Voting In Massachusetts

To be eligible to vote in Massachusetts, you must be… Click to learn more

To be eligible to vote in Massachusetts, you must be:

• A US citizen
• A resident of Massachusetts
• At least 18 years old on or before Eection Day
• Not be under legal guardianship with respect to voting, in prison, or convicted of election fraud (even if the prison term is completed)

You must attach identification to your voter registration form, if you are registering to vote for the first time in Massachusetts. If you registered to vote by mail on or after January 1, 2003, you will be required to show identification when you vote for the first time… Click to learn more

You must attach identification to your voter registration form if you are registering to vote for the first time in Massachusetts. If you registered to vote by mail on or after January 1, 2003, you will be required to show identification when you vote for the first time in a federal election. However, you can also send in a copy of your identification with your voter registration form. Acceptable identification must include your name and the address at which you are registered to vote. Examples include:

• A current and valid driver's license
• Photo identification
• A current utility bill
• A bank statement
• A paycheck
• A government check
• Other government document showing your name and address

If you send in a copy of your identification with your mail-in voter registration form, it may not be returned to you. If you do not provide such identification, the Help America Vote Act of 2002 requires that you may only cast a provisional ballot which will be counted later, but only after your eligibility to vote has been determined.

If you provide your driver's license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number on the voter registration form and those numbers are verified, you will not have to provide identification when you register to vote or at the polls. If you do not provide those numbers or if they cannot be verified (you will notified by your town or city clerk if that happens), then you have to provide identification either at town or city hall prior to the election or at the polls when you vote. Acceptable identification is a copy of any of the following:

Current and valid photo identification

Government check or official document showing name and address

Current utility bill showing name and address

Paycheck or stub showing name and address

If you registered to vote by mail on or after January 1, 2003, you will be required to show identification when you vote for the first time in a federal election.… Click to learn more

If you registered to vote by mail on or after January 1, 2003, you will be required to show identification when you vote for the first time in a federal election.

If you provide your driver's license number or the last four digits of your Social Security number on the voter registration form and those numbers are
verified, you will not have to provide identification when you register to vote or at the polls. If you do not provide those numbers or if they cannot be verified (the acknowledgement of your voter registration that you receive in the mail will notify you) then you have to provide identification either at town or city hall prior to the election or at the polls when you vote. Identification must have your name and current address. Acceptable forms of identification including any of the following:

• Current and valid photo identification
• Government check or official document
• Current utility bill
• Paycheck or stub

You must register to vote at least 20 days before an election. 10 days before a special town meeting.

To verify your voter registration status, please contact your local board of elections for your county, city or state.

You may vote by absentee ballot if you… Click to learn more

You may vote by absentee ballot if you:

• Will be absent from your city or town on Election Day
• Have a physical disability that prevents your voting at the polling place
• Cannot vote at the polls due to religious beliefs

You must be registered in order to vote absentee. Overseas citizens and U.S. military personnel can find information on how to register to vote and request an absentee ballot at the Overseas Vote Foundation. To register for an absentee ballot, you must apply in writing to the city or town clerk or election commission, either in a letter or by filling out an application form. You must include your:

• Name
• Address as registered
• during a primary the the party you want to vote for
• Ward and precinct (if you know them)
• Address where you wish the absentee ballot sent
• Your signature

You can also receive an application form at your local election office or download the application online.

You can also down load an absentee voting application inEnglish or Spanish and mail it into your town clerks' office. Either way, the application must be filled out in writing and signed. If you are both applying and voting in person, the deadline for applying for an absentee ballot is 12:00 pm on the day before an election. Absentee ballots are generally available three weeks before an election. If you are planning to vote in the clerk's office, you may be able to apply for an absentee ballot and vote in the same visit.

If you wish to vote by absentee ballot for more than one election in a year, you may fill out one application and request that ballots for all elections during that calendar year be sent to you.

Note: If your address changes within a calendar year you must submit a new application for an absentee ballot. This is especially important for college students who are usually focused on an academic year not a calendar year.

If you are permanently disabled, you may file a doctor's letter with the local election office which states that you are permanently unable to vote at the polls due to a physical disability. The local election office will automatically mail you an application for an absentee ballot for all elections in a calendar year. You must sign the application and send it back to your local election official. Call your local election official for information about how to register to vote at home or to request that a mail-in registration form be sent to you.

Your absentee ballot must be sealed and returned in the brown envelope that was sent with the ballot. You must sign the brown envelope in the designated place and place it in the white envelope with green trim that also came with the absentee ballot. Your ballot does not have to be witnessed and if you cannot mark your absentee ballot, you may ask any person to help you. The helper must print his or her name and your name on the brown envelope, write the reason you needed help and then sign his or her name as the assisting person.

If you are in a nursing home you are able to vote by absentee ballot as long as you are not under a court ordered guardianship which specifically prohibits voting. If you are a patient in a nursing home, you must be a registered voter in order to vote by absentee ballot and must fill out an absentee ballot application. If the clerk designates a health care facility in writing 28 days before the election, the ballot must be hand-delivered to such facility by a registrar. If the you state that you have entered a hospital after 12:00 pm on the fifth day before the election the ballot may be hand-delivered to you; otherwise, the ballot should be mailed to the you at the facility. Consult the administration of the nursing home for further instructions.

