Yesterday—more than three months after the MA Senate voted for a robust voting rights package—the MA House took up its own version of the VOTES Act, but with a catch.
The House’s version of the bill (H.4359), as reported out of Ways & Means on Wednesday, dropped Same Day Registration from the VOTES Act, a basic voting reform that was in both the Senate bill and the original version as filed at the start of the legislative session. The House also left out the jail-based voting reforms that the Senate added during floor debate, but they added similar language back through an amendment (more on that later) .
The bill made permanent the pandemic-era expanded vote-by-mail and early voting reforms (which the House had allowed to lapse by taking so long to bring up a bill) and reinforced provisions in the 2018 Automatic Voter Registration bill that Secretary of the Commonwealth Bill Galvin has refused to implement (such as joining the Electronic Registration Information Center, an interstate compact that helps states keep up-to-date voting rolls).
That’s all good and important. But when 20 states and Washington, D.C., have Same Day Registration, allowing any qualified resident of the state to register to vote and cast a ballot at the same time, and we still have an arbitrary and exclusionary voter registration cutoff, it’s simply not good enough. When we see democracy under attack around the country, we shouldn’t be settling when it comes to strengthening it.
Maine has had Same Day Registration since the 1970s, and New Hampshire since the 1990s. So the technology is there. What has been lacking is the political will—in the MA House (the MA Senate passed Same Day Registration in 2014 and 2007 before).
Same Day Registration is one of the most proven voting reforms. A recent study from Demos found that, in states with Same Day Registration, Black and Latinx voter turnout was up to 17 percent higher than in states without. A Government Accountability Office report from 2016 showed that Same Day Registration tended to yield a 5 percent bump in turnout. Studies have also shown pronounced increases in youth turnout from Same Day Registration.
People in this country move a lot. And that is especially true for young people and Black and Latinx people who are disproportionately renters. And when our state primary falls right after the major September 1st move-in day, that’s a recipe for disenfranchisement.
That’s why Democrats nationally have been strong champions of Same Day Registration. It was included in the Freedom to Vote Act, which had the support of both of MA’s two senators (Ed Markey and Elizabeth Warren), all 9 of our US Representatives, and President Joe Biden. When West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin and Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema joined Republicans in opposing a change to the filibuster to pass this voting reform package, they did so because of a misplaced regard for the filibuster, not any stated opposition to the underlying bill.
But back to Massachusetts. Three relevant amendments were filed: Rep. Carmine Gentile (D-Sudbury)’s amendment #5 (Election Day Registration), Rep. Lindsay Sabadosa (D-Northampton)’s amendment #11 (Same Day Voter Registration), and Rep. Nika Elugardo (D-Jamaica Plain)’s amendment #40 (An Act To Promote Same-Day Voter Registration). Elugardo’s amendment, with the strong backing of the Black & Latino Legislative Caucus, was intended as a compromise by focusing on Election Day Registration in particular–namely, allowing voters to register or update their registration on Election Day but not during the early voting period.
Gentile’s amendment was withdrawn early on Thursday, but after voting down several right-wing Republican amendments and passing one good jail-based voting amendment (more on all that later), Assistant Majority Leader Mike Moran (D-Brighton), a longstanding opponent of Same Day Registration (his district is home to Boston University and Boston College, full of students who could benefit from such a law), pulled a dirty procedural trick to block consideration of Election Day Registration. Specifically, he filed a “further amendment” to Sabadosa’s amendment #11, replacing its content with a study commission on Same Day Registration. When our neighbors in Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Connecticut already have such a law, we do not need to “study” it more. It’s long overdue for us to just implement it.
In at times rambling speeches, Moran, Rep. Danielle Gregoire (D-Marlborough), Rep. Tackey Chan (D-Quincy), Rep. Kip Diggs (D-Barnstable), Rep. Dan Hunt (D-Dorchester), Rep. Mike Day (D-Stoneham), Rep. Kathy LaNatra (D-Kingston), and Rep. Joan Meschino (D-Hull) argued that our towns are too technologically backwards, our voters too stupid, and our laws too perfect to pass Same Day Registration of any kinds.
