Showing posts with label Secretary of Commonwealth. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Secretary of Commonwealth. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 29, 2022

State level election turnout for mid-term 2nd lowest in history

"Slightly more than 2.5 million registered voters cast ballots in Massachusetts for the Nov. 8 election, besting projections thanks to far more people voting in person on Election Day than expected, state officials said Monday.

Precisely 2,508,298 people voted in this month’s general election, and their numbers accounted for slightly more than 51 percent of the state’s registered voters, which still was one of the lowest shares for a state election in Massachusetts history. But by sheer volume, it marked the second highest number of ballots cast in a midterm election, topped only by the 2.7 million who voted in 2018.

Secretary of State William F. Galvin earlier this month had projected that 2.2 million voters would cast ballots, a number that would have marked the lowest turnout by percentage in at least seven decades."
Continue reading the Boston Globe article (subscription maybe required)

CommonWealth Magazine coverage
https://commonwealthmagazine.org/politics/in-person-election-day-voting-boosted-turnout-to-2-5m/

one of the lowest shares for a state election in Massachusetts history
one of the lowest turnouts for a state election in Massachusetts history



Franklin's turnout is on par with what recent history shows
Franklin's turnout is on par with what recent history shows

Thursday, November 24, 2022

2 MA House of Representative races appear headed for recounts; difference only 10 votes in each race

"CANDIDATES IN TWO Massachusetts House races, each apparently decided by only 10 votes, want elections officials to take another look at the thousands of ballots cast.

Kristin Kassner of Hamilton, who challenged a sitting North Shore incumbent, and Andrew Shepherd of Townsend, who bid for an open Nashoba Valley seat, submitted petitions asking for district-wide recounts in their contests, according to a spokesperson for Secretary of State William Galvin.

The recounts — and, as a result, a final decision in both districts — might not wrap up for several weeks. Galvin spokesperson Deb O’Malley said the secretary cannot order the recounts until after the Governor’s Council, which is scheduled to meet next on Nov. 30, certifies election results.

In both cases, the candidate seeking a recount appears to have fallen less than a dozen votes short. With nearly 20,000 votes counted in the First Middlesex District and more than 23,000 in the Second Essex District, the microscopic margins would both be well below the threshold — one half of one percentage point of all votes — required for a recount."
Continue reading the article online ->

The process for a recount is defined by the Secretary of the Commonwealth and can be found ->  https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepdf/Election-Recounts.pdf

Other MA election and voting information can be found online ->   https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/

2 MA House of Representative races appear headed for recounts
2 MA House of Representative races appear headed for recounts


Thursday, October 27, 2022

You are welcome to observe multiple sessions of the advance removal and deposit of vote by mail ballots for the Nov 8 election

Franklin's Town Clerk Nancy Danello posted the notice of "Notice Of Advanced Removal Of Early Voted Ballots From Envelopes And Advanced Depositing Of Early Voted Ballots" on Oct 13, 2022 announcing multiple sessions to process the State election early returns. While the notification contains some legal terms as required by MA General Law, the notification in "kitchen English" outlines the following.

As there are over 6,000 vote by mail and absentee ballots sent out (and more being requested), to ensure a timely and accurate count on Tuesday, Nov 8, the state outlined a process to enable a secure two-step process of these ballots in advance of election day.

Step 1 - Advanced Removal Of Early Voted Ballots From Envelopes
The vote by mail ballots are returned via mail or directly to the Municipal building drop boxes. The outer white envelope is scanned to acknowledge receipt for tracking by the State system. 

For example, my ballot was dropped into the box at the Town Clerk's window on Tuesday as I went into the School Committee meeting. The ballot tracking shows it was acknowledged as "accepted" on 10/26/22. I dropped it off after their working hours, and they processed it during their next business day. (photo below)

The advance removal session will allow us to watch the brown envelope with the ballot be opened, the ballot itself put in a pile, and the voter system updated to show the voter has proved a ballot. Two people perform this process for each precinct.

There is no actual counting of the votes on the ballot. The ballots are simply piled by precinct for feeding into the voting machines at the next session.

The votes by precinct are stored in ballot boxes and secured in the vault. The security of the process is open to observation by Franklin residents.

There are six sessions scheduled for this advanced opening process:

Friday, October 28 - 9:00 AM
Monday, October 31 - 9:00 AM
Tuesday, November 1 - 9:00 AM
Wednesday, November 2 - 9:00 AM
Thursday, November 3 - 9:00 AM
Friday, November 4 - 9:00 AM


Step 2 - Advanced Depositing Of Early Voted Ballots

On Saturday, Nov 5, the advance processed ballots will be moved by Franklin police detail from the Municipal building vault to Franklin High School where they will be processed in the second step. If the processing is not completed on Saturday, it can be continued on Sunday, Nov 6.

The ballots as opened and processed in Step 1 will be securely transferred from the vault to Franklin High School by a Franklin Police detail.

