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Massachusetts politicians partake in April Fool’s, to people’s disappointment




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James Eldridge, a state senator, got some pushback when he said he would buy a beloved local candy shop — only to take it back the next day.

James Eldridge Erin Clark / Globe Staff

Besides the “MegaCambridge” prank a Cambridge city councilor pulled on Boston this year, several other jokes — including more from elected officials — had people fooled on April 1 this year.

For one, Julia Mejia, an at-large city councilor for Boston, said late Monday night that she had been in “deep reflection” and decided to “run for Suffolk Supreme Judicial Court.”

“I will be collecting signatures this week so please reach out to help us!!” she said in her post. 

Some people appeared to be fooled under her Facebook post announcing the “campaign.”

“Great fit,” one user wrote, while others congratulated her. 

She announced that it was a joke in an X post Tuesday. 

“Almost got me councilor. lol,” one person said. 

But not all jokes went over well once the clock struck midnight and April Fool’s Day was officially over. 

In a Facebook post April 1, James Eldridge, a state senator for the Middlesex and Worcester district, “announced” that he would buy Colonial Candies, a beloved local candy and ice cream store in Bolton that is up for sale.

“…when I saw the For Sale sign below the big candy store lettering on Route 495, I just had to take action,” Eldridge wrote in his post. “So it is with great pride that I have joined several local investors to buy Colonial Candies!”

Going a step further, Eldridge said he would “revamp” the historical store — which has been around since 1917 — and made the announcement personal by saying he remembers childhood trips to the shop. 

“This was always my favorite stop as a kid when we would drive from NH to visit the family in Connecticut!” a Facebook user commented on the April 1 post. “Glad it will be saved!”

But Eldridge revealed the next day that it was all just a prank, to the dismay of locals. 

“I WISH I could buy the former Hebert Candies shop that I’ve gone to as a kid, but I hope someone does keep it open!” the senator wrote. “My dry sense of humor apparently convinced some people this was real!”

Some people expressed their disappointment in comments on the post. 

“The original post gave hope and excitement and it was just a lie,” one person wrote. “At least make it more obvious, it was a well written and believable post.”

“Not very amusing to joke about keeping a beloved local business alive, in my opinion,” another said. 

Others took a more lighthearted approach to the situation. 

“Lighten up, people. Is everyone really that uptight?” one person said. “I believed it and was happy but I’m not going to complain about an April Fool’s Day joke. Jeez!”





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