Rep. Nika Elugardo gave a passionate speech about the importance of Election Day Registration to racial justice, referencing the aforementioned study on its impact on Black and Latinx voters, and spoke of her own experiences with disenfranchisement due to past housing instability. As she pointed out, the amendment would block any consideration of her own amendment #40, as the Clerk would deem the two amendments “too similar” even though—as she noted—the town clerks who have opposed a full Same Day Registration law have supported Election Day Registration. The procedural step from Moran was, in other words, a cowardly attempt to avoid debate and discussion.
Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven (D-Somerville), Rep. Tami Gouveia (D-Acton), and Rep. Jamie Belsito (D-Topsfield) also spoke eloquently on the floor in support of Election Day Registration. Rep. Uyterhoeven traced the history of restrictive voting laws to the Jim Crow era, emphasizing the importance of strong voting reforms that center communities of color. She moreover noted that EDR is in the state Democratic Party platform and that living up to the party’s own platform is essential to combating voter cynicism. Rep. Gouveia spoke about how so many legislators have no idea how chaotic the daily lives of their constituents are, and how those facing housing instability or juggling multiple jobs (as well as families) could miss such a voter registration deadline. And Rep. Belsito spoke of how, on the recent campaign trail, strengthening our democracy was one of the top demands of her constituents.
The ultimate vote was closer than most votes in the House tend to be: 93 to 64—the 93 voting to block consideration of Election Day Registration and the 64 voting for it to have a chance at debate and a vote. It is, in many ways, a proxy for the vote on EDR itself, although the three Republicans voting NO likely did so because they thought even a study was too much. You can see the vote below. The 61 Democrats who bucked House Leadership deserve your thanks.
In a demonstration of the power of House Democratic Leadership to determine outcomes, 32 Democratic state reps who voted to block Election Day Registration were co-sponsors of the original VOTES Act…which included Election Day Registration…..
Rep. Jim Arciero (D-Westford)
Rep. John Barrett (D-North Adams)
Rep. Natalie Blais (D-Sunderland)
Rep. Antonio Cabral (D-New Bedford)
Rep. Dan Cahill (D-Lynn)
Rep. Dan Carey (D-Easthampton)
Rep. Tackey Chan (D-Quincy)
Rep. Ed Coppinger (D-West Roxbury)
Rep. Josh Cutler (D-Duxbury)
Rep. Mike Day (D-Stoneham)
Rep. Marcos Devers (D-Lawrence)
Rep. Kip Diggs (D-Barnstable)
Rep. Michelle DuBois (D-Brockton)
Rep. Ann-Margaret Ferrante (D-Gloucester)
Rep. Bill Galvin (D-Canton)
Rep. Tom Golden (D-Lowell)
Rep. Ken Gordon (D-Bedford)
Rep. Rich Haggerty (D-Woburn)
Rep. Liz Malia (D-Jamaica Plain)
Rep. Paul McMurtry (D-Dedham)
Rep. Rady Mom (D-Lowell)
Rep. Frank Moran (D-Lawrence)
Rep. Brian Murray (D-Milford)
Rep. Alice Peisch (D-Wellesley)
Rep. Angelo Puppolo (D-Springfield)
Rep. Jeff Roy (D-Franklin)
Rep. Dave Robertson (D-Tewksbury)
Rep. Adam Scanlon (D-North Attleborough)
Rep. Alan Silvia (D-Fall River)
Rep. Tom Stanley (D-Waltham)
Rep. Bill Straus (D-Mattapoisett)
Rep. Thomas Walsh (D-Peabody)
Quick note: If every single woman of color in the MA House votes one way on a voting rights amendment, and you vote the other way…maybe check yourself before saying “MA isn’t like Georgia.”
