This is a web edition of GBH Daily, a weekday newsletter bringing you local stories you can trust so you can stay informed without feeling overwhelmed.
☀️Good leaf peeping weather: sunny with highs in the 50s. Sunset is at 4:33 p.m. It’s day 35 of the federal government shutdown.
Some big questions remain after the Trump administration agreed to partially fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) program, formerly known as food stamps, during the federal government shutdown: how much money will recipients receive on their cards? And how long will it take for the funds to show up?
Usually SNAP cards are reloaded on the first day of the month, with an average benefit of about $187 per person. About one in eight Americans participate in the program, and 39% of recipients are under 18. However, Trump administration officials said in a court filing yesterday that recipients can expect to receive only about half of their usual benefits, and that in some states, it could take a few weeks to reload the cards.
“What this all means for SNAP users is they’re going to have to make really difficult decisions still about can they buy all of the food that they need and want,” Liz Miller of the food recovery organization Spoonfuls told GBH’s Diane Adame. “Do they choose to skip some of that food or do they pay their heating bill or their medical bills?”
1. You may have seen the viral video of a 5-year-old girl in Leominster sitting next to ICE agents as they told her father to leave his home and show them his ID back in September. That day, local police officers took the girl to their station, where another family member picked her up. Two days later, agents detained her father, Edwards Hip Mejia, while he was on his way to work.
Now, after more than a month in custody, Hip Mejia is back home. “Me and the girls are so happy — they were very sad and upset with him gone,” Jansy Mejia, his wife, told GBH News in Spanish after his release last week. “Now thank God that he’s back in the house, and they’re glad. He can go out and do the groceries, provide, the things I couldn’t do. He’s eager to take the girls to school and to live a normal life.”
2. Boston police officers and city officials have agreed to a one-year extension of their union contract. Officers will receive a 2% raise and city-funded gyms at each police station.
Also: patrol officers will be required to wear name tags. “Real public safety requires transparency. And knowing someone’s name makes a difference,” Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said. “It means that when you’re in crisis, you won’t be facing down a stranger behind a uniform. You’re speaking to a person, a neighbor, a fellow member of our community.”
3. Colleagues and friends are remembering Setti Warren, the former mayor of Newton, who died over the weekend at age 55. Warren, who grew up in Newton, led the city from 2010 to 2018 and was the first African American mayor popularly elected in Massachusetts history. After two terms, he chose not to seek reelection and took a job at Harvard, first leading the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy, then serving as director of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Institute of Politics. The cause of his death has not been made public.
“Even when everyone else is telling you how broken our politics are, how distrustful we should be of one another, how our system isn’t built to create good outcomes in politics, Setti was the kind of guy that made you believe it actually could be,” said Alex Goldstein, CEO of the communications company 90 West.
4. Let’s look ahead about 10 months to next September’s Senate primary, in which U.S. Sen. Ed Markey is running for reelection. A poll from the University of Massachusetts Amherst/WCVB shows 44% of respondents would vote for Markey, 25% for U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, who is challenging him, and about 5% for former teacher Alex Rikleen. Another25% said they’re not sure who they’d vote for.
“While voters most often describe Markey as ‘good,’ ‘experienced,’ ‘liberal’ and ‘progressive,’ the most frequently mentioned word is ‘old,’ reflecting concerns about Markey’s age and the fact Markey, if reelected, would be 80 years old when taking the oath of office,” UMass Prof. Tatishe Nteta said in a press release. “With Markey’s age at the heart of both the Moulton and Rikleen campaigns, Markey will need to address the elephant in the room, and convince voters that, in his case, age is but a number.” You can find the full poll results here.
Your Election Day 2025 guide
Happy Election Day. If you haven’t yet voted early or by mail, here’s everything you need to know to head to the polls:
Boston: Voters across the city will be deciding who they want to represent them on the City Council in four at-large seats. There are also contested races in the districts covering East Boston and the North End; the South End and South Boston; Dorchester; Hyde Park, Roslindale, Mattapan; Jamaica Plain and West Roxbury; Roxbury; and Allston/Brighton. Mayor Michelle Wu is running unopposed after her main challenger, Josh Kraft, dropped out of the race following the primaries. You can find your polling place here.
Read more: In Boston’s district 7 council race, eagerness to turn the page but less enthusiasm about choices
Cambridge: Voters will select city councilors — 20 candidates are running for nine seats — as well as school committee members. You can find your polling place here.
Everett: Mayor Carlo DeMaria is running against City Councilor Robert Van Campen, and there are contested City Council seats across the city. Find your polling place here.
Quincy: Every seat on the City Council is on the ballot, as are a few school committee seats. You can find your polling place here.
Somerville: In September’s preliminary election, incumbent Mayor Katjana Ballantyne finished third and failed to advance to the final vote. Now, voters are choosing between two at-large city councilors — Willie Burnley Jr and Jake Wilson — to be the city’s next mayor There’s also a non-binding ballot question asking whether Somerville should stop doing business with companies that “engage in business that sustains Israel’s apartheid, genocide and illegal occupation of Palestine.” You can find your polling place here.
Read more: Somerville booted its mayor. What sets her two would-be replacements apart?
Worcester: The city’s mayor, City Council and School Committee members are all on the ballot. Mayor Joseph Petty, who is seeking an eighth two-year term, is running against City Councilor Khrystian King and business owner Owura Sarkodieh. You can find your polling place here.
Read more: 5 things to know about the 2025 election in Worcester
Here’s more information on who can vote in Massachusetts and a guide to how to know who deserves your vote in a news desert. Check back with us for full results as they come in — on air, online and in this newsletter.
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