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On October 13th, 2021, we were featured in the Boston Globe on the redistricting process. Read more here.

On October 9, 2021, we were featured in the Boston Globe discussing the issue of mail-in voting. Read more here.

On October 7th, our Executive Director Cheryl Clyburn Crawford co-wrote an opinion piece in the Bay State Banner in support of ranked choice voting. You can read it here.

On September 30th, 2021, we were featured in the Bay State Banner discussing redistricting. You can read the full story here.

On September 28th, 2021, we were featured on GBH Radio discussing our redistricting efforts with the Drawing Democracy Coalition. Listen to the full story here.

On Wednesday, September 29th, we were featured in State House News Service discussing the redistricting process. You can read the full story here.

On September 28, 2021, our opinion piece on Lynn, MA's local election was featured in the Lynn Item. Read the full piece here.

On September 29th, 2021, we were featured in Politico Playbook MA's morning newsletter, which you can read here.

On September 27th, 2021, we were featured in the Boston Globe discussing our new legislative maps proposed for the redistricting process. You can read the full story here.

September 27, 2021: Our annual Champions of Democracy Fundraiser will take place virtually this year on Thursday, October 14 from 6-7 PM. Click here to register, and learn more below. If you have any questions regarding the fundraiser, contact us at info@massvote.org. Otherwise, thank you for your longstanding support, and we hope to see you there!

On September 26, 2021, our Letter to the Editor on Same Day Registration (SDR) was featured in the Eagle-Tribune. Read it here.

On Tuesday, September 22nd, we were featured on Boston 25 News discussing Boston's recent preliminary election. Watch the story now.

September 23, 2021: JOIN US! That's what we're asking ahead of our next major event. On Wednesday, October 6, we're hosting a VOTES Act Lobby Day alongside our partners in the Election Modernization Coalition from 12 Noon to 1:30 PM via Zoom. But to make this day as successful as possible, we need your help. As a reminder, the VOTES Act (S.459) is a policy currently under consideration on Beacon Hill that would make our voting system dramatically more accessible, efficient, and secure. It would implement many of the reforms that Massachusetts voters have grown used to, like voting by mail and early in-person voting. The VOTES Act would also introduce numerous new reforms, like Same Day Registration (SDR) and risk-limiting audits. We're holding this virtual Lobby Day - and inviting you to join - because we know that we're so close to making the VOTES Act a reality. This past July, the VOTES Act received the thumbs-up from a key legislative committee. Now, as the VOTES Act moves on to an eventual vote in the state House of Representatives and Senate, we're urging all legislators to support the bill in full. At this virtual Lobby Day, we'll provide you with some more detailed information on the VOTES Act, and walk you through how you can lobby your legislators to support it. Sign up for our Lobby Day now! In the meantime, please let us know if you have any questions. So, can we count on you to join us?

On September 8, 2021, we were featured in the State House News Service discussing the FARE Act, which would make public transit free for all statewide primaries and elections. You can read the full story here.

On Tuesday, September 8th, we were featured on 22 News WWLP in Western Mass discussing the FARE Act, which would make public transit free on election day. You can see the full story here.

September 7, 2021: We have some incredible news to share with you! Last week, Massachusetts took a massive step forward in the effort to make public transit free on election day. The state legislature’s Joint Committee on Transportation favorably reported out H.4095 and S.2519, An Act to Establish Free Access to Ride to Elections in Massachusetts, also known as the FARE Act. As you may know, the FARE Act would make all bus, subway, and trolley service fare-free for all statewide primary and general elections, which occur every even-numbered year. The FARE Act would apply to the MBTA, as well as the state’s 15 regional transit authorities. While Massachusetts would be the first state to implement a policy like this statewide, the Commonwealth would not be the first jurisdiction to make public transit fare-free on election day. Dozens of communities, such as San Diego, Dallas, and Kansas City, provide free public transit on election day. Most notably, Los Angeles County – which is home to more than 10 million residents and 5 million registered voters – has fare-free public transit for all statewide primaries and elections. One of the greatest benefits of the FARE Act is that it would help make our elections more equitable and accessible. As we realized in our analysis of the 2020 elections, a steep voter turnout gap along racial, geographic, and socio-economic lines persists in Massachusetts. While whiter, highly educated, suburban communities traditionally experience the highest voter turnout rates, more diverse, less educated, urban communities witness lower voter turnout rates. For example, voter turnout in the November 3, 2020 election reached 90% or higher in suburbs like Sudbury, Dover, and Medfield. But in cities like Springfield, Lawrence, and New Bedford, voter turnout reached 55% or lower. By providing communities like these easier access to the polls, we hope that the FARE Act can help close the state’s gross voter turnout gap. We've spent the better part of this year leading advocacy efforts around the FARE Act. Now, we need your help to make it law. H.4095 is currently under consideration in the House Ways and Means Committee. It’s Senate counterpart, S.2519, is currently under consideration in the Senate Ways and Means Committee. If either committee reports the FARE Act out favorably, then that branch of the legislature will most likely hold a floor vote on it. So, to make the FARE Act law, we need you to contact House Ways and Means Chair Aaron Michlewitz and Senate Ways and Means Chair Michael Rodrigues, and urge them both to support the FARE Act (H.4095 and S.2519). You can reach Chair Michlewitz at Aaron.M.Michlewitz@mahouse.gov or (617) 722-2990. You can contact Chair Rodrigues at Michael.Rodrigues@masenate.gov or (617) 722-1114. With their backing, the FARE Act will have an even greater shot of becoming law. - All of us at MassVOTE

