A Massachusetts general election was held on November 6, 1990 in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The election included:

• statewide elections for United States Senator
  United States Senate
  The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
  
  , Governor
  Governor of Massachusetts
  The Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the executive magistrate of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States. The current governor is Democrat Deval Patrick.-Constitutional role:...
  
  , Lieutenant Governor
  Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts
  The Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts is the first in the line to discharge the powers and duties of the office of governor following the incapacitation of the Governor of Massachusetts...
  
  , Attorney General
  Massachusetts Attorney General
  The Massachusetts Attorney General is an elected executive officer of the Massachusetts Government. The office of Attorney-General was abolished in 1843 and re-established in 1849. The current Attorney General is Martha Coakley....
  
  , Secretary of the Commonwealth
  Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth
  The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth is the principal public information officer of the state government of the U.S...
  
  , Treasurer, and Auditor
  Massachusetts Auditor
  The Massachusetts State Auditor is a statewide elected office in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The current auditor is Suzanne Bump.-List of state auditors of Massachusetts:-External links:*...
  
  ;
• district elections for U.S. Representatives, State Representatives
  Massachusetts House of Representatives
  The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
  
  , State Senators, and Governor's Councillors
  Massachusetts Governor's Council
  The Massachusetts Governor's Council is a governmental body that provides advice and consent in certain matters such as judicial nominations, pardons, and commutations to the Governor of Massachusetts...
  
  ; and
• ballot questions at the state and local levels.

Democratic and Republican candidates were selected in party primaries held September 19, 1990.

United States Senator

Democratic

Democratic Party (United States)

The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 incumbent John Kerry

John Kerry

John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...

 was re-elected over Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Jim Rappaport

Jim Rappaport

James Rappaport is a real estate developer, entrepreneur, attorney, philanthropist, and Republican politician from Massachusetts.-Political career:...

.

Governor & Lieutenant Governor

Republicans

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 William Weld

William Weld

William Floyd Weld is a former governor of the US state of Massachusetts. He served as that state's 68th governor from 1991 to 1997. From 1981 to 1988, he was a federal prosecutor in the United States Justice Department...

 and Paul Cellucci

Paul Cellucci

Argeo Paul Cellucci is an American politician and diplomat who served as the 69th Governor of Massachusetts and US Ambassador to Canada.-Early life and career:...

 were elected Governor and Lieutenant Governor, respectively, over Democratic candidates John Silber

John Silber

John Robert Silber is an American academician and former candidate for public office. From 1971 to 1996 he was President of Boston University and from 1996 to 2003 Chancellor of the University. Since 2003 he has been its President Emeritus. In 1990, Silber took a leave of absence from the...

 and Marjorie Clapprood

Marjorie Clapprood

Marjorie O'Neill Clapprood is a former Massachusetts politician and talk show host who served as a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives from 1985-1991....

. Weld's victory was the first for a Republican since since 1970.

Attorney General

Democrat Scott Harshbarger

Scott Harshbarger

Luther Scott Harshbarger is a lawyer and a Democratic politician from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.-Education and early career:...

 was elected Attorney General

Massachusetts Attorney General

The Massachusetts Attorney General is an elected executive officer of the Massachusetts Government. The office of Attorney-General was abolished in 1843 and re-established in 1849. The current Attorney General is Martha Coakley....

. He defeated incumbent James Shannon

James Shannon

James Michael Shannon , also known as Jim Shannon, is a Democratic politician from Massachusetts. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 to 1985, and later as the Massachusetts Attorney General....

 in the Democratic primary and Republican William C. Sawyer in the general election.

Secretary of the Commonwealth

Incumbent Secretary of the Commonwealth

Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth

The Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth is the principal public information officer of the state government of the U.S...

 Michael J. Connolly

Michael J. Connolly (American politician)

Michael Joseph Connolly is a former politician who served as Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth from 1979–1994....

 defeated Republican Paul McCarthy and Independent

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

 Barbara F. Ahearn in the general election.

Former Celtics star Dave Cowens

Dave Cowens

David William Cowens is a retired American professional basketball player and NBA head coach. At 6'9", he played the center and occasionally the power forward position. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1991...

 entered the race as a Republican, but because he did not register by June 5, 1989, he was unable to appear on the primary ballot and dropped out.

Treasurer and Receiver-General

Incumbent Treasurer and Receiver-General

Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts

The Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts is an executive officer, elected state-wide every four years....

 Robert Q. Crane

Robert Q. Crane

Robert Quentin Crane is an American politician who served as Treasurer and Receiver-General of Massachusetts from 1965–1991. He is credited with starting the Massachusetts Lottery.- Early life :...

 did not run for re-election. Republican Joe Malone defeated Democrat State Representative William F. Galvin

William F. Galvin

William Francis Galvin is the 27th and current Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth .-Early life and career:...

 and Independent

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

 C. David Nash in the general election.

Auditor

Democrat A. Joseph DeNucci

A. Joseph DeNucci

A. Joseph "Joe" DeNucci is a former middle-weight boxer and former Auditor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.-Early Life and career:...

 was re-elected Auditor

Massachusetts Auditor

The Massachusetts State Auditor is a statewide elected office in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The current auditor is Suzanne Bump.-List of state auditors of Massachusetts:-External links:*...

. He defeated Republican Douglas J. Murray and Independent candidate Steven K. Sherman.

Question 1

Proposed Amendment to the Constitution – The proposed constitutional amendment would repeal the constitutional provision that a state census be taken and used as the basis for determining state representative, senatorial, and councilor districts. The proposed constitutional amendment would provide that the federal census shall be the basis for determining such districts.

Question 2

Law Proposed by Initiative Petition - The proposed law would place restrictions on the State’s use of consultants. It would place various limits on the amount of profit, overhead charges and expenses that the State could pay consultants. It would limit the duration of consultant contracts to two years and any extension to one year, and it would limit the degree to which such contracts could be changed to require payments in excess of the original contract. The proposed law would limit to $100,000 the amount the State could pay on a consultant contract with an individual and would require all other consultant contracts in excess of $25,000 to be sought through competitive bidding. It would prohibit consultants from supervising State employees, and it would limit the use of consultants as substitutes for State employee positions.

Question 3

Law Proposed by Initiative Petition – The proposed law would changed the state income tax rate, affect language contained in certain tax provisions, and regulate the setting of fees by state agencies and authorities.

Question 4

Law Proposed by Initiative Petition – This proposed law would change the state election laws governing the establishment of political parties and the nomination of candidates.

Question 5

Law Proposed by Initiative Petition – This proposed law would regulate the distribution to cities and towns of the Local Aid Fund, which consists of at least 40% of the revenue generated by the state income, sales, and corporate taxes, as well as the balance of the State Lottery Fund.