Special legislation passed this summer to address elections during the pandemic reduced Massachusetts’ usual 20-day registration deadline to just 10 days — a change pushed by the coalition. But, the organizations say, the next 24 hours are critical to reach would-be voters who may not have had the chance to register or update their registration.

The special law also made Massachusetts’ history by establishing a voter registration deadline that fell after early voting began. This has allowed citizens for the first time  in the Commonwealth to register and vote on the same day.

The coalition connects record turnout in the Commonwealth’s primary election to these changes plus easier access to mail voting that reduce barriers to participation and will urge the Legislature to enact them on a permanent basis during the next legislative session.

In the meantime, the groups urge eligible voters to make sure that they are registered, and that their registration is up to date, by the Saturday, Oct. 24 deadline. As a result of another reform the coalition pushed for, as of 2016 voter registration became much easier with online voter registration. Eligible citizens can check their registration online and register on the Secretary of Commonwealth’s website. They can also download, print, and mail a voter registration form to their local election official. Saturday is also National Vote Early  Day, and the coalition encourages all Bay Staters to remind their friends and family to find their early voting location on the Secretary of Commonwealth’s website and cast a safe, counted ballot.

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The Election Modernization Coalition is comprised of the ACLU of Massachusetts, Common Cause Massachusetts, Lawyers for Civil Rights, the League of Women Voters of Massachusetts, MASSPIRG, MassVOTE, and the Massachusetts Voter Table.