Massachusetts ... just feels like it’s so heavy on us because of all the, you know, taxes, the burden on us as citizens,” she added.
“Mike Minogue is for the people, and he’s for honesty and trust and making the politics work for the people,” said Rosa Doherty of North Billerica. “He’s just, and he’s righteous, and he’s honest, and he is the best man for the job.
“He’s a family man. He believes in God,” Doherty added of Minogue, who is a pro-life Catholic. “He prays with his children. We need God in our lives to direct us. So write that!”
