Secretary of State William Galvin’s office is still in the process of investigating Boston’s election division and he has not yet decided whether to appoint a receiver to seize control of the city’s elections, after an issue with Boston’s ballots last November.

Galvin held a press conference that month at which he said he would most likely appoint a receiver after some city polling locations did not have enough ballots during Election Day, causing the secretary’s office to send police cars, sirens blaring, to rush extra ballots to those locations.
“It’s about the voters’ rights, which we want to protect,” Galvin said at the time.

Two months later, the News Service asked the secretary’s office if it had named a receiver. “The investigation is ongoing, so no receiver has been appointed. Generally, that is something that is recommended or not recommended based on the conclusion of the investigation,” responded Deb O’Malley, a spokesperson for Galvin.

She said that Boston has been “responsive” in providing the information that the secretary’s office has asked for, but they still have more materials to collect for the ongoing investigation.

2025 is an important election year for the city. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu is running for reelection, as are other municipal officials down-ballot.

“While the investigative process is ongoing, the Elections Division is also working with the Boston Elections Department to review their policies and procedures “ahead of the upcoming elections,” O’Malley said.