While most Massachusetts voters heading to the polls today have paid little heed to state issues, eight ballot initiatives--from tax cuts to health care reform--could have a bigger impact for the state than the ultimate presidential victor.

Television and radio ads have been swamping the Bay State airwaves for the last month, arguing opposing sides and urging voters to turn out to vote on the initiatives.

With Sen. Edward M. Kennedy '54-'56 virtually reassured reelection and no close races for the House of Representatives, the most contested races are over the slew of ballot initiatives which are crowding today's ballot.

But the two issues that have drawn most of the spotlight have been proposals to cut income taxes and extending health care reform.

Question Four on today's ballot would reduce the state's personal income tax rate from its current 5.95 percent to 5 percent over the next three years. When fully implemented, the plan would reduce state revenues by $1.2 billion per year.

The measure has been heavily endorsed by the state's Republican leadership and attacked by the legislative Democrats. Republicans say the cut is just a fulfillment of the legislature's promise, while Democrats said the lost revenue from the cut would make the state unable to face pressing needs or an economic downturn.

Recently in ads and in public, Democrats have been trying to tie the proposal directly to generally unpopular Gov. A. Paul Cellucci and Lt. Gov. Jane Swift and make the question a referendum on their leadership.

A statewide poll conducted last week by the Boston Herald and Boston's WCVB-TV showed the question leads by a 47 to 37 percentage point margin. However, opposition to the cut seems to be gaining momentum, as the approval rating for the cut has shrunk dramatically since the summer.