VOTING CLARIFICATION FOR WEST NEWBURY TOWN ELECTION

The wording of an earlier post on the Town website may have been unclear.  This is to confirm that there WILL be in-person voting on June 3rd from 7am -8pm.  The March 31st post was referring only to early voting and has since been updated to clarify this point.

Under the Massachusetts Constitution, absentee ballots are available for all elections to voters who are disabled, out of town on Election Day, or have a religious belief preventing them from voting at their polling place.

A new law has been passed clarifying that any person taking precaution related to COVID-19 in response to a declared state of emergency or from guidance from a medical professional, local or state health official, or any civil authority shall be deemed to be unable by reason of physical disability to cast their vote in person at a polling location.

It is the opinion of this office that you qualify for an absentee ballot due to physical disability if:

• You are ill;
• You are confined to your home because you may transmit infection; or
• You cannot leave your home because you are a member of a population vulnerable to illness;
• You are staying in your home or avoiding your polling place as a precautionary measure in response to COVID-19.

The law has also been updated to allow early voting by mail for any election held on or before June 30th. Early voting by mail is similar to absentee voting, but unlike absentee voting, no excuse is required.

Application for absentee and early voting ballot is attached below, on the Town Clerk’s webpage or from the Secretary of the Commonwealth. You may also request an early voting ballot by writing a letter to the Town Clerk, 381 Main Street, West Newbury, MA 01985, if you do not have access to a printer. Be sure to include your name and address, the election(s) for which you are requesting a ballot, and your signature. If you need the ballot mailed somewhere other than your home, be sure to provide that address.

Early ballot applications for the June 3, 2020 West Newbury Town Election are available now. More details, including a 2020 Municipal Election Early Ballot Application, online here. As with absentee ballot applications, any written request is acceptable.

Completed absentee and early ballot applications must be submitted to the Town Clerk.  Applications may be mailed, hand-delivered to the tax payment box in the front lobby at the Town Office Building, 381 Main Street, faxed, or emailed. If you are emailing your application, you must be able to send an image of the application as an attachment, either by scanning it or by taking a picture of it. A hand-written signature must be visible.

All mail-in ballots must be back at the Town Office Building, 381 Main Street by the close of polls on the day of the election – a postmark is not sufficient. Absentee ballots may be mailed or hand-delivered by a family member. Please be sure to allow enough time for the mailing of your application and your ballot.

Michael P. McCarron

Town Clerk

381 Main Street

West Newbury, MA 01985

978-363-1100 ext. 110

978-363-1826 (Fax)

mmccarron@wnewbury.org