[5][6] Morse was the first incumbent mayor in Massachusetts to endorse the legalization of cannabis during a 2016 ballot initiative, an industry he has since sought to promote in Holyoke's economy, in tandem with information technology startups.

[12][13] The following autumn Morse entered Brown University, working part-time as an assistant for David Cicilline, the mayor of Providence, Rhode Island, and a future Congressman.

The previous summer, he had attended a three-day workshop in New York City hosted by Wellstone Action, a grassroots campaign training organization for progressives, and began quietly fundraising at the end of 2010.

[23][24] Among the earliest projects to open in Holyoke was a $10 million cultivation facility for Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries (GTI), which was operational by mid-2018.

[29] On November 26, 2012, Morse held a press conference announcing his reversal on this stance,[30] vowing to work with local businessman Eric Suher and others to build a casino at Mountain Park, with the city accepting a $25,000 payment from the developer for the costs of a review process.

[34] Morse has also publicly supported state expanded programs such as bilingual education,[35] and the tentative construction of two new middle schools for a reported estimate of $132 million.

[37] Morse has repeatedly affirmed support of the fire chief and denied the validity of these concerns, saying at a protest outside of a fundraiser that "the points that they're making just are untrue.

[41][42] In response, Morse said in a Reddit AMA: "I do admit that I should have briefed the City Council before executing the settlement agreement with this former employee as to avoid issues of perception.

Again, when faced with the decision to potentially spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs to fight frivolous lawsuits, or to execute a settlement agreement with funds that were already allocated in the budget, I chose the latter.

Morse acknowledged that he knew of no instance where local police ignored federal immigration requests, and that the policy did not directly affect Holyoke's largest group of Latino residents, the Puerto Rican community, who hold American citizenship.

[58] The local chapter of the Sunrise Movement voted to retract its endorsement of Morse, and the national organization announced that it would no longer campaign for him.

[59][60] On August 12, 2020, The Intercept published an article on chat logs shared with the publication, reporting that the accusations had been organized starting almost a year earlier as part of a sting operation by the UMass Amherst College Democrats in an attempt to aid Neal.

The released chat logs discussed looking for Morse's dating profiles and how to lead him into saying incriminating things, and their hopes of gaining internships with Neal in exchange.

[62][63] On August 12, Business Insider journalist Grace Panetta wrote on Twitter that she had been contacted anonymously in April 2020 and that the names in the chat logs The Intercept had acquired were the same as those who had written her with vague allegations against Morse.

[64][65] Massachusetts state senator Julian Cyr said the situation showed how "vague and anonymous allegations can be easily launched against LGBTQ candidates to destroy their campaigns".

[78][14] Forbes magazine named Morse in their 2019 30 Under 30 list for Law & Policy, citing his "initiatives include offering refuge to Puerto Ricans displaced by Hurricane Maria, encouraging legal marijuana businesses and restoring the city's downtown.

"[79][80] Morse's mother suffered from severe mental health issues and his brother struggled with drug addiction; both died during his mayoralty.