The highest court in Massachusetts on July 11 threw out a challenge to absentee voting rules brought by state Republicans, a move that will allow voters to submit mail-in ballots in the September primary election without having to provide an excuse.
A brief, unsigned order indicates the court will release a “full opinion explaining the court’s reasoning” in “due course.”
Republicans had argued that the state’s VOTES Act, which Gov. Charlie Baker, a Republican, signed into law in June, was unconstitutional because the measure needed to be approved by voters. The party also argued that making no-excuse vote-by-mail and early voting permanent in the state was a bad idea because the policies increase the likelihood of fraud.
After the measure, which made permanent the temporary relaxations of voting rules enacted at the height of the pandemic, was signed, state officials reportedly began getting ready to mail out more than 4.7 million ballot applications to voters for the upcoming primary.
Walsh referenced a 1917 amendment to the Massachusetts Constitution that said voters should only be allowed to cast mail or absentee ballots if they are disabled, away from home on Election Day, or possess religious objections to voting in person.
“Therefore, we assert that any kind of absentee or mail-in voting must comply [with constitutional articles] or else they are on their face outside of the authority of the Legislature,” the lawyer told the court.
Two plaintiffs in the lawsuit, Jim Lyons, who is chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party, and Rayla Campbell, the party’s candidate for secretary of state, said they would promptly ask the U.S. Supreme Court to review the ruling in the hope that the federal judiciary would “provide relief to prevent a constitutional travesty,” according to media outlet MassLive.
But liberal groups praised the new ruling.
“Today’s decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court means that voters will be able to rely on the provisions of the VOTES Act in the upcoming elections,” said Geoff Foster, executive director of Common Cause Massachusetts, according to The Associated Press.
“This is a big win for voting rights in Massachusetts,” he added.
Secretary of State William Galvin, a Democrat, said after the ruling that the state will begin printing ballot applications at once.
“The presses are now rolling. We want to get the ballots done, and therefore the presses are rolling to put out the applications,” Galvin reportedly said at a press conference on Beacon Hill.
“We’ve queued up everything we need to do. We expect the presses to be rolling beginning today. It’s a huge mailing. It’s in excess of 4 million pieces. We’ve been in contact with the Postal Service. We know they have their own issues. They’ve been very candid with us as to the challenges that they confront.”
