Keller @ Large: Massachusetts secretary of state candidate Tanisha Sullivan wants to take make the office more "proactive"
BOSTON -- Massachusetts secretary of state candidate Tanisha Sullivan joined Jon Keller to discuss key topics in the upcoming election. Sullivan is an attorney and a past president of the Boston chapter of the NAACP.
Incumbent William Galvin did not respond to requests from Keller to join.
The winner of the race between Sullivan and Galvin will face presumptive Republican nominee Rayla Campbell.
"The fact of the matter is that in 2022, our democracy is in crisis," said Sullivan. "This moment demands more from the office of secretary of state. It can no longer be simply an office that is administrative and transactional. This office must take a more active, proactive role in helping to increase voter participation, helping to tackle economic inequality, helping to ensure that our government is more transparent."
According to Sullivan, Massachusetts ranks 28th in voter registration and there are large gaps based on economic status.
"Massachusetts is the least transparent state in the country. We are the birthplace of democracy and yet here in Massachusetts our governor, our state legislature, our state judiciary remain exempt from public records disclosure," Sullivan added.
"We need public policy to be debated in the public square. That's not happening today. So as secretary of state, I will fight vigorously to remove the blanket exemption that exists across our state legislature, state judiciary, and governor's offices, and look to ensure that when it comes to public records and public information that we in the public actually have access to it."
Another issue that Sullivan pledged to be proactive about is abortion.
Watch Part Two:
Sullivan said she would take action to implement same-day voter registration because it is "one of the most important voting rights if we are ever going to increase voter participation rate" and something that Galvin has not done during his 27-year tenure.
"We also need to take note of the fact that over the last 27 years, Bill Galvin has repeatedly been sued by voting rights organizations and civil rights organizations. He has been brought to task by the Department of Justice for his failure to implement federal election laws, for his failure to actually help us advance voting laws here in Massachusetts," she said.
