Bill > H4108

This bill makes two key changes to Massachusetts election law regarding candidate deaths. First, it corrects a minor typographical error in an existing law, replacing the word "compromising" with "comprising" in Chapter 53. More substantively, the bill establishes a new procedure for situations where a candidate for state representative or state senator dies after the primary election but before the general election. Specifically, if such a candidate receives the most votes in the general election despite being deceased, the election will be considered a "failure to elect," and a new election will be held to fill the vacant position according to existing procedures in Chapter 54, Section 147. This provision aims to provide clear guidance for electoral processes in the unusual circumstance of a candidate dying after winning a primary but before completing the general election, ensuring that voters have a meaningful opportunity to choose their representative and that government positions are not left unfilled.

Government Affairs

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H4108