AS THE WEEKS tick down to the primaries and there are fewer than 90 days until the November general election, two of the state’s top officials have voting on their minds.
While Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s office has received a lot of outreach about election integrity and access to voter files, it’s voter turnout she’s concerned about, she told “Boston Public Radio” hosts Jim Braude and Margery Eagan this week.
Over in Secretary of State William Galvin’s office, voters have requested 600,000 mail-in Democrat or Republican ballots ahead of the September 1 primary and “well over 100,000” have already been returned.
“With 600,000 ballots on the street, I think it’s important for people to vote them and send them back,” Galvin said, calling the figure average and declaring that his “strong suggestion” is that mail-in voters return their ballots “immediately.”
“I’m more concerned now about retrieving the ballots back that have been voted, because in the case of a primary, unlike a general election, they must be received by the close of polls on Election Day. There’s no grace period,” Galvin said. “The best and most sure way to do it is to not rely on the mails, to bring them to a drop box, or get it back to city or town hall in your community.”
Vote by mail “has been a matter of controversy” that is still being litigated, Galvin continued. “We’ve got injunctive relief to protect the right to vote by mail right now, and some of the cases are still pending.”
Massachusetts was one of 24 states that sued the Trump administration in April over a March 31 executive order titled “Ensuring Citizenship Verification and Integrity in Federal Elections” that directed the US Postal Service to not transmit mail-in or absentee ballots from anyone not on a state-specified voter participation list.
Campbell’s office in June announced “victory,” writing that the US District Court of Massachusetts blocked the administration’s attempts “to interfere with states’ constitutional authority to administer elections.” Per Galvin’s office, the First Circuit on July 25 denied the federal defendants’ request for a stay of the ruling in the executive order. The federal government shortly after filed an application with the US Supreme Court for a stay of the First Circuit’s decision, his office said.
Campbell and 18 other attorneys general also sued the administration over a March 25, 2025 executive order titled “Preserving and Protecting the Integrity of American Elections” that lays out proof of citizenship requirements for voting. The US District Court of Massachusetts ruled in favor of the attorneys general in June. The federal defendants appealed to the First Circuit, but oral arguments on the appeal aren’t scheduled until December, Galvin’s office said.
“I think that obviously any court decision has national implications. So I think the courts will certainly be aware of the fact that with 90 days out, you don’t try to change the rules,” Galvin said. “People use vote by mail not just here in Massachusetts, but in states including Republican-administered states throughout the country. I think we should be okay on both fronts, and that gives voters many, many options.”
Campbell said her office is working with Galvin’s to inform people about voting and will be issuing a “Know Your Rights” guide with information about voting early and ballot access. She said her partnership with Galvin “has been a game changer” as her office files multi-state lawsuits related to voter information, election integrity and “pushing back on the Trump administration.”
Two in three US adults are concerned about political leaders pressuring election officials to change election outcomes, according to a Kettering Foundation-Gallup Democracy for All Project poll conducted among more than 23,000 US adults from April 24 through June 10. Of those polled, 57 percent were concerned about ballots not being properly handled, counted or secured, and 52 percent were concerned about people gathering near polling places in an attempt to intimidate voters or discourage them from voting. Democrats were more likely to express concern about leaders pressuring election officials, while Republicans were more likely to express concerns about ballot handling and counting.
Campbell’s worries lie in whether voters will show up, she said when asked about Bay State Banner reporting in July that showed as many as 60,000 residents in Brockton were placed on inactive voter rolls ahead of the last municipal election.
“I think in other states where I work with other AGs, they are more concerned — you think about battleground states — about the integrity of their elections,” Campbell said. “I’m not concerned here in Massachusetts. If we have anyone interfering with our elections, we will mobilize. We will fight back.”
“I think what I’m most concerned about is the lack of voter turnout,” Campbell continued. “If anything, I think we have to continue to do a better job of telling folks about the importance of voting, being civically engaged.” Of more than 4.9 million registered voters in Massachusetts in 2024, just over 1.2 million votes were cast, representing a turnout percentage of 25.21 percent, according to Galvin’s website. That represented a decline from a voter turnout of 37.11 percent in 2020.
Galvin said he’s “optimistic” there won’t be interference, but understands “there’s some anxiety.”
“We certainly are not going to tolerate any interference with the election by any entity, whether that be a governmental entity or anybody else. We never have,” Galvin said, adding that a police officer is required to be present at every polling location in Massachusetts and that no political activity can occur within 150 feet of the voting.
