City of Boston announces preparations ahead of November 3 State Election

The election includes races for: Senator in Congress, Representative in Congress, Governor's Councillors, Senator in General Court, Representative in General Court, Register of Probate, and Office of the President of the United States. 

In addition to the races, there are two ballot questions: Law Proposed by Initiative Petition Motor Vehicle Mechanical Data & Law Proposed by Initiative Petition Ranked-Choice Voting, and two public policy questions in State Representative Districts 11, 15, 17 and 18. 

The Election Department is reminding residents that Saturday, October 24 is the last day to register to vote and Wednesday, October 28 is the last day to request a vote-by-mail ballot. 

Registering to vote

Individuals can register to vote in person, by mail, online or through the Registry of Motor Vehicles by Saturday, October 24, 2020 to vote in the November 3 State Election. To be eligible to vote, an individual must be at least 18 years of age and a U.S. citizen.

If planning to register to vote in person, residents are advised the Boston Election Department is open to the public by appointment on Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at City Hall, Room 241. 

Voting early 

Any registered Boston voter can vote at any early voting location from Saturday, October 17, 2020 through Friday, October 30, 2020. No excuse is required to vote early. Hours and locations for early voting can be found below.

Due to COVID-19, the Election Department is implementing health and safety protocols for in-person voting during the early voting period and on Election Day. All poll workers will receive face shields, face masks, gloves, disinfectant wipes, disinfectant spray and hand sanitizer. Cleaning will take place at each site every two to three hours. Voters waiting in line will be instructed to stand six feet away from others and wear a face covering. More information about COVID-19 safety at the polls can be found here. 

Voting by mail 

All Massachusetts registered voters have received a vote-by-mail application in their mail boxes for the State Primary and the State Election. The application is in a postcard format. To receive a ballot, voters must first complete, sign and return the prepaid postcard application to the Election Department by Wednesday, October 28, 2020. 

If residents never received or lost this application, they can download the pdf application on our website and return it to the City of Boston's Election Department, via mail, email, fax or by dropping it off in person at Boston City Hall room 241, or in the drop box on the third floor entrance of City Hall.

Email: absenteevoter@boston.gov | Fax: 617-635-4483

Massachusetts voters can now apply for a vote-by-mail ballot online and track their ballot request, whether requested by mail or online, through trackmyballotMA.com. The Boston Election Department will start mailing out ballots by early October and will continue to mail ballots as applications arrive, until the application deadline of October 28, 2020. 

Returning completed ballots

Once a voter receives their ballot, they are encouraged to complete and return it to the Election Department as soon as possible. Completed ballots returned by mail must be postmarked by November 3, 2020 and received by November 6, 2020.

Voters may also return their ballot using one of the 17 dropboxes across the City through 8 p.m. on November 3, 2020, as well as at an early voting location during the early voting period. Voters may additionally return their ballot to City Hall, which is currently open to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. 

Dropboxes will be available seven days a week for Boston voters to return their completed ballots at the following locations: 

• Boston City Hall, 1 City Hall Square, Boston (City Hall Plaza entrance, third floor)
• Boston City Hall, 1 City Hall Square, Boston (Congress Street entrance, first floor)
• East Boston Branch of the Boston Public Library, 365 Bremen St, East Boston
• Charlestown Branch of the Boston Public Library, 179 Main St, Charlestown
• South Boston Branch of the Boston Public Library, 646 East Broadway, South Boston
• Central Library of the Boston Public Library, 700 Boylston Street, Boston
• Honan-Allston Branch of the Boston Public Library, 300 North Harvard St, Allston
• Brighton Branch of the Boston Public Library, 40 Academy Hill Rd, Brighton
• Roxbury Branch of the Boston Public Library, 149 Dudley Street, Roxbury
• Fields Corner Branch of the Boston Public Library, 1520 Dorchester Ave, Dorchester
• Jamaica Plain Branch of the Boston Public Library, 30 South Street, Jamaica Plain
• Mattapan Branch of the Boston Public Library, 1350 Blue Hill Ave, Mattapan
• West Roxbury Branch of the Boston Public Library, 1961 Centre St, West Roxbury
• Hyde Park Branch of the Boston Public Library, 35 Harvard Ave, Hyde Park
• Parker Hill Branch of the Boston Public Library, 1497 Tremont St, Roxbury
• BCYF Menino, 125 Brookway Rd, Roslindale 
• Grove Hall Branch of the Boston Public Library,  41 Geneva Ave, Dorchester

Voting in person on Election Day 

Voters are reminded there are 20 precinct polling location changes this cycle that can be found here. Polling locations will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Election Day on Tuesday, November 3, 2020. Individuals can find their polling location for Election Day here.

For more information on how to participate in this year's elections, please visit boston.gov/election.