Massachusetts would join roughly half of the states across the country that allow same-day voter registration if Question 4 passes on the upcoming ballot, allowing residents to sign up to vote at polling locations immediately before casting a ballot on Election Day.
The change would eliminate the current deadline to register to vote, which is currently 10 days before an election. The law would go into effect in time for the 2028 election.
Proponents of voting "yes" on the question argue that voters are most engaged in the final days leading up to an election, especially on the day itself, and that same-day voter registration is a relatively simple way to remove a barrier to increased voting and civic engagement.
Opponents argue that Massachusetts already has robust voter registration efforts — including, in some cases, automatic registration — and that the change places an unnecessary strain on poll workers while opening the door for at least the potential of voter fraud.
"Same-day voter registration prejudices that welfare by eliminating the advance period during which election officials can examine a registrant's identity, residence, eligibility, or duplicate registration before a ballot is issued," said State Republican Party Chair Amy Carnevale in the official Secretary of State ballot explainer. "Instead, officials would be required to make those determinations at the polling place, under substantial time pressure and amid the extraordinary demands of Election Day.
"Errors, false statements, or conflicting records that escape detection may not be discovered until after the ballot has been cast and commingled with all others, when it can no longer be identified or withdrawn."
Those in favor of the change cite that 23 other states, plus Washington D.C., operate same-day voter registration seamlessly and that city and town clerk offices can easily transfer their existing ability to register a person within two weeks of an election to be able to do it right before they cast a ballot.
"This is just taking the process that we already know and love here in Massachusetts and bringing it to the ballot box," Celia Canavan, of the League of Women Voters, said in a recent WGBH-FM ballot question forum. "It's the same level of security. It's the same level of identification and proof-of-residency requirements. But it's allowing it to happen on Election Day when voters are engaged, they have been looking in the last two weeks at what's happening on the ballot."
She added that same-day voter registration could increase voter turnout and cut down on provisional ballots that are often ultimately rejected for technical reasons.
Republican Attorney General candidate Michael Walsh, speaking in the WGBH-FM forum, said the current 10-day moratorium allows for clerks to verify registrations ahead of time to help ensure there are no errors at the voting booth that could, potentially, swing an election.
"We can't have a dress rehearsal for (an election)," Walsh said. "We are going to have between 2.1 and 2.3 million people vote in November — about a third early, in-person. And the problem is that we're taking a registration process that currently occurs in town hall offices, at leisure, when you have databases and you can run all of your checks. And it essentially throws all of this onto what is already a complicated process of ballot administration (at the polls)."
The "proof of residency" that would be accepted for same-day registrations would include a current utility bill, bank statement, government check, residential lease, wireless telephone statement, paycheck, current student fee statement or other document from a post-secondary school, or another government document or correspondence.
Those registering would also be required to sign a written oath that they are a citizen of the United States, are at least 18 years old, are not legally prohibited from voting, and have not and will not vote in the same election at another location.
The oath would state that providing false information is a felony punishable by not more than 5 years' imprisonment, a fine of not more than $10,000, or both.
Early, in-person voting for the upcoming election ends on Friday.
Polls are open for the state general election on Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
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