If you are planning to post a photo of your marked ballot today, know that Massachusetts has a law against letting anyone see how you marked it. Under G.L. c. 56, § 25, a voter who “allows the marking of his ballot to be seen by any person for any purpose not authorized by law” can be punished by up to six months in jail or a $100 fine. The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office has said that covers ballot selfies.
A federal appeals court struck down New Hampshire’s ballot selfie ban in 2016, and that court also covers Massachusetts. But that ruling was about New Hampshire’s statute. We found no reported court challenge to the Massachusetts law. Here is what the law says, how it has been read, and how to share that you voted without risk.
What the Massachusetts law says
We read both sections at malegislature.gov.
- Showing your own ballot. Section 25 of chapter 56 applies to “Whoever, at a primary, caucus or election, places any distinguishing mark upon his ballot, … or allows the marking of his ballot to be seen by any person for any purpose not authorized by law.” The penalty is “imprisonment for not more than six months or by a fine of not more than one hundred dollars.”
- Asking someone else to show theirs. Section 29 punishes anyone who “endeavors to induce a voter, before depositing his ballot, to disclose how he marks or has marked it.” That carries a fine of up to $500 or up to one year in jail. The same section bars hindering, delaying or interfering with a voter on the way to vote or while voting.
The “purpose not authorized by law” language leaves room for help the law allows, such as assistance for a voter who needs help marking a ballot. A photo posted to social media is not one of those purposes.
How the state has read it
In 2014, a spokesman for Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin told Boston.com that, as worded, the law forbids taking a photo of a ballot and posting it to social media where others can see it. “We tell people not to do it,” he said. “It is against the law.” We are not aware of a later statement from the office changing that position.
Prosecutions appear to be rare or nonexistent. In the same 2014 report, a spokesperson for the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association said she was not aware of any case prosecuted on these grounds in her 12 years on the job. That is not a promise about the future, and the law is still on the books.
Why the New Hampshire ruling does not settle it
In Rideout v. Gardner, 838 F.3d 65 (1st Cir. 2016), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, which hears federal appeals from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island and Puerto Rico, struck down New Hampshire’s 2014 amendment. That law expressly banned “taking a digital image or photograph of his or her marked ballot and distributing or sharing the image via social media or by any other means,” with a fine of up to $1,000.
The court affirmed “on the narrower ground that the statute as amended fails to meet the test for intermediate scrutiny under the First Amendment and that the statute’s purposes cannot justify the restrictions it imposes on speech.” New Hampshire had defended the law as a way to keep new technology from making vote buying and voter coercion easier.
The Massachusetts statute is older and worded differently. It does not mention photographs, and it was not part of that case. A Massachusetts voter charged under § 25 could raise Rideout as a defense, but no court has ruled on whether it applies to this law, as far as we found. Until a court does, the safest reading is the state’s own: do not show your marked ballot.
What you can do instead
- Post a photo of your “I Voted” sticker, or of yourself outside the polling place.
- Say how you voted in words. The statute is about letting your marked ballot be seen, not about telling people your choices.
- Do not photograph anyone else, their ballot or the check-in list. Other voters have a right to a secret ballot.
- Do not ask friends to send you pictures of their marked ballots before they cast them. Section 29 covers that.
What about a mail ballot at home?
Section 25 applies to conduct “at a primary, caucus or election.” It does not say whether that reaches a mail ballot marked at the kitchen table, and we found no court decision answering it. The vote-buying concern behind the law is the same either way, so the cautious course is not to post a photo of a marked mail ballot either.
For poll hours, ID rules and your rights at the polls, see our Election Day voter guide.
Frequently asked questions
Are ballot selfies illegal in Massachusetts?
The Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office has said yes. G.L. c. 56, § 25 makes it a crime to allow the marking of your ballot to be seen by any person for a purpose not authorized by law, punishable by up to six months in jail or a $100 fine.
Has anyone been prosecuted for a ballot selfie in Massachusetts?
We found no reported case. In 2014 the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association’s spokesperson said she knew of none in 12 years.
Didn’t a court strike down ballot selfie bans?
The First Circuit struck down New Hampshire’s ban in Rideout v. Gardner, 838 F.3d 65 (2016). That case did not involve the Massachusetts statute, and no court has ruled on whether the Massachusetts law survives the same reasoning, as far as we found.
Can I take a picture inside my polling place?
No Massachusetts statute we found bans all photography at the polls, but you may not show your marked ballot, and you should not photograph other voters or their ballots.
Can I tell people who I voted for?
Yes. The law bars letting your marked ballot be seen, not talking about your choices.
Sources: G.L. c. 56, §§ 25 and 29, read at malegislature.gov on November 3, 2026; Boston.com, September 22, 2014 (statements of the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s office and the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association); Rideout v. Gardner, 838 F.3d 65 (1st Cir. 2016), read on CourtListener. General information, not legal advice.