Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Democrat Ben Downing at Belle Isle Marsh Reservation in East Boston. (Jesse Costa/WBUR)
The race for governor of Massachusetts has begun even though Election Day is still more than a year and a half away. The incumbent, Republican Charlie Baker, hasn t said if he ll seek a third term, but Democrat Ben Downing is already running.
The 39-year-old former state senator, who announced his candidacy in the 2022 gubernatorial race last month, has defied the political odds once before, and is hoping that his early start can help him do it again.
Downing was just 24 when he first ran for the state Senate in 2005, and back then, lots of people said he was too young.