If Minogue wins, Oliver is elected lieutenant governor: what the constitution says happens next

NEW BEDFORD If Mike Minogue wins the governor's race Nov. 3, the same votes elect Shawn Oliver lieutenant governor, although Oliver suspended his campaign Sunday. A candidate who is elected can choose whether to take the oath, a spokesperson for the secretary of the commonwealth's office said, and the state constitution has no way to fill the job if it sits empty.

Minogue, the Republican nominee for governor, said Sunday that "when elected, I will formally ask for his resignation." At a press availability Monday in Hamilton, he said Oliver "will not be my lieutenant governor" and that he would govern without one. "Maine and New Hampshire don't have one, and I'm going to move forward without him," Minogue said, according to the State House News Service.

Oliver, a New Bedford city councilor and the Republican nominee for lieutenant governor, said in a statement Sunday, "After careful reflection, I have made the decision to suspend my campaign for Lieutenant Governor." His statement did not say whether he would take office if elected, though WCVB reported that Minogue said Oliver had promised not to serve. Oliver is charged with operating under the influence of liquor, negligent operation of a motor vehicle, speeding and a marked lanes violation. Not guilty pleas were entered on his behalf Monday in New Bedford District Court, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

One vote, two offices

Under Article LXXXVI of the Amendments to the constitution, a single vote for a party's pair "shall count as a vote for each candidate in such group." Article XIV of the Amendments says the person with the highest number of votes "shall be deemed and declared to be elected." According to the secretary of the commonwealth's office, nominees had until noon Sept. 4 to withdraw, and "it is not possible to withdraw from the ballot at this late stage," a spokesperson told WBSM.

The oath

The next terms begin at noon Jan. 7, 2027, under Article LXXXII. Under Article VI of the Amendments, every person chosen to a state office takes the oath "before he shall enter on the duties of his office," and the constitution has the lieutenant governor take it before the Senate president with both houses present.

"If elected, a candidate has a choice whether or not to take the oath of office," the spokesperson said. "Were someone to be elected and decline to take the oath, there is no procedure in the Massachusetts Constitution to fill a vacancy in the office of lieutenant governor."

Resigning or being removed

Nothing in the constitution's text gives the governor power to remove a lieutenant governor, and the text has no provision on how one resigns. The route it spells out is impeachment. The House of Representatives is "the grand inquest of this commonwealth," and the Senate hears impeachments against any officer "for misconduct and mal-administration in their offices." A Senate judgment goes no further than "removal from office and disqualification to hold or enjoy any place of honor, trust, or profit," and the official can still be tried in court. In a 1941 advisory opinion to the House, which was weighing the impeachment of a sitting councillor, the justices of the Supreme Judicial Court wrote that the words "misconduct and mal-administration in their offices" cover acts "while holding the office," including acts from an earlier term in the same office.

What the law says about charges and convictions

The qualification the constitution sets for the office is the governor's residence rule, seven years living in Massachusetts before the election. Outside impeachment, the one conviction it names as a bar to office is bribery or corruption "in obtaining an election or appointment." Under state law, Chapter 279, Section 30, an officeholder sentenced to state prison for a felony loses the office "from the time of sentence," and Chapter 274, Section 1, defines a felony as a crime punishable by state prison. The OUI law sets a first-offense penalty of a fine or "imprisonment for not more than two and one-half years," and its state prison terms apply only after two or more earlier OUI convictions or court-ordered alcohol programs.

Quick answers

What does the lieutenant governor do?

The lieutenant governor sits on the Governor's Council, which with eight elected councillors advises the governor "in the executive part of government," and presides, without a vote, when the governor is absent. When the governor's chair is vacant "by reason of his death, or absence from the commonwealth, or otherwise," the lieutenant governor "shall, during such vacancy, perform all the duties incumbent upon the governor." If a governor-elect dies before the lieutenant governor-elect qualifies, Article LXXXII says the lieutenant governor-elect "upon qualification shall become governor."

Who is next in line if there is no lieutenant governor?

When the offices of governor and lieutenant governor are both vacant, Article LV of the Amendments hands the governor's powers, in this order, to "the secretary, attorney-general, treasurer and receiver-general, and auditor."

Does an empty lieutenant governor's office get filled?

Nothing in the constitution fills the lieutenant governor's office alone. WBUR reported in May 2013 that Lt. Gov. Tim Murray would resign June 2 to lead the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, that the office would stay open until Gov. Deval Patrick's term ended in January 2015, and that Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin would serve as acting governor when Patrick was out of state.

What the constitution leaves open

Under Article LXXXV of the Amendments, either branch of the Legislature, the governor or the council may ask the justices of the Supreme Judicial Court for their opinions "upon important questions of law, and upon solemn occasions." The constitution's text does not address an elected lieutenant governor who never takes the oath, or impeachment for conduct from before a person first held the office. South Coast 360 found no court decision or advisory opinion on either question, and both appear untested.

Label: Reported by us, from the town's posted records.