Voter-History Records Request — Email Template

Send from: a campaign email account (e.g., jason@poulos.house or records@poulos.house). To: the clerk’s email from clerk_contacts.csv in this folder. Bcc the campaign for tracking. Personalization: swap the bracketed fields for each municipality before sending. Spelling the clerk’s name correctly matters — verify against the contacts file.

Subject: Public Records Request — Voter History Data for [Municipality]

Dear [Clerk’s Name or “Town Clerk”],

I am writing on behalf of Poulos for Massachusetts (FEC ID C00925479), the federal campaign committee for Jason Poulos, a candidate in the September 1, 2026 Democratic primary for the U.S. House seat representing the Massachusetts Fourth Congressional District.

The request. Under the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c. 66 § 10, I am respectfully requesting an electronic copy of the voter history records maintained by your office for all registered voters in [Municipality]. Specifically, for each registered voter, I am requesting:

• Voter ID (VRIS / SVRS identifier, if available)
• Last name, first name, middle name or initial
• Residential address (street number, street name, unit, ZIP)
• Date of registration
• Party enrollment
• Voter status (active / inactive)
• Election participation history — the list of elections (date and type — primary, general, municipal, special) in which the voter cast a ballot, including ballot type pulled where recorded for primaries

I understand that under M.G.L. c. 51 § 47C the statutorily enumerated recipients of the full annual street list and registered voter list are limited to state, county, ward, and town committees; candidates for state, county, and municipal office; certain elected officials; and political committees organized under M.G.L. c. 55. As a federal congressional campaign we are not among the enumerated recipients, but voter registration and voter history information are public records subject to disclosure under c. 66 § 10, and I understand many town clerks routinely furnish this information to requesters in electronic form.

Format. A CSV or other delimited text export from your VRIS / SVRS extract would be ideal. If your office’s standard export format is a fixed-width file, PDF, or paper printout, that is also acceptable — we will work with whatever format is most efficient for your staff.

Use restrictions. The data will be used solely for non-commercial campaign purposes — voter contact, scoring, and turnout modeling for the 2026 primary and general elections. We will not resell, redistribute, or use the data for any commercial solicitation, in accordance with M.G.L. c. 56 § 47 and the standard terms governing release of voter records.

Fees. We are prepared to pay the statutory copy and staff-time fees authorized under 950 CMR 32.06 and any local public-records-request fee schedule your office has adopted. Please send an itemized fee estimate before you begin work if the cost will exceed $25, and we will remit payment by check or as your office prefers.

Delivery. Email attachment to this address is preferred. If the file is too large for email, we are happy to provide a secure upload link, pick the file up on a USB drive at your office during business hours, or receive it by mail at the address below.

Statutory timeline. I understand the 10-business-day response window under M.G.L. c. 66 § 10(b). If you anticipate needing additional time or cannot fulfill the request as scoped, I would welcome a brief call to discuss what is feasible — we are flexible on scope and format and want to make this as easy on your office as possible.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me directly at the phone number or email below with any questions.

Thank you for your time and for your service to the residents of [Municipality].

Sincerely,

Jason Poulos Candidate, U.S. House — Massachusetts 4th Congressional District Poulos for Massachusetts (FEC C00925479) 33 Everett Street, Sherborn, MA 01770 jason@poulos.house · poulos.house [Phone number]

Notes for the sender

• Cite c. 66 § 10, not c. 51 § 47C. § 47C limits the full street list and full voter list to a closed set of state/local political actors. § 66 § 10 is the public records statute and is the correct hook for non-statutory requesters. Several clerks may push back; the language above acknowledges the distinction up front so the request reads as informed and good-faith rather than as someone trying to claim § 47C standing they don’t have.
• Some clerks will simply say no. That is their discretion for some fields (e.g., date of birth is generally restricted; M.G.L. c. 51 § 4 protects DOB from public disclosure). If a clerk refuses, ask whether they will release a narrower scope — voter history alone, without the full registration record — and accept what they offer.
• Fee guidance. 950 CMR 32.06 caps staff time at the lowest-paid employee capable of doing the work, after the first 4 hours (free for non-commercial requests under §10(d)(iv)). Most clerks should be able to run a VRIS export in well under 4 hours, so most requests should be free. If a clerk quotes a high fee, push back politely with the regulation cite.
• Do not request data from VoteBuilder / VAN sources via clerks. The state party’s VoteBuilder file is governed by separate access rules through MassDems; clerks don’t have the authority to release that. The request above is for the municipal voter file extract that each clerk independently maintains.
• Tracking. Log every request sent and every response received in a shared spreadsheet (date sent, clerk, response date, outcome, file received). After 10 business days with no response, send a polite follow-up referencing the original request date and the §10(b) timeline.
• If a clerk asks “why doesn’t the state party just give you this?” — the honest answer is that congressional campaigns negotiate VAN access through the state party but the underlying voter history at the municipal level can be more current than the periodic statewide refresh, and some clerks maintain richer local-election history (town meetings, override votes) that doesn’t make it to the statewide file. Either answer is fine.