17 V.S.A. § 2370 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2370
§ 2370. Write-in candidates
Status: in_force

(a)(1) In order to have votes listed for a write-in candidate under section 2587 of this title, not later than 5:00 p.m. on the Thursday preceding the primary election, a write-in candidate for the General Assembly, any State office, or any federal office shall complete a form of the Secretary of State's design affirming that the candidate wants to have received votes listed under subdivision 2587(e)(3) of this title. The candidate shall file the form with either all town clerks within the candidate's applicable district or the Secretary of State's office in an electronic manner approved by the Secretary. The Secretary of State shall notify the appropriate town clerks of any filings made in accordance with this subsection as soon as practicable.

(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (1) of this subsection, a write-in candidate is not required to file if:

(A) the candidate has already filed a consent to the printing of the candidate's name on the ballot for a major political party, as provided in section 2361, 2385, or 2402 of this title; or

(B) no candidate is printed on the ballot, or if a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot dies or is otherwise disqualified prior to 7:00 p.m. on the election day.

(b) A write-in candidate shall not qualify as a primary winner unless the candidate receives at least one-half the number of votes as the number of signatures required for the candidate's office on a primary petition, except that if a write-in candidate receives more votes than a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot, the write-in candidate shall qualify as a primary winner.

(c) Before becoming the party's candidate in the general election, the write-in candidate who qualifies as a primary winner under this section must:

(1) still be determined a winner under section 2369 of this chapter; and

(2) file a consent similar in form to the consent prescribed by sections 2361, 2385, and 2402 of this title with the Secretary of State.
17 V.S.A. § 2582 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2582
§ 2582. Presiding officer to direct count; transporting ballots or checklist
Status: in_force

The presiding officer shall direct the manner in which the votes are counted, subject to the provisions of this title and as provided for in the rules for counting ballots adopted by the Secretary of State. Ballots shall be counted at the polling places where they are cast, except where the Secretary of State, upon request of the presiding officer, has issued a determination that the ballots should be counted elsewhere, or the checklist should be moved by two elections officials of different parties for the purpose of making a photocopy.
17 V.S.A. § 1931 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 1931
§ 1931. Presiding officer receiving illegal vote
Status: in_force

A presiding officer in a local, primary, or general election who knowingly receives and counts a vote from a person not a qualified voter or knowingly receives from a voter, at any one balloting for the same office, more than one vote shall be fined not more than $100.00 if the offense is committed in a local election and not more than $500.00 if in a primary or general election.
17 V.S.A. § 2319 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2319
§ 2319. Party conventions for platforms
Status: in_force

On or before the fourth Tuesday in September in each even-numbered year, upon the call of the chair of the State committee of the party, a party platform convention of each organized political party shall be held to make and adopt the platform of the party.
17 V.S.A. § 2145a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2145a
§ 2145a. Registrations at the Department of Motor Vehicles
Status: in_force

(a) An application for, or renewal of, a motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card shall serve as a simultaneous application to register to vote if the applicant attests to U.S. citizenship or the Department has proof of U.S. citizenship unless the applicant checks the box on the application designating that the applicant declines to use the application as a voter registration application.

(b)(1) A motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card application shall provide and request the following information and shall be in the form approved by the Secretary of State:

(A) The applicant's citizenship.

(B) The applicant's place and date of birth.

(C) The applicant's town of legal residence.

(D) The applicant's E-911 street address or a description of the physical location of the applicant's residence. The description must contain sufficient information so that the town clerk can determine whether the applicant is a resident of the town.

(E) The voter's oath.

(F) The applicant's email address and phone number, which shall be optional to provide.

(2) A motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card application shall provide the following statements:

(A) “By signing and submitting this application, you are authorizing the Department of Motor Vehicles to transmit this application to the Secretary of State for voter registration purposes. YOU MAY DECLINE TO REGISTER. Both the office through which you submit this application and your decision of whether or not to register will remain confidential and will be used for voter registration purposes only.”

(B) “In order to be registered to vote, you must: (1) be a U.S. citizen; (2) be a resident of Vermont; (3) have taken the voter's oath; and (4) be 18 years of age or older. Any person meeting the requirements of (1)-(3) who will be 18 years of age on or before the date of a general election may register and vote in the primary election immediately preceding that general election. Failure to decline to register is an attestation that you meet the requirements to vote.”

(3) A motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card application shall provide the penalties provided by law for submission of a false voter registration application and shall require the signature of the applicant, under penalty of perjury.

(c) An application for voter registration under this section shall update any previous voter registration by the applicant. Any change of address form submitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles in connection with an application for a motor vehicle driver's license shall serve to update voter registration information previously provided by the voter, unless the voter states on the form that the change of address is not for voter registration purposes.

