Reported by us | South Coast

Attorney general, secretary, treasurer and auditor: what each office does and who is running Tuesday

Four Democratic incumbents face three Republicans and a Libertarian. The offices handle utility rate cases, public records appeals, school building money and audits of state agencies.

By the SC360 Town Hall Desk | Published Nov. 1, 2026 | Last verified Nov. 1, 2026, 1:52 a.m. ET

SOUTH COAST Below the races for U.S. Senate and governor, every South Coast ballot on Tuesday, Nov. 3, asks voters to fill four more statewide offices: attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer and auditor, and each race has two candidates. The four officeholders, all Democrats, are running for re-election against three Republicans and a Libertarian. The ballot lists them in this order: Andrea Joy Campbell and Michael C. Walsh for attorney general, William Francis Galvin and Anne R. Brensley for secretary of state, Deborah B. Goldberg and Elizabeth Dionne for treasurer, and Diana DiZoglio and Al Ozonoff for auditor.

Each office reaches into household business on the South Coast. Under state law, the attorney general can step into electric, gas and water rate cases for consumers, the secretary's office rules when a town or agency withholds public records, the treasurer chairs the authority that helps pay for new schools, and the auditor estimates what state laws cost each city and town.

Attorney general

When a business uses an unfair or deceptive practice, Chapter 93A lets the attorney general sue to stop it, and a court may order money returned to people who lost it and a civil penalty of up to $5,000 for each violation. An office of ratepayer advocacy inside the attorney general's office may intervene for groups of consumers in cases over the rates and charges of electric, gas, water and telephone companies, under Chapter 12. The attorney general also enforces the proper use of money given to public charities and can go to court when a city, town or state agency ignores an order from the state's supervisor of records.

Andrea Joy Campbell, a Democrat from Dartmouth, is the attorney general and had no opponent in the Sept. 1 Democratic primary. Her campaign site says she is "protecting reproductive rights, defending civil rights, and taking on powerful corporations," and lists three goals: "Making life more affordable by putting money directly back into people's pockets," "Defending our freedoms against Trump-era rollbacks that threaten our fundamental rights," and "Fighting for the next generation and expanding opportunity for every child."

Michael C. Walsh, a Republican from Lynnfield, is a lawyer who has practiced in Massachusetts for 15 years, his campaign says, and had no opponent in the Republican primary. His site lists six commitments, among them enforcing the laws on the books "including the legislative audit," keeping zoning decisions with cities and towns, and lower utility bills: "I'll fight rate hikes and hold utility companies accountable so working families keep more of what they earn."

Secretary of state

The ballot calls the office secretary of state; the state's election returns call it secretary of the commonwealth. Under Chapter 54, the secretary prepares and furnishes the ballots for every election of state officers, Tuesday's included. The secretary also appoints the supervisor of public records. When a city, town or state agency fails to answer a public records request as the law requires, the person who asked can petition the supervisor, who must rule in writing within 10 business days, under Chapter 66. The secretary also administers the state's securities law, Chapter 110A.

William Francis Galvin, a Democrat from Boston, is the secretary and had no opponent in the Democratic primary. His campaign letter says he wants to serve through 2030 and names three reasons: protecting the right to vote, which he says the Trump administration is seeking to limit, with his office "actively resisting these efforts in federal court"; guarding against federal interference in the 2028 presidential election; and a count in the 2030 census that is "accurate and inclusive."

Anne R. Brensley, a Republican from Wayland, is a former Wayland selectwoman and the chief executive of DevCo North America, with more than 100 real estate transactions, her campaign says. She won the Republican nomination in the Sept. 1 primary as a write-in candidate, with 21,330 votes, the state's primary returns show. Her site says that as secretary she "wants to encourage business growth, engage directly with disenfranchised voters, and protect the integrity of the election ballot."

Treasurer

The treasurer chairs the Massachusetts School Building Authority, under Chapter 70B. The authority says it has paid more than $19 billion in reimbursements to cities, towns and regional school districts for school construction, and its board's Oct. 28 agenda listed votes on Swansea's junior high project and the Dighton-Rehoboth district's school design, along with a preferred school design for New Bedford. The treasurer also holds property turned over as unclaimed, which its owner can claim "at any time thereafter" under Chapter 200A, and chairs the State Lottery Commission.

Deborah B. Goldberg, a Democrat from Brookline, is the treasurer and had no opponent in the Democratic primary. Her campaign site says "making life affordable and focusing on building a strong economy means finding even more creative ways to lift people up," and lists plans that include taking on housing costs through investments in "shovel-ready projects," enrolling more families in the office's Baby Steps Savings Plan and awarding grants to new child care providers.

Elizabeth Dionne, a Republican from Belmont, chairs the Belmont Select Board and is a former attorney at Boston firms, her campaign says. She had no opponent in the Republican primary. Her site calls her "The Taxpayers' Treasurer" and lists four aims: making sure "every taxpayer dollar is spent wisely and efficiently," "opening the books and reporting to you," maximizing "returns on state pension funds and investments" and putting "the interests of taxpayers first."

Auditor

Under Chapter 11, the auditor must audit every state department, office, commission and institution, along with the districts and authorities the Legislature creates and the Legislature itself, each at least once every three years, and the Superior Court can enforce the auditor's demands for records. The auditor's Division of Local Mandates estimates what state laws and regulations cost each city and town. The office's Bureau of Special Investigations looks into fraud in public assistance programs and reports cases with probable cause to the attorney general or a district attorney.