Boston – On Wednesday, February 17, Senator Joe Boncore of Winthrop, Representative Frank A. Moran of Lawrence, and Representative Chynah Tyler of Boston filed “An Act Establishing Free Access to Ride to Elections in Massachusetts,” also known as the “FARE Act.” The FARE Act, which MassVOTE supports, would establish system-wide, fare-free service for all riders on bus, subway, and trolley services run by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) and each regional transit authority on the day of a state primary and state election. As a result, millions of Massachusetts voters would be able to ride to the polls and cast their ballots in an easily accessible manner free of cost. “We are thrilled to see Sen. Boncore, Leader Moran, and Rep. Tyler file the FARE Act, and we are thrilled to support it,” said Cheryl Clyburn Crawford, the Executive Director of MassVOTE. “By making public transit free on election day, the state would take an immediate, dramatic step to make voting more accessible. The FARE Act would especially benefit the state’s Black and brown, low-income, and immigrant communities, who struggle with lower voter turnout rates and heavily rely on public transit. Passing the FARE Act is critical to ensuring equity in our electoral system.” “The FARE Act ensures that, in Massachusetts, the right to vote will not be obstructed by a lack of affordable transportation,” said Senator Joe Boncore (D-Winthrop). “Those who face compounding obstacles to ballot access in communities with the lowest voter turnout will benefit most from the FARE Act. Free public transit on Election Day is the equitable solution. I look forward to partnering with Representative Moran, Representative Tyler, and MassVOTE on this important legislation.” "It is an unfortunate reality that many voters, especially those residing in Gateway Communities such as Lawrence, are unable to participate in the democratic process due to socioeconomic hinderances such as transportation access,” said Division Leader Frank A. Moran (D – Lawrence). “The FARE Act will bolster our Commonwealth’s commitment to providing residents with equitable access to their polling locations, while increasing voter participation in typically low turnout communities." "I am proud to be putting forth this much needed legislation with Leader Moran and Senator Boncore. We know that Black, Latino, communities of color, and low income communities across our Commonwealth face insurmountable barriers around access to the ballot boxes and in result, we continue to have low voter turnout in these communities,” said Representative Chynah Tyler (D-Boston). “The FARE Act is an important tool in tearing down barriers to voting and takes an important step towards ensuring equitable elections by providing free transit on election day." Sen. Boncore, Rep. Moran, and Rep. Tyler filed this bill in light of the 2020 elections, which saw disappointingly low voter turnout in the state’s more diverse, urban, lower-income communities. While suburbs such as Wayland, Lexington, and Dover saw voter turnout well above 85%, cities like Springfield, Lawrence, and New Bedford achieved voter turnout rates that barely surpassed 50%. These communities have long struggled to have their voices heard, and the COVID19 pandemic has only exacerbated this struggle. Implementing the FARE Act is one step the state must take to make voting more accessible to the state’s marginalized communities, especially its Black and brown, low-income, and immigrant populations. The bill is SD.1557 in the Senate and HD.2474 in the House. ### MassVOTE is a non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization dedicated to voting rights, voter education, and social justice.

On September 2nd, 2021, we were featured in CommonWealth Magazine discussing redistricting. Read the full story here.