Mail-In Ballots Need To Be In By Election Day: MA High Court

BOSTON — Mail-in ballots for the Sept. 1 primary will need to be in the hands of local election officials by the time polls close at 8 p.m. under a ruling Wednesday by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.

Newton City Councilor Becky Grossman, who is running for Congress in the state's 4th Congressional District, sued Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin to allow any ballot postmarked on or before Sept. 1 to be included in the final tally. The lawsuit was the first major challenge to emergency rules designed to make it easier for voters to cast mail-in ballots. The emergency rules were approved earlier in light of the coronavirus crisis.

"The new law does not significantly interfere with the constitutional right to vote in the September 1 primary election," the court said in its opinion. "Rather, the legislation enhances the right to vote in the primary, as well as the general, election, by providing multiple means of voting, including options to vote by mail that previously never existed."

During the case's oral arguments Monday, Grossman's attorney, Jeff Robbins, argued that the pandemic and questions about the reliability of the postal service placed too great a burden on voters to get their ballots in on time. Anne Sterman, who argued the Secretary of the Commonwealth's case, argued that between early voting, mail-in voting and in-person voting, there are more than enough ways for people to vote safely on the current deadline.

The court sided with the Secretary of the Commonwealth, saying the new rules were constitutional and made it easier for people to vote.

"For those who requested or received mail-in ballots very late in the process, there remain multiple alternatives to simply mailing back the ballots to ensure that one's vote is counted in the primary election," the court said. "In sum, the new law enhances and does not diminish the means of voting in the primary election."

Galvin praised the ruling.

"I appreciate that the Court recognized the complexity of the election schedule,” Galvin said. "This will allow my office to begin preparing November ballots immediately after the primary results are in, so that voters will have plenty of time to receive and return their ballots before Election Day."

Grossman —who had earned the support of the ACLU and Boston Mayor Marty Walsh — said she still believed her fight was justified.

"Today’s decision will not stop my work to ensure that every community in the Commonwealth is heard at the ballot box and beyond," she said.

Previously on Patch:

• MA Patch Survey: Widespread Mistrust Of Mail-In Voting
• U.S. Attorney Weighs In On Candidate's Primary Election Lawsuit

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