Stoughton Coronavirus Update: Cases Rise To 371

STOUGHTON, MA — There are 371 positive cases of the new coronavirus in Stoughton as of Monday afternoon, according to the latest numbers from local health officials.

Town Manager Robin Muksian Grimm said about a third of Stoughton's COVID-19 cases have come from nursing homes and other assisted living facilities. Another dozen of the cases are from staff at those facilities.

Grimm also said about a dozen of the town's reported cases may reflect retesting of people who tested positive for the new coronavirus a second time.

The news comes as 169 news deaths and more than 1,500 more cases were reported across the commonwealth bringing the number of people in Massachusetts who have tested positive for the virus to 54,938. The number of deaths rose to 2,899 Sunday. The total cases in Norfolk County was 5,288.

Stoughton Election Update

Grimm said a date for the town election will be set soon. The Board of Selectmen had voted to hold voting on May 30, but since Gov. Charlie Baker's emergency order closing schools for the rest of the year, the date is likely to move to not intefere with religious practices, since the buildings can be used on weekdays Grimm said.

"As we move forward, you will be getting updates on safety protocols for the election," Grimm said. "We are already working on personal protective equipment for poll workers, plexi-glass panels and a very limited number of people in polling locations at any one time."

Grimm also said every voter will get a pen, gloves and a mask before they enter any polling location. She said the polling locations will be the same as they were in other elections so that resident aren't voting in one centralized location during the pandemic.

"Despite what is going on, the sanctity of the voting process is critical, and my promise to you is that town staff will work to make this safe from a public health perspective while still a fair and honest election with as much voter participation as possible," Grimm said.

Mail-in voting was also encouraged. The Secretary of State's office said any registered voter in Massachusetts can request a mail-in ballot for elections being held on or before June 30.

If you'd like to vote by mail, fill out the mail-in ballot application available on the Secretary of State's Website and send the completed form to the Stoughton Town Clerk, 10 Pearl Street Stoughton, MA, 02072.