Absentee in-person balloting is available to those who are allowed to vote by absentee ballot. In Massachusetts you may vote absentee for one of the following three reasons only: … Click to learn more

Absentee in-person balloting is available to those who are allowed to vote by absentee ballot. In Massachusetts you may vote absentee for one of the following three reasons only:

• You will be absent from your city or town on Election Day
• You have a physical disability preventing you from voting at the polling place
• Your religious beliefs prevent you from voting on Election Day.

You must be registered in order to vote absentee. However, those residing overseas and members of the armed forces or merchant marines, or their spouses or dependents, do not need to be registered to vote absentee.

If you cast your ballot at the clerk's office before Election Day, plan to visit the office two or three weeks before the election. You can fill out your application and cast your vote in one visit. Call your clerk's office to make certain that the absentee ballots are available. Absentee ballots should be available three weeks before an election.

The next election will be held on Tuesday, December 8, 2009: Statewide Primary (Wednesday, November 18, 2009: Registration Deadline)

Check your state's resource for local election dates and information.

In order to be a poll worker in Massachusetts… Click to learn more

In order to be a poll worker in Massachusetts:

• You must be registered to vote in Massachusetts
• You will be entitled to compensation
• You must be at least 18 years of age
• Political affiliation preferred
• You must be a resident of the county or precinct
• Two students who are 16 or 17 years old may be appointed if they meet all other voter requirements and get permission from a parent or principal

To sign up, contact your local board of elections.

For all elections, except local elections, the polls must be open from 7:00 am to 8:00 pm. Some polling places may open earlier than 7:00 am. If you are in line at the polls by 8:00 pm, you are entitled to vote. For the polling hours in a local election please visit your state's resource.

Voters employed in mechanical, manufacturing or mercantile businesses are allowed time off during the first two hours after the polls have opened only if an application for absence has been submitted.

You can find your polling place by utilizing VOTE411's poll locator tool. Some states and local jurisdictions provide their own poll locators. You can confirm your voting location by selecting from the following local resources:… Click to learn more

You can find your polling place by utilizing VOTE411's poll locator tool. Some states and local jurisdictions provide their own poll locators. You can confirm your voting location by selecting from the following local resources: Massachusetts State Polling Place Locator Tool

If you have further questions on your polling place location, please contact your county clerk.

If your name is not on the voting list, you will be able to vote using a provisional ballot. You will be asked to sign a roster and provide your name, address, signature, date of birth, and political party affiliation if applicable. You will be asked to show suitable identification showing your name and current address. If you do not provide suitable identification, your provisional ballot may not be counted… Click to learn more

If your name is not on the voting list, you will be able to vote using a provisional ballot. You will be asked to sign a roster and provide your name, address, signature, date of birth, and political party affiliation if applicable. You will be asked to show suitable identification showing your name and current address. If you do not provide suitable identification, your provisional ballot may not be counted.

You must fill out a provisional ballot affirmation declaring that you are a registered voter in the city or town and reside within the precinct. Once you have completed the affidavit, a poll worker will put a number on your provisional ballot envelope and on the roster, mark the ballot with the word "provisional" and hand you the ballot with the provisional ballot envelope. You will cast your vote on this ballot, seal it in the envelope, and hand it back to a poll worker. You will receive an information sheet telling you how you can find out if your ballot was counted. A provisional ballot will be counted if your voter eligibility is verified. To find out if your provisional ballot was counted, call the Secretary of the Commonwealth Elections Division at 800-462-8683 or 617-727-2828 or ask you local municipal election official. The information will be available seven days after a primary election and twenty days after a general election.

The voting systems used in Massachusetts are optical scan and hand counted paper ballots… Click to learn more

The voting systems used in Massachusetts are optical scan and hand counted paper ballots.

To learn more about what system your county uses, click here.

Optical Scan: With this system, you will receive a card or sheet of paper, which you take over to a private table or booth. The card has the names of the various candidates and ballot measures printed on it. With a pen or pencil you fill in a little box or circle or the space between two arrows. When you are finished filling out all the cards, you may bring the cards over to a ballot box, where poll workers will show you how to put the cards in the box. Or in some places, you may feed the completed cards or papers into a computer device that checks your card or paper right there at the polling place to make sure you have voted the way you want to and counts the votes.

Paper Ballots: Paper ballots are one of the oldest ways of voting in America. They are still used in a few places on Election Day. When you come to the polling place, you will get a paper ballot from the poll worker. You take it to the voting booth, and use a pen or pencil to mark a box next to your candidate and issue choices. You then drop the marked ballot into a sealed ballot box.

Information on local, state and federal candidates and ballot measures is available here.

Polling places must be accessible to elderly and disabled voters. … Click to learn more

Polling places must be accessible to elderly and disabled voters. Federal law required polling places be accessible by 1986. If you are permanently physically disabled and cannot cast your vote at the polling place, you may file a letter from your physician with your city or town clerk, stating that you are permanently unable to cast your vote at the polling place because of physical disability. A completed application for an absentee ballot for you to sign and return will be mailed to you by the city or town clerk at least 28 days before every primary and general election.

For information on federal campaign contributions, please visit Open Secrets.

For information on state campaign contributions, please visit your state's resource.