Checking In on Election Day

An election worker will ask for your address including street number and first and last names. Once you are located on the voting list, the election worker will mark your name, hand you a ballot (there is an optional privacy sleeve which you may get with the ballot) and direct you toward the voting booth.

If your name is not on the voters’ list, ask a poll worker to call the registrar of voters in your community. If the problem can be resolved over the phone, the poll worker will fill out the appropriate paperwork and you will be able to vote then and there.

If this is not successful, go to the registrar of voters office (usually town or city hall). If the registrar can confirm that you are registered, you will receive a certificate stating this. You can then present the certificate at the town or city clerk’s office and vote absentee there or return to your polling place, present the certificate and vote. Your vote will be counted whether you vote absentee or at the polls.

If your registration cannot be verified, you may vote by provisional ballot.

Voting by Provisional Ballot

You will be asked to sign a roster and provide your name, address, signature, date of birth, and political party affiliation if applicable. You will be asked to show suitable identification showing your name and current address. If you do not provide suitable identification, your provisional ballot may not be counted. You have until the close of the polls on Election Day to bring suitable identification. Sufficient identification, which must show your name and address, includes a copy of a current and valid photo identification, current utility bill, bank statement, government check, paycheck or other government document.

You must fill out a provisional ballot affirmation declaring that you are a registered voter in the city or town and reside within the precinct. Once you have completed the affidavit, a poll worker will put a number on your provisional ballot envelope and on the roster, mark the ballot with the word “provisional” and hand you the ballot with the provisional ballot envelope. You will cast your vote on this ballot, seal it in the envelope, and hand it back to a poll worker. You will receive an information sheet telling you how you can find out if your ballot was counted.

A provisional ballot will be counted if your voter eligibility is verified. To find out if your provisional ballot was counted, call the Secretary of the Commonwealth Elections Division at 1-800-462-8683 or 1- 617-727-2828 or ask your local municipal election official. The information will be available seven days after a primary election and 20 days after a general election.