Think You Can Vote For President On Nov. 6? Think Again
Tewksbury has nearly 4,000 voters who are registered to vote but are presently considered inactive.
There are presently nearly 4,000 registered voters in Tewksbury who will not be able to vote in the Nov. 6 election unless they take additional steps.
According to Town Clerk Denise Graffeo, 3,978 of the town's 21,225 registered voters are presently considered to be "inactive" because they failed to return their 2012 Annual Town Census.
Graffeo said all voters on the "inactive" list were notified months ago and were given the chance to get back onto the active voting rolls.
"Any voter who does not respond to the annual census by the first Monday in June is made inactive and must be sent a confirmation notice by the Town Clerk," she said. "This mailing notifies the voter that their name has been removed from the active voting list and has been placed on the inactive voting list and provides the voter with an opportunity to activate themselves by signing the postage prepaid return card and returning it to this office."
Voters who have not yet filled out and returned the 2012 Town Census can still do so and be put back on the active voter list. Blank copies of the census can obtained on the Town Clerk website, or can printed out if a voter goes into the Town Clerk office.
According to Graffeo, "inactive" voters are not banned from voting on Election Day but it will take a little more time and effort and will likely slow down the voting process for all those in line. "Inactive" voters must provide ID matching the address listed on the Voter’s List as well as complete "an Affirmation form of Current and Continuous Residency."
"This takes the voter and warden time to complete, so we encourage all voters to complete a 2012 census form," said Graffeo.
If you are a Tewksbury resident and you are not yet registered to vote, you have until Oct. 17 to do so in order to vote in the Nov. 6 Election. You can register to vote by visiting the Town Clerk's office at Town Hall.
Town Clerk office hours are Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Office hours will be extended until 8 p.m. for voter registration on Oct. 17. Mail-In Voter Registration forms are available to download at the Town of Tewksbury’s website: http://www.tewksbury.net/Pages/TewksburyMA_Clerk/voterreg, and need to be postmarked no later than Oct. 17.
Kathleen Brothers
2:43 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
As a Warden at the Polls, I beg of you please fill out the card and become an active voter and be able to vote at the Polls on election day. It will save you time and your fellow voters time and the Poll workers time if you are ready to vote on November 6th. And if you don't know if you are on an active list call the Town Clerk to verify the situation.
Bob
3:23 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
I thought voter ID laws are unconstitutional? So it is OK to require a photo ID after marked inactive but not when signing up to register?
Am I the only one that sees the contradiction in this requirement and the liberal mantra against voter ID laws?
Dirk Anderson
3:29 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
FYI, though they claim everyone gets notified if they are made inactive, it is not necessarily the case. Fortunately when my wife went to vote last month she noticed my name was no longer on the list and I went to the Town Clerk and straightened it out. (Evidently we did not return the census). Had my wife not noticed, my basic right to vote would have been taken away.
In rebuttal to the previous comment though, I did not have to show ID
Theresa Gilman
4:33 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
I have been appalled, since I moved to this state, that the Powers That Be can basically take away your right to vote. For example, you'd not be allowed to vote if you were unknowingly inactive and had lost your Driver's License. That they can render you as an inactive VOTER because you failed to return a CENSUS is absolutely unconstitutional, and I would be delighted to be part of a class action suit against the state if anyone ever pursues this. When my Mom moved here, it happened to her and she's never voted since (out of pique). The Constitution guarantees an absolute right to vote for all citizens - nothing about unless we meet arbitrary requirements. Sorry for the length; this just makes my blood boil!
RunningGreen
5:11 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
How is it unconstitutional? By not returning your census, you have basically indicated to the town that you are no longer a member of the town. There is no record of you and without any word from you, the town clerk likely takes the position that you no longer reside in Tewksbury. Therefore, you are an inactive voter and cannot vote in the general election through Tewksbury.
Bob
6:16 pm on Thursday, October 11, 2012
The ID requirement was in the article.
Running - it was with tongue firmly in check. I have been told by others it is unconstitutional to require an ID. I have rebutted it many times.
malcolm nichols
9:06 am on Friday, October 12, 2012
Hmm, is voting a privilege, a right or an obligation? I'm not sure that a Town official may reject a State of Federal ballot.
Don Ordway
5:38 pm on Friday, October 12, 2012
LEGAL VOTERS I urge you to contact the Tewksbury Town Clerks Office immediately if you may have failed or neglected to return your town census form to the Town Clerks office. It may result in disqualifying you as a voter in the Nov. 6th election. Ask if you are a legal registered voter? Be certain all of the information on these forms is completed properly to the best of your knowledge or risk severe penalties under the law as stated on applicable forms. Voting represents a very important part of our freedom and the ways that we live our lives as Americans. The registration form and possibly others requires that we meet the standards outlined by the Office of the Massachusetts Secretary of State. After following this process you should be fine. Act without delay everything has deadlines.
Mark
9:05 am on Saturday, October 13, 2012
Voter ID laws are only unconstitutional when it suits the government.
If you support the democratc party in Massachusetts, or rather what is left of it, anyone with or without a pulse is acceptded.