SAUGUS — Town Clerk Ellen Schena said the first chance to weigh in on 2020 presidential candidates won’t be enough to motivate town residents to break the 2016 presidential election voter turnout record.
March 3 is the presidential primary and voters can vote early on Feb. 24-28. The last day to register to vote is Feb. 12.
Early voting will take place in the Town Clerk’s office during regular Town Hall hours; Monday, 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, 8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, 8:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Absentee voting will remain the same as all past elections.
The state Legislature passed Massachusetts’ early voting law in 2016 and amended the law last December to permit five days of early voting for the presidential primary.
The last presidential election drew 14,600 out of almost 19,000 registered Saugus voters to the polls with the 76 percent turnout breaking previous local voting records.
Schena said presidential primaries typically draw 45-50 percent voter turnout compared to 30-35 percent in non-presidential election year primaries. She said 3,736 town residents opted to vote early in advance of the November, 2016 presidential election.
The convenience involved in early voting and the prospect of massive polling place lines motivated people to vote early over a 10-day period.
“On the last day, the line was out of my office, out of Town Hall, and down the street,” said Schena.
The March primary is the third opportunity since 2016 voters will have to vote early with early voting scheduled again before the Nov. 3 election. She said 2,000 town voters went to the polls early to cast ballots prior to the November 2018 election.
Republicans waded through a long list of candidate choices in the 2016 primary. This year, it’s local Democrats’ turn to weigh a wealth of choices.
Fifteen candidates’ names are listed on the Democratic presidential ballot with four listed on the Republican ballot. Four candidates for president are listed on the Green-Rainbow ballot and 10 on the Libertarian ballot.
In 2016 Republicans had 13 primary ballot choices while Democrats had four.
Early voting for the Nov. 3 election will be held Oct. 19-30. The Massachusetts Secretary of State’s Election Division website details voters’ options:
“You may cast your early ballot in person at any early voting location in your city or town. Early voting will be available in at least one location in your city or town, during your local election official’s regular business hours. Cities and towns may choose to have expanded hours and locations,” stated the website.
Voters may cast a ballot by mail by first submitting an early ballot application to local election officials. Early ballots will be mailed at the beginning of the early voting period, no earlier than Feb. 24.
“If you will be out of town on March 3rd, you have a disability, or you have a religious belief which prevents you from going to your polling place, you qualify for an absentee ballot. Absentee ballots are available sooner than early ballots,” the website stated.
Schena prefers to vote on election day, mostly because she is visiting town polling places as part of her job and finds it convenient to cast a ballot at her polling place — Precinct 3 on Chestnut Street — while she is making her rounds.
