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Massachusetts is officially named The Commonwealth of Massachusetts by its constitution. The name State of Massachusetts Bay was used in all acts and resolves up to 1780 and in the first draft of the constitution. The current name can be traced to the second draft of the state constitution, which was written by John Adams and ratified in 1780. [14]
Congress can admit more states, but it cannot create a new state from territory of an existing state or merge two or more states into one without the consent of all states involved, and each new state is admitted on an equal footing with the existing states. [7] The United States has control over fourteen territories.
The Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, also known as MassMutual, is a Springfield, Massachusetts-based life insurance company.. MassMutual provides financial products such as life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care insurance, and annuities.
The Commonwealth of Nations, often simply referred to as the Commonwealth, [4] is an international association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire from which it developed. [2] They are connected through their use of the English language and historical-cultural ties.
The coat of arms is encircled by the Latin text "Sigillum Reipublicæ Massachusettensis" (literally, The Seal of the Republic of Massachusetts). The Massachusetts Constitution designates the form of government a "commonwealth", for which respublica is the correct Latin term. The seal uses the coat of arms of Massachusetts as its central element ...
The secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the U.S. state of Massachusetts.Originally appointed under authority of the English Crown pursuant to the Charter of the Massachusetts Bay Company, the office of secretary of the Commonwealth (equivalent to "secretaries of state" in other U.S. jurisdictions) became an elective one in 1780.
The state's 12th congressional district elected the first openly gay member of the United States House of Representatives, Gerry Studds, in 1972 [338] and in 2004, Massachusetts became the first state to allow same-sex marriage. [57] In 2006, Massachusetts became the first state to approve a law that provided for nearly universal healthcare.
The governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is the chief executive officer of the government of Massachusetts. The governor is the head of the state cabinet and the commander-in-chief of the commonwealth's military forces. Massachusetts has a republican system of government that is akin to a presidential system.