Massachusetts voters could be set to usher in a new era of one-party rule on Beacon Hill after Republicans chose Geoff Diehl, a hardline gubernatorial nominee with ties to former President Donald Trump, to fight an uphill battle against the popular and possibly historic campaign of Democratic Attorney General Maura Healey.

What's happening: In a state that voted 2-to-1 in favor of Joe Biden over Donald Trump, the nomination of a Trump-backed Republican ticket means Democrats will very likely once again control every facet of Massachusetts state government.

The backdrop: Gov. Charlie Baker, a moderate Republican, along with his lieutenant governor Karyn Polito, have been the only statewide officials elected from the GOP in the last eight years.

• Democrats dominate the state legislature by wide margins, though the progressive and conservative wings of the House and Senate sometimes clash.
• Without a Republican in the corner office to push back against them, Democrats will have the ability to push for higher spending and a more liberal legislative agenda.

Reality check: While popular with the 9.7% of voters registered as Republicans and a good deal more unenrolled voters, Diehl's track record running in elections is not stellar.

Read the full story

Women captured nominations up and down the Democratic party ticket in yesterday's primary vote, making the party's slate of nominees the most female in state history.

Former Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell beat labor lawyer Shannon Liss-Riordan by double-digits to capture the Democratic nomination for attorney general.

• Campbell would be the first Black woman to serve as a statewide elected official in Massachusetts.

She'll face Republican nominee Jay McMahon of Bourne, who's making a pitch to voters based on his concern about illegal immigration and the opioid epidemic. McMahon was unopposed.

Brighton's Bill Galvin, the incumbent, defeated Boston NAACP leader Tanisha Sullivan in a landslide for secretary of the Commonwealth, showing that Democratic voters' appetite for activist candidates over veterans only went so far.

• If successful against right-wing Republican candidate Rayla Campbell, Galvin will start his eighth four-year term in 2023.

Diana DiZoglio defeated transportation activist Chris Dempsey for the Democratic nomination for state auditor.

• DiZoglio will face this year's only moderate Republican in the general election, security expert Anthony Amore.

Kim Driscoll will be paired with Healey as the Democrats' candidate for lieutenant governor.

• The Salem mayor defeated western state Sen. Eric Lesser and Acton Rep. Tami Gouveia in the three-way primary race.

Leah Allen, Diehl's hand-picked running mate, will face Driscoll in November.

Acting Suffolk DA Kevin Hayden will almost certainly start a full term in January after defeating Boston City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo in the nastiest political food fight of the cycle.

• The pair have traded volleys of accusations and damning leaks to the press.
• There is no Republican candidate running to be Boston's top prosecutor.

🏈 It only took 20 years, but one Patriots fan got off the season ticket waitlist. (NBCBoston)

⚡️ Five New England states launched an effort to address the process and cost of bringing offshore wind power to the grid. (Commonwealth)

🏨 The owners of the Middle East music venue and restaurant plan to demolish the building and replace it with a six-story hotel, which will have multiple music venues. (BBJ)

Massachusetts is looking for someone to tell the world how great the MBTA is.

Driving the news: The T is hiring a senior director of media relations and chief spokesperson to spread the good word about the agency, or just to make sure everyone knows which lines are shut down and which trains are on fire.

• A LinkedIn job posting says the role involves representing the MBTA and its executive team before the media, business, cultural and academic sectors, and the T's governing board.

Between the lines: The transit agency could be set for a big overhaul next year.

• Attorney General Maura Healey (D), the frontrunner to be the next governor, wants to replace the MBTA's current leadership structure.
• The T would look a lot different in January, especially the top executive jobs that would set the strategies the new spokesperson would promote.

Being the T's public punching bag pays pretty well, too.

• The listing specifies between $117,200 and $165,000 a year for the position.
• It's clearly listed as a "twenty-four (24) hours per day, seven (7) days per week" job at the whim of top MBTA managers.

💭 Deehan's thought bubble: The job posting is a work of art on its own and uses the kind of corpspeak where "synergies" and "message" are both somehow plural nouns.

🍃 Turn over a new leaf with our Job Board.

1. Site Program Coordinator at HireArt.
2. MultiPlatform Content Producer at NBCUniversal.
3. Administrative Assistant III at Boston Children's Hospital.

Want more opportunities? Check out our Job Board.

Hiring? Post a job.

👋 Steph here. I stopped by Art Battle Boston, a live painting competition, last week in Dorchester and wanted to share some of the crazy work the artists did on the spot.

How it works: Art Battle contestants have 20 minutes to fill their canvas with anything they choose.

• Some artists told me they practiced their paintings beforehand so they could complete the artwork before time ran out.

Matt Taylor, a digital artist from Taunton, drew a rainbow elephant similar to another one of his paintings, titled the "Pridephant of Wisdom."

How it went: Taylor didn't win the art battle, but he has another chance to place when he competes in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, this weekend.