How To Vote By Mail In The Sept. 1 State Primary Election

BURLINGTON, MA — All Burlington voters will have the opportunity to cast their ballots by mail in the fall's two elections, if they want to avoid election day crowds amid the coronavirus epidemic.

Voting by mail this year will not require a reason — an expected second surge of COVID-19 is reason enough, lawmakers determined. But it will require a vote-by-mail application being returned to your local elections office.

How to apply to vote by mail:

Applications were out by Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin's office that can be used for the Sept. 1 state primary, Nov. 3 election or both. All postcard applications, which went to registered voters who had not already applied for absentee ballots, were due to go out by Tuesday.

To vote by mail in the state primary election, residents must return their applications to the Burlington Town Clerk's Office, 29 Center Street, Burlington MA 01803 is Aug. 26th. The deadline is Oct. 28 for the general election.

You can also email the application to the Town Clerk's Office by filling out the application, signing it and then scanning it in and emailing it to vote@burlington.org

You can also download the absentee ballot application here.

To vote in person, either early or on election day, you do not need to return the application.

How to register to vote:

To check your voter status, click here.

The voter registration for 2020 elections is 10 days before the election. For the state primary, voters must register by Aug. 22.

Residents with an MA driver's license or a state ID can register online at www.registertovotema.gov.

Residents can also download the registration form here, fill it out and mail it to the Town Clerk's Office, 29 Center Street, Burlington MA 01803.

How to vote by mail:

The Town Clerk's office will begin mailing out ballots when they are available. Ballots must be by 8 p.m. on Sept. 1.

Who's running?

Sample ballots can be viewed here.

The following races are contested. Incumbents are in bold.

Democratic Primary, U.S. Senate

• Ed Markey
• Joe Kennedy, III

Democratic Primary, U.S. House Sixth District

• Seth Moulton
• Jamie Belsito
• Angus McQuilken

Republican Primary, U.S. Senate

• Shiva Ayyadurai
• Kevin O'Connor

Christopher Huffaker can be reached at 412-265-8353 or chris.huffaker@patch.com.