Constituents Lobby for VOTES Act Utilizing Zoom –  Ask for quick passage for 2021 Municipal Elections

BOSTON — Over 300 advocates signed up to lobby from all across the Commonwealth capitalizing on a virtual lobby day to support “An Act Fostering Voter Opportunities Trust, Equity, and Security,” i.e. the VOTES Act. Sponsored by the Election Modernization Coalition, the event featured remarks from bill sponsors 众议员约翰·劳恩 和 Senator Cindy Creem, along with Gladys Vega from La Colaborativa 和 Tanisha Sullivan from the NAACP Boston.

A full recording is available here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PcFsulX8iypAE5aoDW37anruq4_f8ytX/edit 

The bill has over 100 legislative sponsors including over 50% of House members and 50% of Senate members. According to the filers and advocates, it is a top priority for the 192nd General Court, and should be passed early in the session to ensure its reforms are available to voters in the fall 2021 municipal elections. 

邮寄投票、扩大提前投票以及上届会议通过的临时立法中的其他条款将于 2021 年 6 月底到期。 

他说：“至关重要的是，我们要确保已经为选民发挥了作用的改革，以及选民期望将再次为他们提供的改革，在即将举行的市政选举和未来的州选举中得到落实。” 众议员约翰·劳恩.

“《投票法案》全面审视了马萨诸塞州的选举状况，” Senate Majority Leader Cindy Creem. “Even with mail-in voting, Bay Staters still face barriers to participation like our 20-day registration deadline. That’s why we include Same Day Registration. Incarcerated eligible voters – who are disproportionately Black or people of color – face undue barriers to casting a counted ballot. That’s why we include jail-based voting provisions. And our voter registration infrastructure needs work so the job of facilitating elections is easier on clerks, and our elections are more secure — that’s why we expand post-election audits and include a deadline by which the State must join 31 other states in participating in the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC).” 

参加电话会议的支持者已预先安排了与他们的代表和参议员的 Zoom 通话和电话会议，而其他人则在分组讨论中进行电话交流。信息很明确：《投票法案》需要迅速举行公开听证会并通过，以保证秋季选举的准入、公平和安全。

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The Election Modernization Coalition is composed 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.