Session Laws

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:

SECTION 1. Section 42E of chapter 51 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 1986 Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- Said assistant registrar shall receive affidavits of registration from registrants who reside in any other city or town of the commonwealth, and the provisions of section forty-two B shall apply to such affidavits.

SECTION 2. Section 48 of chapter 53 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the fourth, fifth, and sixth paragraphs and inserting in place thereof the following three paragraphs:-

There shall not be printed on the ballot at the state primary the name of any person as a candidate for nomination for any office to be filled by all the voters of the commonwealth, or for representative in congress, governor's councillor, senator in the general court, representative in the general court, district attorney, clerk of court, register of probate and insolvency, register of deeds, county commissioner, sheriff, or county treasurer, unless a certificate from the registrars of voters of the city or town wherein such person is a registered voter, certifying that he has been enrolled as a member of the political party whose nomination he seeks throughout the ninety days prior to the last day herein provided for filing nomination papers with the state secretary, is filed with the state secretary on or before such filing deadline. Said registrars shall issue such certificate, signed by a majority thereof, forthwith upon request of any such candidate so enrolled or of his authorized representative. Said registrars of voters shall issue such certificate to any person seeking the nomination of a political party, who is a newly registered voter of that city or town enrolled in that political party and who has not been an enrolled member of another political party during the year preceding the last day for filing nomination papers with the state secretary. No such certificate shall be issued to any person who is a candidate for nomination for any such office, if such person has been an enrolled member of another political party during the year prior to the last day for filing nomination papers with the state secretary as provided by this section.

There shall not be printed on the ballot at a city or town primary the name of any person as a candidate for nomination for any office to be filed at a city or town election unless such person has been an enrolled member of the political party whose nomination he seeks throughout the ninety days prior to the last day for submitting primary nomination papers to the registrars of voters prior to said primary.

The name of a candidate for election to any office who is nominated otherwise than by a political party, generally referred to as an "Unenrolled" candidate, shall not be printed on the ballot at a state election, or on the ballot at any city or town election following a city or town primary, unless a certificate from the registrars of voters of the city or town wherein such person is a registered voter, certifying that he is not enrolled as a member of any political party, is filed with the state secretary or city or town clerk on or before the last day herein provided for filing nomination papers. Said registrars shall issue each certificate forthwith upon request of any such candidate who is not a member of a political party or his authorized representative. No such certificate shall be issued to any such candidate who shall have been an enrolled member of any political party during the ninety days prior to the last day for filing nomination papers as provided by this section.

SECTION 3. The third paragraph of section 43A of chapter 54 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence.

SECTION 4. The first paragraph of section 53 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by inserting after the word "quarters", in line 8, the following words:- , with the number of registered voters residing at each such address.

SECTION 5. Subsection (d) of section 92 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- If the health care facility is outside the city or town and no kindred of the voter is available for this purpose, the ballot need not be delivered, but may be mailed instead.

SECTION 6. The second paragraph of section 95 of said chapter 54 is hereby amended by striking out the last sentence, as so appearing, and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- Written notice of such meeting shall be given by said board to the chairman of the city or town committee of each political party at least three days before such meeting.

SECTION 7. Section 98 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by adding the following sentence:- Such designated person shall add in writing a statement that the voter is unable to write, the reason therefor, and shall sign the voter's name on the inner envelope.

SECTION 8. Section one hundred and one of said chapter fifty-four is hereby repealed.

SECTION 9. The third paragraph of section 135 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out the fourth sentence and inserting in place thereof the following sentence:- If the registrars determine to accept an inner envelope originally rejected as defective, they shall open such envelope and count the ballot therein, and shall attach such envelope to such ballot.

SECTION 10. The ninth paragraph of said section 135 of said chapter 54, as so appearing, is hereby amended by striking out, in lines 182 and 183, the words "without opening the envelopes".