Diana DiZoglio, a Democrat from Methuen, is the auditor and had no opponent in the Democratic primary. Her campaign site calls the auditor "the state's chief accountability officer," whose audits "track the performance of state vendors, agencies and departments that can streamline work, save taxpayer money, and identify misspending." In a note on the site she writes, "I have strived to deliver on my promise to fight for transparency, accountability, and equity," and she points readers to her audit plan.

Al Ozonoff, a Libertarian from Medford, is a researcher and data-systems expert with more than 20 years of work with complex information, programs and organizational systems, his campaign says. No Republican ran in the auditor primary. His site says the auditor "should answer to the public," not party leadership, and should start where the dollars and risks are greatest, naming state contracts, improper or duplicate payments, major projects including the MBTA's, and technology spending.

Campaign money

Each candidate reports to the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance. The office's year-to-date figures, drawn from each committee's bank reports, show what each campaign raised and spent from Jan. 1 through Sept. 30 and the cash it reported on hand Sept. 30, counting any savings account the committee listed.

The rest of your ballot

Every race and question on each South Coast community's ballot is in SC360's town by town ballot guide, and polling places in Taunton, Fall River and five towns, with the drop box deadline, are in SC360's where to vote guide.

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

Notes

What each office does comes from the General Laws as the Legislature publishes them and the Massachusetts School Building Authority's own page. Candidates' names, parties, hometowns and ballot order are as the official ballot prints them. Primary results come from the Secretary of the Commonwealth's Sept. 1 returns. Each candidate's words come from his or her own campaign website, and the money from the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, through Sept. 30 for every candidate. We read them between 11:50 p.m. Oct. 31 and 1:15 a.m. Nov. 1. Dollar figures are rounded to the nearest dollar. We checked each date and weekday against a calendar. Not heard: no candidate was contacted for this story.

Corrections

No corrections to this story. If something here is wrong, tell us. Every correction is dated on the story and listed in our public log.

Sources (26)

1. City of Taunton: Sample Ballots 11.3.26 General Election (the Secretary of the Commonwealth's official ballot, style 164, card 1 of 2)Attorney General, Secretary of State, Treasurer and Auditor boxes: each candidate's name, party and residence as printed, ballot order, "Candidate for Re-election" for the four officeholders. Saved by the Elections desk Oct. 30, 2026. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
2. Secretary of the Commonwealth election statistics: 2026 state primaries (Sept. 1, 2026)Attorney general, secretary, treasurer and auditor primaries: Campbell, Walsh, Galvin, Goldberg, Dionne and DiZoglio each "won against no opponents"; Brensley (Write-In) 21,330 votes in the Republican secretary primary; no candidates in the Republican auditor primary. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
3. General Laws c. 93A, s. 4: Actions by attorney generalSuits to stop unfair or deceptive practices, restitution, civil penalty up to $5,000 per violation. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
4. General Laws c. 12, s. 11E: Office of ratepayer advocacyIntervention on rates and charges of electric, water, gas and telephone companies before the Department of Public Utilities. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
5. General Laws c. 12, s. 8: Due application of charity funds enforcedRead Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
6. General Laws c. 66, s. 10A: Petition to the supervisor of records; enforcement by the attorney generalPetition, written determination within 10 business days, attorney general enforcement. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
7. General Laws c. 9, s. 4: Supervisor of public recordsAppointed by the secretary. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
8. General Laws c. 54, s. 40: Ballots, preparation and furnishingBallots for elections of state officers prepared and furnished by the state secretary. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
9. General Laws c. 110A, s. 406: Administration of chapter"This chapter shall be administered by the secretary." Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
10. General Laws c. 70B, s. 1A: School Building Authority"the state treasurer, who shall serve as chairperson". Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
11. Massachusetts School Building Authority: Notice of Public Meeting of the Board of Directors, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2026Letterhead "Deborah B. Goldberg, Chair, State Treasurer"; voting items for the Dighton-Rehoboth Regional School District and City of New Bedford preferred schematic designs and the Town of Swansea project scope, budget and funding agreements. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
12. Massachusetts School Building Authority: About"more than $19.0 billion in reimbursements" to cities, towns and regional school districts. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
13. General Laws c. 200A, s. 10: Property surrendered to treasurer; claims"may establish his claim at any time thereafter". Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
14. General Laws c. 10, s. 23: State lottery commission"The state treasurer shall be the chairman of the commission." Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
15. General Laws c. 11, s. 12: AuditsEvery department, office, commission, institution, district and authority and the general court; at least once every 3 years; Superior Court enforcement of records. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
16. General Laws c. 11, s. 6B: Division of local mandatesEstimated and actual financial effects on each city and town of state laws and regulations. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
17. General Laws c. 11, s. 17: Bureau of special investigations, directorFraud in assistance programs; probable cause cases reported to the attorney general or a district attorney. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
18. Andrea Joy Campbell for Attorney General (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
19. Mike Walsh for Attorney General (campaign site, home page: Core Commitments, Meet Mike Walsh)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
20. Bill Galvin for Secretary of State (campaign site, home page: "A Message from Secretary Bill Galvin")Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
21. Anne Brensley for Secretary of State (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
22. Deb Goldberg, Democrat for Treasurer (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
23. Elizabeth Dionne for Massachusetts Treasurer (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
24. Diana DiZoglio for Auditor (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
25. Al Ozonoff for Massachusetts State Auditor (campaign site, home page)Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.
26. Office of Campaign and Political Finance: statewide candidates, 2026 year-to-date (data at api.ocpf.us/reports/statewide/ytd/2026?onBallot=true)Receipts and expenditures Jan. 1 to Sept. 30 and cash on hand from each committee's Sept. 30 bank report; Galvin's and Walsh's September bank reports (ids 1046619, 1045880) checked for how cash on hand is figured. Read Oct. 31 to Nov. 1, 2026.

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