The U.S. Department of Justice will station poll monitors in Boston and Lowell on Election Day, November 3, 2026, Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin told WBUR. Galvin said the monitors will check that polling places provide required language services and are accessible to voters with disabilities. “It’s nothing new. It has happened under every administration,” he said, while adding that he understands why some residents may be wary this year.
Here is what Galvin said, what federal law says about who can watch the polls, and the Massachusetts rules that apply to anyone inside a polling place.
What Galvin said
- The purpose. “The federal observers will be there to verify these are in fact being made available to voters, that the polling locations are accessible, and if there’s language issues, that there’s services for them, whether it be a ballot printed in their language or translation services,” Galvin told WBUR.
- The national effort. The Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said on social media that it planned to send 1,000 observers to polls across the country, and Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon called it “the largest monitoring effort” in the department’s history, WBUR reported.
- His concerns. Galvin pointed to “the actions of the Justice Department that in many cases seem to be hostile to the rights of voters,” adding, “that’s not imaginary.” He said he is still confident working with the department, has long worked with election monitors, and that federal officials have visited Boston and Lowell in past elections.
- The limit. Galvin said anyone can observe the precincts, but no one can interfere with the voting process.
Observers versus monitors under federal law
The Justice Department uses two kinds of election-day presence, according to the Civil Rights Division’s own description of the program:
- Federal observers. Under the Voting Rights Act, 52 U.S.C. § 10305(a), observers recruited by the Office of Personnel Management can be assigned when a federal court has authorized them, or when the Attorney General certifies a jurisdiction covered by the Act’s preclearance formula. Since the Supreme Court’s 2013 Shelby County decision, the Division says it “is not relying on the AG certifications as a basis for sending federal observers,” and uses OPM observers only “where there is a court order.”
- Division monitors. In other places, “one or more attorneys and staff members from the Division may be assigned to monitor the election in the field on election day and maintain contact with state and local officials,” the Division says.
WBUR’s report does not say which kind will be in Boston and Lowell, or whether any court order applies.
Federal law also protects voters from anyone, monitors included. Under 52 U.S.C. § 10307(b), “no person, whether acting under color of law or otherwise, shall intimidate, threaten, or coerce” anyone for voting or attempting to vote.
The Massachusetts rules inside the polling place
- No interference with voters. G.L. c. 56, § 29 punishes anyone who “wilfully and without lawful authority hinders, delays or interferes with” a voter on the way to vote, inside the guard rail, or while marking a ballot, or who tries to get a voter to reveal how they voted. The penalty is a fine of up to $500 or up to a year in jail.
- No campaigning near the door. Under G.L. c. 54, § 65, no poster, card, handbill or other material “intended to influence the action of the voter” may be displayed or handed out in the polling place, in the building, on its grounds, or “within one hundred and fifty feet of the building entrance door.”
- Police at every polling building. G.L. c. 54, § 72 requires each city and town to assign enough police officers or constables to each polling building “to preserve order and to protect the election officers and supervisors from any interference with their duties.”
- Challenges go through the warden. If a voter’s right to vote is challenged, G.L. c. 54, § 85 requires the presiding officer to administer an oath; the voter then writes their name and address on the ballot, and the ballot “shall be received.”
Frequently asked questions
Will there be federal poll monitors in Massachusetts on Election Day 2026?
Yes. Secretary William Galvin told WBUR that the U.S. Justice Department will station monitors in Boston and Lowell on November 3, 2026, to check language services and accessibility.
Can poll monitors interfere with voting?
No. Galvin said anyone can observe but no one can interfere. Federal law bars anyone, whether acting under color of law or not, from intimidating or coercing voters, and G.L. c. 56, § 29 makes it a crime in Massachusetts to hinder or interfere with a voter.
What should I do if someone interferes with my vote?
Tell the warden or presiding election officer at your polling place. Every Massachusetts polling building is required to have police or constables assigned to keep order.
Sources: WBUR, October 27, 2026; U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, “About Federal Observers and Election Monitoring,” read at justice.gov. 52 U.S.C. §§ 10305 and 10307 read at Cornell’s Legal Information Institute. G.L. c. 54, §§ 65, 72 and 85 and c. 56, § 29 read at malegislature.gov. General information, not legal advice.