Mail ballot turmoil heats up
Another candidate piles on to lawsuit pushing for extention
A Massachusetts congressional hopeful has joined the effort to extend the deadline for counting mailin ballots in the state’s Sept. 1 primaries, filing an amicus brief in a case before the state’s high court for a hearing on Monday.
Last week, 4th Congressional District candidate Becky Grossman filed a complaint with the Supreme Judicial Court citing concerns over mail delays and demanding that primary ballots received up to 10 days after Sept. 1 be tallied as long as they’re postmarked by primary day.
On Sunday, 8th Congressional District candidate Robbie Goldstein filed an amicus brief in support of the complaint. The Democrat is challenging longtime incumbent U.S. Rep. Stephen Lynch.
“This Court’s decision on the Petition will have a direct impact on the ability of voters in the Massachusetts Eighth Congressional District to cast their votes in the September 1 primary election, which will determine whether Dr. Goldstein will obtain the Democratic Party’s nomination,” his brief states.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that election officials “offer alternative voting methods that minimize direct contact and reduce crowd size at polling locations,” the brief reads.
“Such alternatives become meaningless, however, if legal and logistical circumstances keep those votes from actually counting in the election and thereby deprive those voters who try to participate safely of their right to vote,” the brief states. “Voters who understandably lack confidence in their ability to vote by mail will be compelled to confront the specter of potentially deadly COVID19 infection at their polling place, creating an unreasonable burden on their fundamental right to vote.”
Voters currently have until Aug. 26 to submit mail-in ballot requests. But ballots must be returned by Sept. 1 — just six days later.
President Trump over the weekend continued his attack on mail-in voting and drop-off ballot boxes.
“So now the Democrats are using Mail Drop Boxes, which are a voter security disaster,” the president tweeted. “Among other things, they make it possible for a person to vote multiple times. Also, who controls them, are they placed in Republican or Democrat areas? They are not Covid sanitized. A big fraud!”
The Tweet was flagged by Twitter on Sunday.
“This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about civic and election integrity,” Twitter wrote. “However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.”