City Plans for Fall Elections under COVID-19

Melrose City officials are beginning the process of planning for the upcoming state and federal elections in September and November in the wake of COVID-19. Melrose voters could see many changes in the upcoming elections this fall, including an increased emphasis on voting by mail, expanded early voting opportunities, and centralized polling locations. 

“This pandemic has changed how Melrosians have had to approach daily tasks like grocery shopping or going to school in very different ways. Voting is another activity that will and must go on, but it will likely look different,” Mayor Paul Brodeur said. 

The Mayor, along with City Council President Jennifer Grigoraitis, City Clerk Amy Kamosa, Elections Administrator Joanne Perperian, and other City officials, has been developing a plan to conduct safe and secure elections despite the changing impacts of COVID-19 and potential policy shifts on Beacon Hill and in Washington. 

“First and foremost, our priority is to maintain the integrity of our elections while adhering to stringent safety protocols to protect both voters and employees alike,” City Council President Grigoraitis said. 

Most of the election protocols that Melrose follows are governed by a network of federal and state regulations. With eight separate proposed bills aimed at addressing covid-19-related election changes under debate on Beacon Hill, it is still too early for the city to create a definitive plan for September and November.  However, elections officials are moving forward with preparations that will be necessary regardless of the final legislation. These include securing personal protective equipment for poll workers, purchasing portable electronic “poll pads” that will allow real-time access to the city’s registered voter database and allow for more flexibility in where early voting and election day voting can be held, and procuring supplies to scale-up procedures for accepting, logging, and securing mail-in ballots. 

While city officials encourage voters to take advantage of mail-in voting options when possible, expanded mail-in access requires changes to state and federal law. Nearly all of the proposed bills on Beacon Hill support the expansion of mail-in voting—either through no-excuse absentee voting (voters do not need to provide a reason for their absentee ballot request) or true mail-in voting, which allows any voter to mail in their ballot.   

“The good news is that our recent city elections—including the override election last April and the double election held in March of this year—really prepared us to handle a large quantity of ballots through early and absentee voting, both mail-in and in person,” Elections Administrator Joanne Perperian said.

Even if the majority of Melrosians opt for mail in voting, other in-person opportunities such as early voting and Election Day voting would continue to be offered.  Early voting and Election Day voting both require additional protections and updates due to COVID-19. Early voting, which has traditionally been held in the City Council Chamber of Melrose City Hall may have to move to a new location. The close quarters of City Hall coupled with social distancing protocols make voting in City Hall especially challenging. 

City officials are reviewing other locations to conduct early voting which strike the right balance of parking, accessibility, compliance with State law, and availability. Currently, officials are reviewing the possibility of utilizing Memorial Hall as a potential location. While the evolving nature of the pandemic has made scheduling (and rescheduling) events at Memorial Hall challenging, the space it affords and its centralized location both make it an attractive option to accommodate the hundreds of Melrosians who prefer to vote early. 

Officials are also considering the possibility of centralizing Melrose’s eight Election Day polling locations to one and have identified the Melrose Veteran’s Memorial Middle School gym as a prime candidate. The logistics around maintaining social distancing at a number of the polling locations, having residents and students potentially sharing the same space, and the vulnerability of older residents and those with underlying health conditions, have all pointed towards the potential benefits of consolidating voting to a single location. 

“Of the changes we are considering, consolidation to a single Election Day polling location is probably the biggest departure from past practice,” Mayor Brodeur said. “I have always enjoyed being able to walk to the end of my street to cast my ballot, but during times like these making sure that we are reducing risks wherever possible is more important.” 

Current law requires a specific act of the State legislature to be signed by the Governor in order to change polling locations. Some of the Covid-19 election legislation pending before the Massachusetts House of Representatives would allow municipalities to make the change at the local level with simple approval of the City Council.

“One thing that we have learned over the last few months is that flexibility and contingency planning will be critical to ensure that these upcoming elections remain safe, secure and accessible to all registered voters in Melrose. We will continue to monitor the state legislation and regularly keep the public informed as we move forward with any changes to the election procedures,” said City Clerk Amy Kamosa. 

Communication

City officials have discussed a multi-platform approach to ensure that all registered voters will receive updates regarding potential changes to the election process even though so many of these details may be a work in progress. From social media, to press releases, to City wide mailers, and phone calls, city officials want to ensure that any changes to the City’s election procedures are well explained so that voters can prepare. 

“I know that many residents will have questions about the details and logistics of these potential changes, so it’s a priority for all of us on the team working on this that we communicate frequently in order to keep all residents in the loop,” Mayor Brodeur said