Each set of ballots separated by precinct will be feed into the voting machines. The voting machine overall tally will be noted but the tape to 'count the votes' will not be run. The second set of memory cards for each machine will be installed and the machines will be ready for processing on election day.

At the end of the session, the memory cards for this deposited process, along with the ballots, will be securely transferred from the High School back to the Municipal building vault by a Franklin Police detail.


Election day
Normal in person voting will take place beginning at 6 AM and complete at 8 PM. The precinct voting totals will be tallied and the machines tapes (with the vote totals for each election position or ballot question) will be manually entered into the election spreadsheet.

The memory cards from the Advance Depositing action on Saturday will be placed into each precinct machine so their totals can be run on the tape. That tape will also be entered into the spreadsheet to help complete the unofficial results. 

There are other steps required by the Town Clerk to create the 'official' results, including cross checking all the totals of votes by precinct. She has three days to complete the process and send the results to the Secretary of the Commonwealth to be part of the State certification process. 

In summary, all ballots are paper, counted and tallied in an observed and secure process to guarantee a fair result. The paper ballots can be audited or recounted as required to ensure the results are what they are.

The Advance Notice document (PDF format)

The link to the Town Clerk page where it was posted Oct 13, 2022

Town Clerk link (directly opens up a Word doc)

My vote by mail ballot status

My vote by mail ballot status


You can check your vote by mail status at this link


You are welcome to observe multiple sessions of the advance removal and deposit of vote by mail ballots for the Nov 8 election
You are welcome to observe multiple sessions of the advance removal and deposit of vote by mail ballots for the Nov 8 election

Monday, October 24, 2022

60 Minutes: "Dominion Voting Systems CEO speaks out against conspiracy theories" (video)

"Can you flip votes in the computer system? Can you add votes that did not exist?" Anderson Cooper asks Dominion Voting Systems CEO John Poulos. "Absolutely not," Poulos says. See the interview, Sunday on 60 Minutes.

Shared from CBS News: -> 
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/dominion-voting-systems-ceo-machines-conspiracy-theories-60-minutes-2022-10-23/#app

The MA voting system administered by the Secretary of the Commonwealth and used by Franklin (along with the other 350 communities) is
  • paper ballot based
  • the voter registration system is a closed network (not part of Internet)
  • highly secure

Saturday, October 15, 2022

Information for Franklin Voters Regarding the Upcoming Election

Notice from the Office of the Town Clerk's Office regarding in person early voting, mail-in ballots, and election day.

The State Election will be held on Tuesday, November 8th, 2022 from 6am - 8pm at the Franklin High School Gymnasium. In person early voting will take place October 22nd - November 4th at the Franklin Municipal Building ONLY (355 East Central Street). There will be NO in person early voting at Franklin High School.

The Municipal Building in person early voting dates are as follows…
  • Saturday, Oct. 22 in person: 9am -3pm
  • Monday, Oct. 24 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Tuesday, Oct. 25 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Wednesday, Oct. 26 in person: 8am - 6pm
  • Thursday, Oct. 27 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Friday, October 28 in person: 8am - 1pm
  • Saturday, Oct. 29 in person: 9am - 5pm *Last day to register to vote*
  • Monday, Oct. 31 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Tuesday, Nov. 1 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Wednesday, Nov. 2 in person: 8am - 6pm
  • Thursday, Nov. 3 in person: 8am - 4pm
  • Friday, Nov. 4 in person: 8am - 1pm

The last day to register to vote is Saturday, October 29th, 2022. You may check or update your information via the State's Online Voter Registration tool: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/OVR/

Ballots arrived at the Town Clerk's office on October 11th, 2022. Our staff is working diligently to ensure all voters that have already requested a mail-in ballot receive them in a timely manner.

Requesting a Mail-In Ballot

Voters may apply to receive a mail-in ballot by Tuesday, November 1st at 5pm the latest. Voters are encouraged to apply as early as possible for a mail-in ballot, especially if your ballot will need to be mailed out of town. The U.S. Postal Service recommends allowing up to 7 days for mail delivery. To ensure you receive your ballot with enough time to mail it back, you should apply 2-3 weeks before Election Day. Your application can only be accepted if it has reached your local election office by the deadline. You may apply to receive a mail-in ballot online here: https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/eleabsentee/absidx.htm

Returning Your Ballot
Once you have received and completed your ballot, you may return it by…
  • Mailing it back using the envelope provided; or
  • Hand-delivering your ballot to the Town Clerk's Office in the Municipal Building during Early Voting hours or during regular business hours on November 7th (8am - 4pm) and before 8pm on November 8th, 2022; or
  • Hand-delivering your ballot using our ballot drop box any time before 8pm on November 8th, 2022. Both ballot drop boxes are located at the Franklin Municipal Building. 
    • 355 East Central Street (To the left of the building)
    • 355 East Central Street (Mail slot to left as you enter walkway to main entrance)
Please note that Ballots cannot be dropped off at a polling place on Election Day.   


Please see the attached voting schedule flyer. Questions? Call the Town Clerk's Office at 508-520-4900.

