BOSTON, Mass. — Democratic incumbent Maura Healey and Republican rival Mike Minogue sparred over household costs, abortion access and government accountability Thursday night in Needham, closing their last joint debate before Boston and statewide voters decide the governor’s race.
Minogue pressed Healey on her handling of a former aide facing new federal fraud charges after a state cocaine trafficking arrest, and on a barracks scandal involving State Police. A clipped Healey line about things sometimes happening became a repeated attack on her leadership.
Energy costs filled long stretches. Minogue blamed Healey for blocking earlier gas pipeline plans; Healey said she blocked a deal that would have stuck taxpayers with construction costs and is seeking federal help to expand existing lines while backing solar, wind and other sources.
Each side floated pausing the state gas tax, though they differ on timing. Minogue also urged Healey to embrace a federal scholarship tax credit and said permit speed and stretch building codes are slowing housing. Healey pointed to tax cuts and housing investments from her first year and said state permit timelines already shrank.
Reproductive rights brought another sharp exchange: Healey said Minogue would roll back protections for women, while Minogue said he would follow the law and argued her criticism struck at his Catholic faith. Affordability and national Trump policies threaded through Healey’s answers, while Minogue kept steering questions back to state taxes and fees.
The Needham studio exchange was their second and last shared stage of the cycle. Campaigns now turn to the final stretch of early voting and Election Day turnout across Massachusetts.
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