Title 17, Title 17: Elections

§ 2641. Warning and notice required; publication of warnings (a) The legislative body of a municipality shall warn a meeting by posting a warning and notice in at least two public places in the municipality, and in or near the town clerk’s office, not less than 30 nor more than 4…

§ 2642. Warning and notice contents (a)(1) The warning shall include the date and time of the election, location of the polling place or places, and the nature of the meeting or election. (2) It shall, by separate articles, specifically indicate the business to be transacted, to …

§ 2643. Special meetings (a) The legislative body may warn a special municipal meeting when it deems it necessary and shall call a special meeting on the application of five percent of the voters. A special meeting shall be warned within 60 days of receipt of the application by t…

§ 2644. Warnings The original warning for each municipal meeting shall be signed by a majority of the legislative body and shall be filed with the clerk and recorded before being posted. When all positions on the legislative body are vacant, warnings may be signed by the clerk. (…

§ 2645. Charters; adoption, repeal, or amendment; procedure (a) A municipality may propose to the General Assembly to adopt, repeal, or amend its charter by majority vote of the legal voters of the municipality present and voting at any annual or special meeting warned for that p…

§ 2645a. Chartered municipalities; vote to suspend charter authority and rely on general municipal law (a) A municipality may propose to suspend for not more than three years specific authority granted in the municipality’s charter and instead use later-enacted general municipal …

§ 2646. Town officers; qualification; election At the annual meeting, a town shall choose from among its registered voters the following town officers, who shall serve until the next annual meeting and until successors are chosen, unless otherwise provided by law: (1) A moderator…

§ 2646a. Town officers; town vote to allow election of nonresidents (a)(1) Notwithstanding section 2646 of this subchapter, a municipality may propose to allow individuals who are residents of the State, but not residents of the municipality, to be elected or appointed town offic…

§ 2647. Incompatible offices (a)(1) An auditor shall not be town clerk, town treasurer, selectboard member, first constable, collector of current or delinquent taxes, trustee of public funds, town manager, road commissioner, water commissioner, sewage system commissioner, sewage …

§ 2648. Exceptions Section 2647 of this title shall not apply to towns having not more than 25 legal voters, but in these towns an auditor shall not audit his or her own accounts kept and rendered in some other official capacity, nor shall the husband or wife of any town official…

§ 2649. Number of officers (a)(1) Each town shall have: (A) three selectboard members, unless additional selectboard members are elected under the provisions of section 2650 of this chapter; (B) three listers, unless additional listers are elected under the provisions of section …

§ 2650. Additional listers and selectboard members (a) Additional listers. A town may vote at a special or annual town meeting to elect two additional listers for terms of one year each. (b) Additional selectboard members. (1)(A) A town may vote at a special or annual town meetin…

§ 2651. Road and water commissioners; appointment, removal (a) Unless the town votes to elect road commissioners, the selectboard shall appoint forthwith one or two road commissioners and may remove from office a road commissioner appointed by them, for just cause after due notic…

§ 2651a. Constables; appointment; removal; elimination of office (a)(1) A town may vote by Australian ballot at an annual meeting to authorize the selectboard to appoint a first constable, and if needed a second constable, in which case at least a first constable shall be appoint…

§ 2651b. Elimination of office of auditor; appointment of public accountant (a)(1) A town may vote by ballot at an annual meeting to eliminate the office of town auditor. (2)(A) If a town votes to eliminate the office of town auditor, the selectboard shall contract with a public …

§ 2651c. Lack of elected lister; appointment of lister; elimination of office; hiring assessors (a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provisions of law to the contrary and except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, in the event the board of listers of a town falls below a m…

§ 2651d. Collector of delinquent taxes; appointment; removal (a)(1) A municipality may vote at an annual or special municipal meeting to authorize the legislative body to appoint a collector of delinquent taxes, who may be the municipal treasurer. (2) A collector of delinquent ta…

§ 2651e. Municipal clerk; appointment; removal (a)(1) A municipality may vote at an annual meeting to authorize the legislative body to appoint the municipal clerk. (2) A municipal clerk so appointed may be removed by the legislative body for just cause after notice and hearing. …

§ 2651f. Municipal treasurer; appointment; removal (a)(1) A municipality may vote at an annual meeting to authorize the legislative body to appoint the municipal treasurer. (2) A treasurer so appointed may be removed by the legislative body for just cause after notice and hearing…

§ 2652. Road and water commissioners The selectboard may and, when requested by at least five percent of the legal voters of a town at least 47 days prior to the annual town meeting, it shall insert in the warning for the annual town meeting an article on the question of whether …

§ 2653. Acceptance of office A person present at the meeting electing him or her to municipal office shall be treated as accepting, unless he or she declines before the meeting is adjourned. When not present, he or she shall be served as soon as possible with a written notice, si…

§ 2654. Refusal to serve A person may refuse to accept election or appointment to any municipal office. (Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 2655. Time of meeting Annual municipal business meetings shall begin at the time set by the legislative body, unless the municipality has voted otherwise at a preceding meeting. (Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 101.)