Shared from Town of Franklin page ->  https://www.franklinma.gov/home/news/information-franklin-voters-regarding-upcoming-election

Information for Franklin Voters Regarding the Upcoming Election
Information for Franklin Voters Regarding the Upcoming Nov 8, 2022 Election

Friday, September 16, 2022

The State Election 2022 Red Book is coming to your postal mailbox

The Secretary of the Commonwealth has announced:
"Check your mailbox for the red Information for Voters book, which has information on 2022 ballot questions. Books are being delivered to all households this month.

Note: There will be 4 statewide questions on the November ballot. 

Questions 1-3 are included in the printed Information for Voters book. Question 4 was submitted too late to be included, but you can find it in the online version at http://VoteInMA.com."





The Red Book is coming to your postal mailbox
The Red Book is coming to your postal mailbox

Tuesday, July 12, 2022

“We were confident all along that this attempt to block the VOTES Act was meritless”

"THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT will uphold the VOTES Act, the new law that allows Massachusetts residents to vote early by mail for any reason. 

The court on Monday announced that it will reject a challenge by a group of Massachusetts Republican Party leaders and side entirely with Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin to keep the law intact for the 2022 election cycle. "

Continue reading the article in CommonWealth Magazine ->    https://commonwealthmagazine.org/courts/sjc-upholds-no-excuse-voting-by-mail/


Secretary of State William Galvin addresses reporters after word that the Supreme Judicial Court has dismissed a Republican challenge to the state's new law allowing voting by mail for any reason. "The presses are now rolling," Galvin said about the printing of ballot applications. (Photo by Shira Schoenberg)
Secretary of State William Galvin addresses reporters after word that the Supreme Judicial Court has dismissed a Republican challenge to the state's new law allowing voting by mail for any reason. "The presses are now rolling," Galvin said about the printing of ballot applications. (Photo by Shira Schoenberg)

Saturday, November 14, 2020

Elections: Voting for Military and Overseas US Citizens

In addition to ballot by mail, absentee ballot, there is sometimes mention of UOCAVA. What is UOCAVA?
 
UOCAVA is the acronym for the MA legislation:
 
If you are a Massachusetts citizen, you have the right to vote in all elections, even if you are deployed, stationed outside the Commonwealth, or residing overseas.

Military voters, dependent family members of military voters, and overseas citizens are protected by the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act (UOCAVA), a federal law which guarantees your voting rights.

If you are a military or overseas voter, you are exempt from voter registration requirements in Massachusetts. In order to get your ballot, you simply need to submit an absentee ballot application.
 
Find out more about UOCAVA on the Secretary of the Commonwealth page
 
Elections: Voting for Military and Overseas US Citizens
Elections: Voting for Military and Overseas US Citizens


Tuesday, October 20, 2020

In the News: "Secretary Galvin expects historical turnout to exceed 2016"

From the Milford Daily News, articles of interest for Franklin:

"Voter turnout for the Nov. 3 election is projected to be double the record-setting number of ballots cast in the Sept. 1 state primaries, and even exceed the historical 75% voter turnout in the 2016 election.

Secretary of State William F. Galvin said more will be known about the expected high turnout in the next week as early voting began Saturday and will continue through Oct. 30.

“I’m hopeful. It seems the level of interest is there,” Galvin said in a telephone interview last week. “We had 3.3 million votes in 2016. It seems we will exceed that. We’ve seen a continuing rising number of people registering to vote.”

The historical voter turnout — expected as well in some other parts of the country and driven by the hotly contested presidential race — is also the result of a massive expansion of mail-in voting due to concerns about crowded polling places during the coronavirus pandemic."

Continue reading the article online (subscription may be required)
 
When I talked with Town Clerk Nancy Danello at FHS on Monday, over 1,400 had already been to early vote on Sat-Sun and mid-day Monday. Over 12,000 mail ballots were sent out to registered Franklin voters.

The deadline to register to vote is Oct. 24.  Visit the Town Clerk page for office hours to register in person  https://www.franklinma.gov/town-clerk  or register online  https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/eleidx.htm

 

the early voting schedule for Franklin
the early voting schedule for Franklin

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

MA.gov: Information For Voters for 2020

Dd you get the election information booklet in the mail from the Secretary of the Commonwealthhttps://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/eleidx.htm

You can get your copy at the ma.gov page  https://www.sec.state.ma.us/ele/elepdf/IFV_2020.pdf 

or with this Google doc copy:

 

 

MA.gov: Information For Voters for 2020
MA.gov: Information For Voters for 2020

 

Saturday, September 5, 2020

Primary day election update 9/5/20

Town of Franklin, MA (@TOFranklinMA) tweeted at 2:02 PM on Sat, Sep 05, 2020:

A primary day election update from Town Clerk Teresa Burr:
"The results from the State Primary will be certified and posted by the Secretary of State's Office on Tuesday, September 8, 2020. Please contact the Secretary's Office with any questions at (617) 727-2828."
Primary day election update 9/5/20
Primary day election update 9/5/20