The Massachusetts House will be voting on Wednesday, June 3rd [UPDATE: Thursday, June 4], on a bill to protect our our September and November elections during the pandemic.

The bill has some good parts, like making it easier to vote by mail and expanding early voting. But it does not go nearly far enough to protect every eligible voter's right to participate in our democracy while protecting public health.

We've seen battles in other states about whether to count ballots postmarked by Election Day, with conservatives seeking to restrict the electorate trying to invalidate such ballots. We should not allow that to happen here.

The voter registration drives that would have taken place this summer can't happen anymore, and many of the places where voters might get a printed registration form are not open. Our 20-day registration cutoff thus becomes even more disenfranchising.

Moreover, even as we create opportunities for people to vote early and vote by mail, we need to make sure that in-person voting is safe. The bill contains weak and unspecific language about protecting in-person voting and, troublingly, allows municipalities to vote to change polling locations a mere 11 days before the election.

Fortunately, State Representatives have filed important amendments to fix the deficiencies of the bill. But we need to act fast.

Can you contact your state representative in support of these crucial amendments?

• Amendments 4: Postmarked by election day & 5: Postmarked by date for General Election (Maria Robinson), which will make sure that any ballot postmarked by Election Day will be counted
• Amendment 14: Guaranteeing Safe, Accessible, and Fair Elections For All (Tami Gouveia), which would strengthen the protections for in-person voting, which is especially important for communities of color
• Amendment 25: Expanded and Election Day Voter Registration (Lindsay Sabadosa), which would enable voters to register or update their registration on Election Day and streamline the online registration process as so many opportunities to register in person this summer will be lost

You can also email them directly -- or, better, give them a call. You can find your legislator's contact information here.