A LAWSUIT FILED by several losing Republican candidates challenging the use of mail-in voting in 2020 will have its day in court Thursday – and could provide a preview of litigation down the line if the state expands early voting by mail.

Former congressional candidates John Paul Moran and Caroline Colarusso, state Senate candidate Steven Hall, and state representative candidates Ingrid Centurion and Craig Valdez filed suit in Worcester Superior Court challenging the expansion of no-excuse early voting in the 2020 elections.

The Republicans say that lawmakers’ allowance of early voting for any reason during the COVID-19 pandemic “encouraged unqualified individuals to vote, and did not ensure that the elections were either free or fair.”

They say the process lacked mechanisms for confirming voters’ identities, increasing the chance of voter fraud. The lack of the safeguards that exist on Election Day, they wrote in a court brief, “allows many opportunities for fraud, illegal voting, and unqualified voters to place their ballots amongst those of the qualified voters.”

The Republicans are asking that the 2020 election results be overturned and that the judge permanently prevent Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin from implementing a variety of voting practices, including mail-in ballot applications and voting, early voting (which has existed for several election cycles), no-excuse absentee ballots, and the acceptance of ballots after Election Day.

Galvin and Gov. Charlie Baker, represented by Attorney General Maura Healey’s office, responded in a court brief that the plaintiffs are asking for an “astonishing remedy” justified by “manufactured claims of hypothetical opportunities for voter fraud and baseless constitutional claims.”

Healey’s office also says the plaintiffs filed too late, the vote-by-mail bill already expired since it only applied for 2020, and they lack standing to sue.

But while the Republicans face an uphill battle to overturn election results – a federal judge already expressed skepticism over an earlier lawsuit the group withdrew – the most interesting part of the suit is the preview it provides of constitutional claims that are already being raised in discussions of future expansions of vote-by-mail.

The Republican candidates argue that voting early by mail is unconstitutional because the state Constitution only allows absentee voting for specific reasons – for example, if someone is out of town.

State officials say early voting is an “entirely different species of balloting” than absentee voting, so the limitations on absentee voting do not apply. “It strains logic to argue that providing additional opportunities for voters to cast their vote results in an unconstitutional infringement on free and fair elections,” they wrote.

The judge may not need to address the constitutional question, if she rules on dismissing the case based on any of the other issues. But with numerous bills pending before the Legislature to expand early voting in the future, the plaintiffs make clear that the question is not going away. 

SHIRA SCHOENBERG

FROM COMMONWEALTH

The Legislature has agreed to take a more generous approach to funding public schools next year than Gov. Charlie Baker did, responding to concerns from education advocates that Baker’s proposal was inadequate. Read more.

Does a 26-year-old campaign finance case have parallels to the case involving Sen. Ryan Fattman and Worcester County Register of Probate Stephanie Fattman? In the 1995 case, the Office of Campaign and Political Finance found that a donation to the Massachusetts Republican Party was improperly “earmarked” for a specific candidate favored by the original donor. Read more.

At a press conference, Gov. Charlie Baker was unwilling to talk about developing vaccine passports, which could allow businesses and modes of travel to restrict access to those who can prove they have been vaccinated. Baker said his focus now is on getting people vaccinated. Read more.

Opinion

Municipal Light Plant elections loom large in 41 Massachusetts communities where utility and climate policies are dictated by small elected boards that wield enormous power. The 41 light plants represent 14 percent of the state’s energy mix, according to Clare Kelly of the Environmental League of Massachusetts. Read more.

FROM AROUND THE WEB

MUNICIPAL MATTERS  

Boston’s acting mayor, Kim Janey, announces another initiative, this time a $2 million effort to diversify the city’s public contracting process. (WGBH)

Duxbury is reeling from two scandals centered around the public schools of the high-income coastal community. (Boston Globe) 

A controversial police shooting range in West Gloucester is shut down after a legal opinion says the land is protected for water supply and recreational purposes. (Gloucester Daily Times)

HEALTH/HEALTH CARE

Tom Sands becomes the new president of Beverly Hospital and Addison Gilbert Hospital in Gloucester. (Salem News)

MassLive looks at the national debate over vaccine passports, and its potential implications for Massachusetts. 

WASHINGTON/NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL

Virginia became the first southern state to legalize marijuana. (Associated Press)

Pivotal Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, in an op-ed, says he will not vote to eliminate or weaken the filibuster. (Washington Post) 

ELECTIONS

Democratic gubernatorial candidate Ben Downing unveils an ambitious climate policy plan that calls for the state to reach 100 percent clean energy use by 2040, a decade ahead of the schedule in legislation signed last month by Gov. Charlie Baker. (Boston Herald) 

BUSINESS/ECONOMY

Of the $100 million in construction contracts for Polar Park in Worcester, less than 1 percent went to certified minority business contractors. (WGBH)

High demand and low inventory are driving the spring real estate market, especially for single-family homes in the Boston suburbs. (Boston Globe) 

Eastern Bank plans to buy Century Bank and Trust for $642 million, its first acquisition since becoming a publicly traded company in October. (Boston Globe) 

Profits from bingo, raffles, and other charitable games plummeted in the state last year. (Salem News)

EDUCATION

Eighteen schools are recognized by the state for offering “Innovation Pathway” programs, which prepare students for careers in particular fields. (MassLive)

William Heineman, the provost at Northern Essex Community College, is named the president of North Shore Community College. (Daily Item)

TRANSPORTATION

Car inspections will not resume until next week because of a malware attract. The Registry of Motor Vehicles is giving people who were supposed to have their cars inspected in March until the end of April to get the job done. (WBUR)

ENERGY/ENVIRONMENT

A third unplanned release of natural gas in eight months at a Weymouth gas compressor station has residents and elected officials renewing their calls to shut down the facility. (Boston Globe)

Lobster boats protest Massachusetts’ closure of its waters to commercial lobstering for the season to protect right whales. (Gloucester Daily Times)

CRIMINAL JUSTICE/COURTS

A Stoughton police lieutenant has been given a two-day suspension related to his interaction at an area church with a black man suffering from mental illness. (The Enterprise) 

MEDIA

NBC Boston anchor JC Monahan pens a moving essay about her struggles with depression. (Boston Magazine)