§ 2656. Qualification and registration of voters Regardless of the type of voting used, the qualifications to vote in any municipal election shall be as provided in chapter 43 of this title and all municipalities shall revise and post checklists as provided in chapter 43 of this …

§ 2657. Moderator A municipal meeting shall be called to order by the moderator, or in his or her absence by a selectboard member who shall preside until a moderator pro tempore is chosen. (Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.)

§ 2658. Duties The moderator shall be the presiding officer of municipal meetings, shall decide questions of order and shall make public declaration of votes taken, except in elections using the Australian ballot system. When a vote declared by him or her is immediately questione…

§ 2659. Preservation of order The moderator shall preserve order in the conduct of business and in debate. If a person, after notice, is persistently disorderly and refuses to withdraw from the meeting, the moderator may cause him or her to be removed, calling upon the constable …

§ 2660. Conduct of election (a) When voting is at a floor meeting by paper ballot, the polls shall be kept open a reasonable time and reasonable notice shall be given before they close. (b) When election is by ballot, a majority of all votes cast for any office shall be required …

§ 2661. Reconsideration or rescission of vote (a) A warned article voted on at an annual or special meeting of a municipality shall not be submitted to the voters for reconsideration or rescission at the same meeting after the assembly has begun consideration of another article. …

§ 2662. Validation of municipal meetings When any of the requirements as to notice or warning of an annual or special municipal meeting have been omitted or not complied with, the omission or noncompliance, if the meeting and the business transacted at it is otherwise legal and w…

§ 2663. Certificate of vote Whenever an act of the General Assembly by its provisions takes effect only when accepted by vote of a municipality, the clerk of the municipality shall certify within 10 days to the Secretary of State the result of such vote. (Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj…

§ 2664. Budget At its annual meeting, a town shall vote such sums of money as it deems necessary for the interest of its inhabitants and for the prosecution and defense of the common rights. It shall express in its vote the specific amounts, or the rate on a dollar of the grand l…

§ 2665. Notification to Secretary of State The town clerk shall file with the Secretary of State a list of the names and addresses of the selectboard members elected and shall notify the Secretary of State of any changes in the list as filed. (Added 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § …

§ 2666. Improper influence Neither the warning, the notice, the official voter information cards, nor the ballot itself shall include any opinion or comment by any town body or officer or other person on any matter to be voted on. (Added 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 107.)

§ 2667. Access to annual meeting The legislative body of the municipality shall take reasonable measures to ensure that voters who are elders or have a disability may conveniently attend annual or special meetings; provided, however, that such measures need not be taken if doing …

§ 2680. Australian ballot system; general (a) Application. Unless specifically required by statute, the provisions of the Australian ballot system shall not apply to the annual or special meeting of a municipality unless that municipality, at its annual meeting or at a special me…

§ 2681. Nominations; petitions; consents (a)(1)(A) Nominations of the municipal officers shall be by petition. The petition shall be filed with the municipal clerk, together with the endorsement, if any, of any party or parties in accordance with the provisions of this title, not…

§ 2681a. Local election ballots (a) Ballots for local officers and local public questions shall be prepared at town expense, under the direction of the town clerk, not later than 20 days before the local election. These ballots may be any color and the printing shall be black; in…

§ 2682. Process of voting; appointments (a) Election expenses shall be assumed by the municipality. (b) Returns shall be filed with the town clerk. (c) In a municipal election controlled by this subchapter, the person receiving the greatest number of votes for an office shall be …

§ 2682a. Write-in candidates Notwithstanding the provisions of section 2682 of this subchapter, in order to be elected, a write-in candidate shall receive at least 30 votes or the votes of one percent of the registered voters in the municipality, whichever is less. (Added 2013, N…

§ 2682b. Tie votes for local office If there is a tie vote for any office, the legislative body or, in its stead, the municipal clerk shall within seven days warn a runoff election to be held not less than 15 days nor more than 22 days after the warning. The only candidates in th…

§ 2683. Request for a recount; candidates (a) A candidate for local office may request a recount by filing a request in writing with the municipal clerk within 10 days after the election. (b) If the difference between the number of votes cast for a winning candidate and the numbe…

§ 2684. Time and place of recount; notice The clerk shall fix the time and place for a recount for not less than two nor more than five days from the time the petition is received, and shall promptly notify the opposing candidates and the board of civil authority. (Added 1977, No…

§ 2685. Conduct of recount (a)(1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, at the time and place specified by the clerk, the board of civil authority shall break the seal, open the ballot container, and recount the votes pursuant to the procedure set forth in sec…

§ 2685a. Procedure for recount (a) Storage of ballots; assignment of duties. (1) The town clerk shall store all ballots, still in their sealed containers, in his or her vault until the day of the recount. (2)(A) The town clerk shall supervise the recount. (B) If the town clerk is…

§ 2686. Declaration of result If the recount shows that a person other than the one declared elected upon the original canvass of votes has the number of votes required by law for election to office, that person shall be declared elected and shall be entitled to the office. (Adde…