Other Amendments of Note
The House vote down six right-wing amendments from members of the Republican caucus:
- Obstructing the Implementation of Mail-In Voting: The House voted 128-30 against an amendment (#6) from Republican Minority Leader Brad Jones (R-North Reading) to require an opinion from the MA Supreme Judicial Court on whether the mail-in voting provisions of the bill are constitutional. The vote was mostly partly line, with “Democrat” Colleen Garry (D-Dracut) joining Republicans and unaffiliated Susannah Whipps (U-Athol) joining Democrats.
- Increasing Penalties for Non-Existent Voter Fraud: The House voted 126 to 32 against another amendment from Jones (#8) to double the penalties for voter fraud, a thing that does not happen. The vote looked like the one above, but with “Democrats” Dave Robertson (D-Wilmington) and Jeff Turco (D-Winthrop) joining Garry and Republicans.
- Ending the Mailing of VBM Applications: The House voted 129 to 29 against an amendment (#17) from Rep. Jim Kelcourse (R-Amesbury) to strike the language of the bill requiring the Secretary of the Commonwealth to mail all registered voters an application to vote by mail. It was party line, with Whipps joining Democrats.
- Undermining Vaccination Requirements: The House voted 127 to 31 against an amendment (#9) from Rep. Peter Durant (R-Spencer) to block any location that ever serves as a polling location or ever offers voter registration paperwork from requiring vaccination for entry. Garry and Robertson joined Republicans, and Whipps joined Democrats.
- Requiring Proof of Residence Vote: The House voted 130 to 28 against an amendment (#10) from Rep. Durant to require any voter registration location that also requires proof of vaccination for entry to require proof of residency, which is only ever asked in Massachusetts for first-time voters and not for regular voters. The amendment was seeking to create unnecessary administrative work on Election Day and serve as a protest against vaccination requirements. Rep. Nicholas Boldyga (R-Southwick) inexplicably joined Democrats in voting NO, as did Whipps.
- Bloating Police Budgets: The House voted 128 to 29 against an amendment (#34) from Rep. Shawn Dooley (R-Norfolk) to require excessive police detail for dropboxes, out of a desire to fear-monger around the security of vote-by-mail. The vote was party line, with Whipps joining Democrats.
- Requiring a Photo ID to Vote: The House voted 126 to 32 against an amendment (#7) from Rep. Paul Frost (R-Auburn) to require voters to show a photo ID at the polls, a common tactic by Republicans to pose roadblocks for low-income voters, especially Black and Latinx ones. Garry, Robertson, and Turco joined Republicans in voting for it, and Whipps joined Democrats in voting against.
And the House passed one progressive amendment: Rep. Liz Miranda (D-Roxbury) and Chynah Tyler (D-Roxbury)’s amendment on Jail Based Voting. Both underscored that we can’t talk about voter suppression or disenfrachisement without acknowledging the most marginalized communities, the disproportionately Black and Latinx individuals currently incarcerated. Individuals incarcerated with non-felony convictions maintain the right to vote in theory, but the vote often doesn’t exist in practice.
The redrafted amendment that received a vote largely adhered to the original, which itself sought to harmonize language with what the Senate passed and what Miranda and Tyler filed as a bill earlier in the session: ensuring that individuals who are incarcerated and currently eligible to vote are provided with the necessary information and materials to do so, creating reporting requirements for houses of corrections, and building voter registration into the re-entry process. It passed overwhelmingly 153 to 5, with five Republicans voting NO (Rep. Donnie Berthiaume of Spencer, Rep. Nicholas Boldgya of Southwick, Rep. Shawn Dooley of Norfolk, Rep. Peter Durant of Spencer, and Rep. Marc Lombardo of Billerica).
The House’s weakened version of the VOTES Act ultimately passed 124 to 34, a mostly party line vote with Reps. Nika Elugardo (D-Jamaica Plain), Tami Gouveia (D-Acton), Russell Holmes (D-Mattapan), and Erika Uyterhoeven (D-Somerville) voting no from the left in protest of the elimination of EDR and Rep. Colleen Garry (“D”-Dracut) joining Republicans in voting no. Unaffiliated Susannah Whipps (U-Athol) joined Democrats in voting yes.
