Victory! In Response to Lawsuit, Secretary Galvin Agrees to Issue Jail-Based Voting Report

BOSTON — In a victory for democratic transparency, today the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) ordered the secretary of the commonwealth to release long-overdue data on jail-based voting. This settlement marks the end of a year-long delay that kept the public in the dark about ballot access for incarcerated voters.

The favorable settlement resolves a lawsuit brought by voting rights and prisoners’ advocates and requires the secretary of the commonwealth to release reports on jail-based voting as mandated by the VOTES Act, a 2022 Massachusetts law designed to increase voting access and transparency. The SJC issued an order approving the settlement and requiring the secretary of the commonwealth to submit the two delayed reports to the Court and the Legislature “[b]y no later than June 1, 2026.”

“This is a win for voting rights and for detained voters across Massachusetts,” said Brooke Simone, attorney at Lawyers for Civil Rights and lead counsel in the case. “The reports will show whether State and local officials are providing access to the ballot box for those in jail, as the Massachusetts Legislature intended. With this information, advocates can work more effectively to ensure that every eligible voter who wants to participate in our democratic process is given an opportunity.”

Passed in 2022, the VOTES Act places obligations on both correctional facilities and the secretary of the commonwealth to increase access to the ballot box for eligible people in jail, including those detained on misdemeanor charges and held pre-trial. A key component of the VOTES Act is the secretary’s reporting requirement, which provides transparency and accountability to ensure these obligations are met. The secretary is required to publish a report on jail voting that includes the number of eligible incarcerated voters — and how many voted or tried to vote — for every statewide election. The deadline for the first of these reports passed more than a year ago, and the secretary failed to submit anything, prompting the lawsuit.

“This settlement comes at a crucial time for the people of Massachusetts,” said Kate Uyeda, legal counsel for the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center. “Data about jail voting is often opaque and incredibly burdensome for advocates to gather. In 2022, Massachusetts worked to solve that by making data collection and reporting on jail voting legally required, but laws are only as strong as their implementation. We will now head into the midterms equipped with these reports detailing jail-based voting access and patterns, allowing us to ensure that the VOTES Act is fully implemented.”

“These reports will aid our efforts to ensure every eligible voter incarcerated in Massachusetts has the opportunity to participate in our collective democracy,” petitioner eleni kalfus stated. “Incarcerated organizers, who lead our movement, will be analyzing this data to determine how we can improve our voting initiatives.”

The secretary has also agreed to implement improvements to existing processes and mechanisms for data collection and analysis before the next applicable statewide election on September 1, 2026, to streamline his office’s future reporting.

“Having the Secretary’s guarantee that he will make changes moving forward is one of the most important pieces of this agreement,” stated petitioner Justin “Rico” Rodriguez. “The upcoming midterms will be critical for eligible incarcerated voters. We need to know how many people try to vote in September and November, and how many are successful. We also need to know how many are unsuccessful and why, so that we can address whatever needs to be addressed and so that all voices are equally heard and equally represented.”

The complaint that resulted in the favorable settlement was filed by Lawyers for Civil Rights and Campaign Legal Center in the state’s highest court last month, with pro bono support from Anderson & Kreiger and the Law Office of John Reinstein.

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The nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center advances democracy through law. We safeguard the freedom to vote, defend voters’ right to know who is spending money to influence elections, and work to ensure public trust in our elected officials.

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