Voters in 16 states, including Massachusetts and American Samoa, are casting their ballots on Super Tuesday — the largest single voting day in the primary calendar. While most polls in the state opened at 7 a.m., Massachusetts election officials said many Independent voters have already voted early, and that means interest in this election season is high.Secretary of State Bill Galvin said strong feelings about Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are leading voters to the polls.Super Tuesday: Voter guide | What’s at stake? | Backward ballot colors | Turnout historyAbout 60 percent of Massachusetts voters are registered as independent. Political experts said those voters may give Republican Nikki Haley a boost in the Bay State. Haley has only won a single primary in Washington, D.C.“I’m cautiously optimistic we’ll go over a million by the end of the day,” said Secretary of State Bill Galvin.Galvin cast his primary vote in Brighton Tuesday morning. “At this point, over 365,000 Democratic ballots have been cast by mail, and over 175,000 Republican ballots, which is remarkable in a sense because Republicans have been reluctant to vote by mail in the past,” Galvin said Tuesday morning.Galvin said turnout for the primary is significantly higher compared to the reelection years for both presidents Barack Obama and Trump. After a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision to keep Trump on the ballot in states that challenged him, it sends a resounding message the future of the country, is in the hands of the voters.“I think while there may not be a tremendous amount of enthusiasm for the major candidates in both parties, I still think there’s a realization of how important this is,” Galvin said. Some voters said they wish there were better options.“I wish there were more people honestly on both sides to give us a better choice,” one voter said. “I voted for Joe Biden. I think he’s doing a good job and I’m not comfortable with Trump,” another voter said. “I voted for Nikki Haley because I’m not really a fan of Trump and not really a fan of Biden either,” another voter said. Galvin said there were a few hiccups Tuesday morning. A power outage in one polling location, and an issue with a locked door in another. But both were resolved quickly, and no one was turned away.Nearly 2,300 delegates will be awarded across both parties — 854 for Republicans and 1,420 for Democrats.A candidate would need more than 70 percent of their party’s delegates to clinch the nomination. Voters in all Super Tuesday states will see Trump’s name on their ballots after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected Colorado’s attempts to remove Trump from the ballot, citing the 14th Amendment’s Insurrection Clause. The ruling also ended similar efforts in Illinois and Maine.The Supreme Court said it’s up to Congress to enforce that clause, not the states. Haley campaigned Monday night in Texas, where she was hoping to spark a bit of momentum. Her supporters say they want her in this race, however polls suggest Trump is on track to sweep Tuesday’s contests. Biden is not on the campaign trail, but his biggest rival may not even be a candidate.Activists in Massachusetts want Democrats to use the “No Preference” option to put pressure on Biden to end fighting in Gaza. Polling places are open to 8 p.m. Local polling places can be found using the Secretary of State’s website.
Voters in 16 states, including Massachusetts and American Samoa, are casting their ballots on Super Tuesday — the largest single voting day in the primary calendar.
While most polls in the state opened at 7 a.m., Massachusetts election officials said many Independent voters have already voted early, and that means interest in this election season is high.
Secretary of State Bill Galvin said strong feelings about Donald Trump and President Joe Biden are leading voters to the polls.
Super Tuesday: Voter guide | What’s at stake? | Backward ballot colors | Turnout history
About 60 percent of Massachusetts voters are registered as independent. Political experts said those voters may give Republican Nikki Haley a boost in the Bay State. Haley has only won a single primary in Washington, D.C.
“I’m cautiously optimistic we’ll go over a million by the end of the day,” said Secretary of State Bill Galvin.
Galvin cast his primary vote in Brighton Tuesday morning.
“At this point, over 365,000 Democratic ballots have been cast by mail, and over 175,000 Republican ballots, which is remarkable in a sense because Republicans have been reluctant to vote by mail in the past,” Galvin said Tuesday morning.
Galvin said turnout for the primary is significantly higher compared to the reelection years for both presidents Barack Obama and Trump. After a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court decision to keep Trump on the ballot in states that challenged him, it sends a resounding message the future of the country, is in the hands of the voters.
“I think while there may not be a tremendous amount of enthusiasm for the major candidates in both parties, I still think there’s a realization of how important this is,” Galvin said.
Some voters said they wish there were better options.
“I wish there were more people honestly on both sides to give us a better choice,” one voter said.
“I voted for Joe Biden. I think he’s doing a good job and I’m not comfortable with Trump,” another voter said.
“I voted for Nikki Haley because I’m not really a fan of Trump and not really a fan of Biden either,” another voter said.
Galvin said there were a few hiccups Tuesday morning. A power outage in one polling location, and an issue with a locked door in another. But both were resolved quickly, and no one was turned away.
Nearly 2,300 delegates will be awarded across both parties — 854 for Republicans and 1,420 for Democrats.
A candidate would need more than 70 percent of their party’s delegates to clinch the nomination.
Voters in all Super Tuesday states will see Trump’s name on their ballots after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected Colorado’s attempts to remove Trump from the ballot, citing the 14th Amendment’s Insurrection Clause.
The ruling also ended similar efforts in Illinois and Maine.
The Supreme Court said it’s up to Congress to enforce that clause, not the states.
Haley campaigned Monday night in Texas, where she was hoping to spark a bit of momentum. Her supporters say they want her in this race, however polls suggest Trump is on track to sweep Tuesday’s contests.
Biden is not on the campaign trail, but his biggest rival may not even be a candidate.
Activists in Massachusetts want Democrats to use the “No Preference” option to put pressure on Biden to end fighting in Gaza.
Polling places are open to 8 p.m. Local polling places can be found using the Secretary of State’s website.