Availability

Nomination papers are available from the Secretary of State and may be requested in person, by telephone or mail. Some local clerks and election commissioners in the district may also have nomination papers available. Call the Elections Division to request papers or find out whether they are available in the district. Please be aware that nomination papers for unenrolled candidates are available only at the Elections Division at the Boston office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The law allows a candidate to make exact copies of blank nomination papers in order to gather additional signatures. However, do not alter the nomination papers in any way. Additional markings on the papers may disqualify any signatures contained thereon.

File Early

Nomination papers must be submitted to the local board of registrars or election commission for the certification of names. It is advisable to deliver the papers by hand to ensure their timely delivery. The local board of registrars or election commissioners must complete their certification of names 24 hours prior to the filing deadline with the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The signatures of at least three members of the board of registrars or election commission must appear next to the number of certified signatures.

Nomination papers must be picked up from the board of registrars or election commission after certification and filed with the Secretary of the Commonwealth prior to the deadline in the special election calendar. Papers sent by mail and received in the Elections Division after the deadline will not be accepted even if they were postmarked before the deadline time and date.

Signature Procedures

The procedures described below are essentially the same for both party and unenrolled candidates' nomination papers.

To be certified, all signatures on nomination papers must be:

1. Legible
2. Signed with the name of the voter substantially as registered and
3. Include the complete address at which the voter is registered.

• The law allows a voter to insert or omit a middle name or initial.
• According to the law, a name should be considered signed substantially as registered if the registrars can reasonably determine the identity of the voter from the form of the signature.
• A married woman should sign “Helen Smith,” not “Mrs. John Smith.”
• To avoid legal objections, it is wise to consult a voting list if available to ensure that the voter signs substantially as registered. Avoid the use of a nickname and/or initials whenever possible.
• Each candidate may receive one voters' list from each city or town in the district at no cost.
• Voters who are uncertain of the way they are registered may sign in different ways on consecutive lines (with address each time) and the registrar will certify only the valid name.
• No person may sign for another person unless authorized to do so by a voter who is physically disabled and unable to sign personally. A signature not made by the actual voter is subject to challenge.
• A husband may not sign for a wife and a wife may not sign for a husband unless one spouse is physically disabled.
• A voter may sign once for each candidate for office. If a voter signs more than once for the same candidate, that voter's name will be certified only once.

Signature Checklists

Only one city or town on each nomination paper

Each page of the nomination papers should contain signatures of registered voters from only one city or town. District boundaries may be checked on the list of districts available from the Secretary of the Commonwealth.

Make sure signatures are legitimate

Since the local registrars of voters or election commissioners must certify each name as that of a registered voter in their jurisdiction, names from other communities will be disallowed. If a candidate is running for office in a district that crosses city or town lines, separate nomination papers should be circulated and submitted in each municipality. Refer to Signature Procedures for further signature regulations.