{"id":186,"date":"2020-06-16T18:52:37","date_gmt":"2020-06-16T18:52:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/massachusetts\/press-releases\/voting-rights-advocates-applaud-bill-passed-by-senate-urge-swift-action\/"},"modified":"2020-06-16T18:52:37","modified_gmt":"2020-06-16T18:52:37","slug":"voting-rights-advocates-applaud-bill-passed-by-senate-urge-swift-action","status":"publish","type":"press","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/massachusetts\/press\/voting-rights-advocates-applaud-bill-passed-by-senate-urge-swift-action\/","title":{"rendered":"Voting Rights Advocates Applaud Bill Passed by Senate; Urge Swift Action"},"template":"","class_list":["post-186","press","type-press","status-publish","hentry","press_type-press-release"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"","featured_image":"","press_type":146,"authors":[null,null],"related_issues":[109,462],"related_work":false,"location":24},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":false,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":null,"name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":null}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":null,"component_wysiwyg":{"content":"\"\"<\/a>\r\n\r\n \r\n\r\nThis afternoon, the Senate unanimously passed S. 2755, after adopting amendments recommended by voting rights advocates. The bill would make changes necessary to ensure that our fall elections can remain accessible, participatory, and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to ensure that the kind of administration breakdown that happened in Georgia and Wisconsin this spring does not happen in Massachusetts this fall.\r\n\r\nAdvocates emphasized that election legislation must be completed and signed by the Governor without delay to give election officials time to implement it before the Sept. 1 primary election and Nov. 3 general election.\r\n\r\n\u201cBy mailing all registered voters mail ballot applications, creating a secure and accessible online portal for requesting and tracking ballots, and expanding early voting options, this bill will provide Massachusetts voters straightforward and effective options for casting a ballot safely during a pandemic,\u201d Pam Wilmot, Executive Director of Common Cause Massachusetts<\/strong> said. \u201cWe applaud the Legislature for moving quickly to address the serious challenges that this pandemic poses to our elections.\u201d\r\n\r\nSince the outbreak of COVID-19 in March, the Election Modernization Coalition has been working with legislators to craft and move legislation that would address the needs of voters and elections officials alike.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe understood immediately that Massachusetts was not prepared to conduct elections in the face of a pandemic. The changes that are required \u2013 and that are included in this bill \u2013 are significant. They will enable elections officials to transition to a largely vote by mail system, and as a coalition, we salute elections officials and legislators for making these changes to get our elections administration up to speed quickly,\u201d said Pattye Comfort, Executive Director of the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts.<\/strong>\r\n\r\nS. 2755 was passed with 14 amendments, three of which were priorities of the Election Modernization Coalition and supported by nearly 80 other Massachusetts organizations. Those amendments would:\r\n