BOSTON –The Election Modernization Coalition is renewing its call for same-day voter registration after releasing a memo on provisional ballot data from the November 2024 statewide election showing 66% of provisional ballots cast were rejected for administrative reasons. Those 3,309 votes were not counted. An overwhelming majority of those rejected ballots could have been counted if Massachusetts had same-day voter registration so that voters could resolve issues with their registration and then vote.

The analysis, including the source data, which was sent to the Massachusetts legislature is available here.

Provisional ballots are offered to voters if their personal information is incorrect or missing from the voter list when they check in to vote. Provisional ballots are intended to ensure that every eligible voter has the opportunity to cast their ballot, but far too many of those ballots end up not being counted at all for administrative reasons such as an address change or transcription error, despite the fact that the voter is otherwise qualified to vote in the Commonwealth. 

Same-day registration will streamline the process of resolving issues of a voter’s registration status and eliminate the need for the time-intensive provisional ballot process. With same-day voter registration, voters and election officials will be able to quickly, easily, and definitively determine a voter’s eligibility to vote and can allow that voter to cast a ballot without the need for a provisional ballot.  

“Same-day voter registration will keep our elections secure and efficient while also ensuring every eligible voter can make their voice heard,” said Geoff Foster, Executive Director of Common Cause Massachusetts. “Rather than subject voters and election officials to a cumbersome provisional ballot process, same-day voter registration would enable election officials to instead offer voter registration to people who encounter a problem. Our lawmakers have the opportunity to enact same-day registration this session so that every eligible voter can cast a ballot that counts during the next statewide election.”

“Casting a vote should be accessible to every citizen. Yet, too many eligible voters face unyielding obstacles that prevent them from fully participating in our democracy. In Boston alone, 64% of provisional ballots were rejected in 2024 due to bureaucratic restrictions, leaving hundreds of voters unable to exercise their fundamental right to vote,” says Cheryl Crawford, Executive Director of MassVOTE.  “This is not just a statistic—it’s a clear sign that our system needs reform. Same-day voter registration is the solution, ensuring that every eligible voter can cast a ballot that counts.”

“Same-day voter registration is a vital step toward making our democracy truly inclusive, ensuring that every eligible voter, including those with disabilities, can participate fully in our democracy,” said Barbara L’Italien, Executive Director of the Disability Law Center, Inc. (DLC). “By enacting same-day voter registration, we will take a large step towards making the voting experience in Massachusetts equitable and accessible for all citizens.” 

“Enacting same-day voter registration in Massachusetts will not just ease the burden on election officials fielding questions about registration status and provisional ballots,” said Celia Canavan, executive director of the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts. “It will open the door for low-income voters, voters of color, and other marginalized voting populations to become actively engaged in the systems of government that represent them. Each provisional ballot that was rejected represents a voice that remains unheard in the Commonwealth — and it is time that we ensure all eligible voters have their voices represented in the democracy that is supposed to represent them.”

“Whose ballots aren’t being counted? It’s disproportionately people of color in Boston and the gateway cities,” said Traci Griffith, Racial Justice Program Director at the ACLU of Massachusetts. “Same-day voter registration is and always has been a civil rights issue. As a matter of racial justice and democratic access for all, the Commonwealth needs to fix this system and ensure that every qualified voter’s ballot will be counted.”

“The simpler, more transparent and more straightforward that voting systems are, the better off we’ll all be. Twenty-two other states have same day voter registration, let’s get it done here,” said Janet Domenitz, Executive Director of MASSPIRG.  

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