What the heck did Gov. Patrick do now?
Election officials are bracing for the biggest voter turnout in Bay State history, as Secretary of State William Galvin said yesterday a record 4.2 million people have registered to vote this year and he expects about 3.1 million to turn out Tuesday.“I’m projecting that on November 4, we will have a record turnout,” he said yesterday.
The Massachusetts Town Clerks’ Association is concerned about congestion at the polls after Gov. Deval Patrick signed new legislation just days before the election that could hamper poll workers. The law, which went into effect Wednesday, allows people who have failed to reregister within 18 months of moving to go back and vote in their old polling places. The previous time limit was six months.
“We are horrified at the timing,” said Laurence Pizer, Plymouth Town Clerk and legislative committee chairman of the clerks’ association. “The gnashing of teeth (among town clerks) is widespread.”
People voting under the new law will cast a different colored “partial ballot,” which Pizer said could confuse poll workers who received their election night training before the legislation was passed.
UPDATE: More from the Herald.