Election day is here and there is a big race for the mayoral seat, but it comes with major oversight after Secretary William Galvin says his office was made aware of irregularities with absentee ballots and prompted him to call in the attorney general’s office and state police.
“We have a lot of people on the ground in Lawrence today at every polling place observing it, we’re working in collaboration with Attorney General Campbell to review everything that’s occurring in Lawrence,” said Galvin at a polling location in Brighton on Tuesday.
Incumbent Mayor Brian De Pena sat down with Boston 25 News and said when he heard of the state’s move, he was on board, but was later made aware of community concern, which prompted him to file a complaint to the Department of Justice.
The document shared with Boston 25 News cites concerns like voter intimidation and improper conduct during early voting citing several incidents dating back to Oct. 25 and states that these issues were brought to the secretary of the commonwealth’s attention.
Boston 25 News also caught up with De Pena’s opponent Juan ‘Manny’ Gonzalez, who also shared his thoughts on the state’s oversight. “My concerns are less now that the state is here. I truly believe that it is going smoother. People are being held accountable, I believe in the process right now. I think it’s transparent and I think were going to be alright,” said Gonzalez.,
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