Political parties and political designations in Massachusetts facts for kids

In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, which is a U.S. state, people can join different groups when they register to vote. There are three main political parties and many other political designations. Voters can also choose to be "unenrolled voters," which means they are independent and don't belong to any party or designation.

Political parties are big groups that hold special elections called primary elections to choose their candidates. Political designations are smaller groups. They don't hold primary elections. A designation is a short name, usually one to three words, that can appear next to a candidate's name on election ballots.

What Are Political Parties and Designations?

In Massachusetts, a group needs to meet certain rules to be called a political party. For example, they must get at least 3% of the votes in a statewide election. Or, at least 1% of all registered voters must join their group.

If a group wants to be a political designation, it's a bit easier. Fifty registered voters just need to send a document to the state asking for this status.

When you see a ballot, it shows the candidate's name. Next to it, you'll see if they belong to a political party or a designation. Even some designations might have the word "party" in their name. As of 2023, only three groups are officially recognized as political parties in Massachusetts:

• The Republican Party
• The Democratic Party
• The Libertarian Party

Joining a Party or Being Independent

When people register to vote in Massachusetts, they have three choices:

• They can join a political party.
• They can join a political designation.
• They can choose to be an unenrolled voter, meaning they are independent.

Voters can change their choice by telling their election official. They need to do this at least ten days before an election.

Everyone who is registered can vote in general elections. But for primary elections, it's a bit different. If you are part of a political party, you can only vote in that party's primary. You can't vote in another party's primary.

However, if you are an "unenrolled" voter, you get to choose! You can vote in any one of the party primaries. People who are part of a political designation are treated like "unenrolled" voters for primaries. So, they can also pick which party's primary they want to vote in.

Political designations are created when 50 registered voters ask the Secretary of the Commonwealth to allow people to register under that name. These smaller groups can have candidates run for statewide office. But their candidates need to collect a lot of signatures (10,000) to get on the ballot.

Most political designations have only a small number of members. Still, they sometimes get attention from the news.

Current Parties and Designations in Massachusetts

As of 2023, the Secretary of the Commonwealth lists three official political parties and many official political designations in Massachusetts.

Learn More About Elections

• List of elections in Massachusetts
• Political party strength in Massachusetts