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Elections

Access to Voter Information

Election officials work hard to make sure every voter’s personal information is kept secure. At the same time, certain public records must be open to public inspection, to ensure transparent and fair elections.

This page provides information about:

  • What voter information is public
  • What information is kept is confidential
  • How public election records can be accessed
  • What our office is doing to keep your private information secure

Public Voter Records

Under the state election laws and the Massachusetts Public Records Law, most voter and election records are public and can be requested from local election offices.

The public voter list includes, for each voter:

  • Name
  • Address
  • Party
  • Date of Birth
  • Active/Inactive status
  • Voter ID number

A voter ID number is a unique identifier used to track each voter in the state voter database. It is not used for any other purpose, and is not considered personally identifiable information (PII).

The voter list can be requested as a paper voter list or an electronic voter file. The Public Records Law allows the election office to charge only for the cost of producing the record.

Additional records are also available, upon request. Public information in your voter record includes:

  • Elections in which you have voted
  • Previous changes to your voter record
  • Mailing address
  • Date of registration
  • Date of inactivity

Voter records, including voter registration forms, ballot applications, and voter lists, are kept in the custody of local election officials. To request any someone’s voter records, contact their local election office.

Non-Public Information

Records are generally public unless the law allows them to be withheld for a specific reason. Voter information that may be withheld includes:

  • Phone number
  • Email address
  • Veteran status
  • Permanent absentee voter status
  • Records relating to confidential voters
  • Records relating to minors (for residents and pre-registrants)

Public voter files provided to campaigns and other requesters do not include any of the above non-public information.

Our office does not provide voter phone numbers to campaigns, but campaigns often supplement public voter lists with contact information purchased or obtained from third parties.

Confidential Voters

State law allows certain people to register to vote confidentially, to protect their address from being released to the public. A confidential voter’s information is not entered in the state voter database and is not included on any public voter lists, reports, or extracts.

All records relating to a confidential voter’s registration are kept in a secure location by their local election official. On the voter list, a special confidential voter number is used in place of the voter’s name and address.

You may qualify to register as a confidential voter if you:

If you believe you qualify to be a confidential voter, contact your local election office for more information.

State Voter File Requests

Under state law, the statewide list of registered voters is not a public record. This state voter file is only available to statewide campaigns and political parties.

Any statewide campaign seeking access to the voter file must sign a licensing agreement, which prohibits them from sharing or selling the information.

The state voter file includes only information that is already publicly available from local election offices.

Candidates who do not qualify to receive the state voter file may request municipal voter files from the individual cities and towns in their district.

Litigation Relating to the State Voter File

Recently, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office, demanding access to all of the information contained in the state voter database. This information would include private information of all Massachusetts voters and residents.

The Secretary has asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit. Read our Memorandum of Support of the Motion to Dismiss here.