Governor Patrick Must Protect Military Voters' Right
to a Secure, Private Ballot
 
In an effort to remedy longstanding deficiencies in the voting process for overseas and
service voters, the General Court enacted House Bill 4310 on November 10. Most of
H4310 is laudable, but Section 4 of the bill would create a high-risk voting system for
overseas and service voters by allowing voted ballots to be returned via fax or e-mail.
 

This provision is unnecessary to solve the real problems faced by overseas and military
voters, and we urge Governor Patrick to return the bill to the Court with a
recommendation to delete it.
 

Facsimile or e-mail transmission of voted ballots requires military voters to sacrifice their
right to a private vote, and it is also one of the least secure methods of ballot submission
available. The National Institute of Standards and Technology's December 2008 report on
overseas voting observed:
 

The security challenges associated with e-mail return of voted ballots are difficult to
overcome using technology widely deployed today.1

The Pew Center on the States, in its 2009 report on overseas and military voters, indicates
overseas and military voters can be afforded more time and opportunity to vote if States
transmit and accept absentee ballot requests electronically, send blank absentee ballots electronically; and build at least 45 days into the process for ballots to travel between
voters and election officials.2 The Pew report notes:
 

Simply sending blank ballots out via fax or e-mail can give military citizens
abroad enough time to complete the process.3

The report also notes that where time to vote is especially short and electronic return of
ballots is permitted,
 
 
“…voters essentially must choose between potentially risking the privacy and
security of their ballots and being unable to complete the process in time.”4
 
 

For voters at home, Massachusetts provides a secret ballot that can be verified, audited
and recounted. Overseas and military voters can enjoy the same privacy and verifiability
of paper ballot voting while dramatically improving their opportunity to vote. The best
way to do so would be to afford them the opportunity to receive blank ballots
electronically. This step alone will add considerable time to allow overseas voters to cast
their ballots in a secure way. We urge Governor Patrick to extend this benefit without
adding unnecessary risk.
 
Signed:
ACLU of Massachusetts
Citizens for Election Integrity Massachusetts
Common Cause (National)
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law of the Boston Bar Association
Oiste
Verified Voting
Voter Action
 
 To Download the Press Release, Click Here.
 
 
Notes:
1. http://vote.nist.gov/uocava-threatanalysis-final.pdf
2. http://www.pewtrusts.org/uploadedFiles/wwwpewtrustsorg/Reports/Election_...
3. Id., p. 4
4. Id., p.15