How Do I Vote?

This page answers some common questions, like:

What is a “polling place?”
It is a place where registered voters go to vote on election days. Other names for a polling place are: “a polling location,” “the polls,” and just “polls.” Brockton has 28 polling places all over the city.

Polling places are always in buildings that residents already know about ... like libraries, schools, senior housing, and the senior center.

All polling places are easy to get to by people who are in wheelchairs. It's the law. People who cannot walk well can also get to the polling places easily. Brockton's polling places now have voting machines for people who are blind.
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How will I know where to vote?
The Elections Commission in City Hall will tell you when you register to vote.

You can also call the Elections Commission at 508-580-7117 and ask.

You can also go online to the official web site of the City of Brockton: www.brockton.ma.us. Look on the right for “Where do I vote?” Click on that link. Type in your address.
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How will I know when to vote?
The Elections Commission puts a notice about voting in The Enterprise newspaper.

On election day, EVERY polling place in the city puts a sign out front that tells voters that voting is going on there all day.

Also on election day, the city puts out some signs on “election sandwich boards.” The signs say VOTE TODAY in 5 languages. Look on street corners for these “sandwich boards.”

The polls are open for 13 hours.
This helps everyone find a time to go vote: before work or school, during lunch hour, after work or school, or before a night shift.

EVERY polling place is open from 7:00 in the morning until 8:00 at night. It's the law.
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Does voting take a long time?
Polling places often have lines in the early morning, at Noon, and after work. If you will be in a hurry, try to vote at other times.

If the ballot has a lot of names to read, voting can take more than a few minutes.

The 2007 “Preliminary” ballot for September 18 is very short. It has only the names of the 3 candidates who are running for mayor. (View a sample ballot.)
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What is the “Preliminary?”
It is an election to choose just 2 winning candidates from all the candidates who are running for an office. Some election years do not have a Preliminary.

If there is a Preliminary, it is in September before the November General Election. In 2007, Brockton has a Preliminary on September 18 because 3 candidates want to be mayor. The winners will be on the ballot on November 6.
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What is a polling place like?
Every polling place is a place where every voter has privacy and security to vote the way he or she wants to vote.

Inside, no one may wear campaign buttons. No one may show information to anyone about any candidate. It's the law.

Outside, people must carry their signs about different candidates 150 feet away from where people are walking in to vote. It's the law. There are almost no exceptions.

Outside every polling place, the Elections Commission ALWAYS posts a ballot that looks just like the ballot voters use to vote. The ballot that is outside has the word “SPECIMEN” stamped in large letters on it.

No one can use the SPECIMEN ballot to vote. You can stop to study this SPECIMEN ballot before you go in to vote.

At some polling places, there is a second SPECIMEN ballot. It is posted lower ... at the height for people who are in wheel chairs.
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What people are at the polling places?
There is a police officer on duty. The officer makes sure that no one carries any signs or information about candidates into or near the polling place.

The officer supervises the final voting-machine count when the polls close at 8:00 PM.

There might be a “checker.” A checker sits outside the voting area and listens to the names of voters who are checking in.

Checkers work for the candidates. Candidates often want to know if their supporters are voting. The law says they can sit and listen, but checkers may not talk to the poll workers or to the voters in the voting area.
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Do I need to bring an ID with me to vote?
Not usually. These are the reasons you do need an ID:
  • If you registered by mail and are voting for the first time;
  • If this is the first time you are voting in Massachusetts.
  • If you have not voted for a long time.
If you forget to bring an ID, tell a poll worker. You can mark a ballot, but you will put the ballot inside an envelope and give it to a poll worker. The poll worker will wait for you to return.

If you come back to the polls with an ID before 8:00 PM, you can check in, slide your ballot into the voting machine and check out. Then your vote will be counted.
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Here's how to vote:
Briefly:
  1. Check in and get a ballot.
  2. Vote.
  3. Check out.
  4. Slide your ballot into the voting machine with your own hands.
Step-by-step “walk-thru”:
  1. When you walk in, two poll workers will be sitting at a table in front of you or to one side.

    One poll worker will ask FIRST for your address, THEN for your name. All voters are listed by their street addresses.

    This poll worker must, by law, say your name quite loudly when you check in. There are 2 very good reasons why voters' names are read loudly.

    The other poll worker will give you a ballot and ask if you know how to mark your ballot.

    You do not need to remember which political party you chose when you registered. It is next to your name on the voting list.

    In a general election, the poll worker will give you the ballot for the party you chose. If you registered as "Unenrolled," you can choose which ballot to take. You will be “Unenrolled” again after you vote.

    If you want to change your party, you can do that at anytime at the Elections Commission office, but you cannot change your party when you check in.

    For some elections, everyone gets the same ballot.

  2. Choose which voting booth you want to use. Go behind the curtain. Use ONLY the marker that is already in the voting booth, and mark your ballot.

    If you want to, you can write in someone's name who is not on the ballot. Write the name on the blank line AND ALSO fill in the oval at the end of the line. The Accu-Vote machine will read the oval; the poll workers will read the name you wrote in.

    What if I want some help reading and marking the ballot?
    • You can bring a relative or a friend with you into the voting booth.
    • You can bring a print-out of the SAMPLE ballot from the city's website. You cannot show your SAMPLE ballot to anyone in the polling place or near it.
    • You can bring a piece of paper that has the names of the candidates on it whom you want to vote for. You cannot show your paper with a name or names on it to anyone in or near the polling place.
    • You can ask the poll workers for help. If you ask for help, two poll workers always go into the voting booth with you. This is your guarantee that no one will try to persuade you to vote for one candidate or the other.
    You can change your mind about a candidate. You might make a mistake. No problem. Tell a poll worker that want a new ballot. The law says that you can have up to 2 new ballots, so do not try to erase a mark or cross out a vote. The poll worker will take your old ballot and give you a new one.

  3. When you are finished voting, go to the next table to “check out.” Do not give your ballot to the poll worker. Just like check-in, the poll worker will ask FIRST for your address, and THEN for your name. Again, the poll worker will say your name quite loudly.

  4. The last thing to do is to slide your ballot into the slot on top of the voting machine. You do this yourself. It is your right and your privilege. It doesn't matter which end of the ballot you put in first. Turn your ballot face down so that no one will see your votes.

    There will be a poll worker standing near the voting machine. Do not show your ballot to the poll worker. The poll worker is there to be sure voters know how to slide their ballots into the slot and also to help if, for example, the machine does not accept the ballot.
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Why didn't the voting machine take my ballot?
The poll worker will read the reason why in a window on the machine and tell you. Sometimes a voter fills in too many ovals. Maybe you will need to mark another ballot. Maybe you will just need to slide your ballot into the slot again.
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How does the voting machine count votes?
After the polls close, the Accu-Vote machine runs a paper tape that shows all the votes for all the candidates. Poll workers post these results right away near the SPECIMEN ballot for anyone to look at.
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Why do Check-In and Check-Out poll workers read voters' names so loudly?
  • Because “checkers” from the candidates are allowed to hear who has voted, and the checkers sit outside the voting area.
  • From “the old days,” saying someone's name loudly made sure that the person checking in or checking out REALLY WAS that person. Today, if the voter is not that person, someone might say, “Hey, that's not Joe!” or “That's not Josephine!”
  • It is another guarantee that every voter votes at only one place and only one time in each election.
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