(d)(1) The Department of Motor Vehicles shall transmit motor vehicle driver's license and nondriver identification card applications received under this section to the Secretary of State not later than five days after the date the application was accepted by the Department, or before the date of any primary or general election, whichever is sooner.

(2) The Department of Motor Vehicles shall not transmit motor vehicle driver's license and nondriver identification card applications when the Department does not have proof of U.S. citizenship for an applicant and the applicant has failed to attest to U.S. citizenship, or when the applicant has designated that the applicant declines to be registered.

(3) The Department of Motor Vehicles shall ensure confidentiality of records as required by subdivision (b)(2)(A) of this section.

(e) The Secretary shall promptly transmit applications received under this section to the clerks of the appropriate municipalities.

(f) In transmitting applications received under this section, the Secretary shall ensure compliance with the requirements of 15 V.S.A. chapter 21, subchapter 3.

(g) If a person who is ineligible to vote becomes registered to vote pursuant to this section in the absence of a violation of subsection 2145(f) of this chapter, that person's registration shall be presumed to have been effected with official authorization and not the fault of that person.

(h) The Secretary shall take appropriate measures to educate the public about voter registration under this section.

(i) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (d) of this section or any other provision of law to the contrary, the Department of Motor Vehicles shall share its motor vehicle driver's license, driver privilege card, and nondriver identification card customer data with the Secretary of State's office for the Secretary's use in conducting voter registration and voter checklist maintenance activities.
17 V.S.A. § 1818 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1818
§ 1818. Checklist to be used
Status: in_force

The check list used in the last preceding general election shall apply, but may be revised as now provided by law for check lists used at general elections. The polls for this election shall open at 10 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
17 V.S.A. § 2689 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2689
§ 2689. Preservation of ballots
Status: in_force

In an election in which the Australian ballot system is used, the ballots shall be preserved as provided in this title in the case of general elections.
17 V.S.A. § 2943 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2943
§ 2943. Limitations adjusted for inflation
Status: in_force

The contribution limitations contained in this subchapter shall be adjusted for inflation pursuant to the Consumer Price Index as provided in section 2905 of this chapter.
17 V.S.A. § 1841 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 32 / Section 1841
§ 1841. Constitutional requirements
Status: in_force

(a) Amendments to the Constitution, having been proposed by the General Assembly, published, and concurred in by the succeeding General Assembly as required by § 72 of Chapter II of the Constitution, shall be submitted to the people of the State for their ratification and adoption in the manner provided in this chapter.

(b) Following the concurrence by the succeeding General Assembly but prior to being submitted to the people of the State, the Governor shall issue a proclamation providing public notice of the proposed constitutional amendment.
17 V.S.A. § 2504 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2504
§ 2504. Voting booths
Status: in_force

At each polling place, there shall be a sufficient number, as determined by the board of civil authority, of voting booths. Each booth shall be of sturdy construction and shall allow a voter to mark his or her ballot conveniently without having his or her choices observed by any other person.
17 V.S.A. § 1881 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 33 / Section 1881
§ 1881. Number to be elected
Status: in_force

Senatorial districts and the number of Senators to be elected from each are as follows:

(1) Addison Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Addison, Bridport, Bristol, Buel's Gore, Cornwall, Ferrisburgh, Goshen, Granville, Hancock, Huntington, Leicester, Lincoln, Middlebury, Monkton, New Haven, Orwell, Panton, Rochester, Ripton, Salisbury, Shoreham, Starksboro, Vergennes, Waltham, Weybridge, and Whiting ........ two;

(2) Bennington Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Arlington, Bennington, Dorset, Glastenbury, Landgrove, Londonderry, Manchester, Peru, Pownal, Readsboro, Rupert, Sandgate, Searsburg, Shaftsbury, Somerset, Stamford, Stratton, Sunderland, Wilmington, Winhall, and Woodford ........ two;

(3) Caledonia Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Barnet, Danville, Groton, Hardwick, Newbury, Peacham, Ryegate, St. Johnsbury, Stannard, Walden, Waterford, and Wheelock ................ one;

(4) Chittenden-Central Senatorial District, composed of the city of Winooski, that portion of the town of Essex not included in Chittenden-North Senatorial District, that portion of the town of Colchester not included in Grand Isle Senatorial District, and that portion of the city of Burlington encompassed within a boundary beginning at the point where the eastern boundary line of the city of Burlington intersects with the South Burlington Recreation Path; then westerly along the northern side of the boundary between the South Burlington Recreation Path and the Burlington Country Club to where the South Burlington Recreation Path turns north; then continuing westerly along the northern side of the property boundary of the Burlington Country Club to the property boundary line between 544 South Prospect Street and 500 South Prospect Street; then westerly along the northern side of the property line between 544 South Prospect Street and 500 Prospect Street to where it intersects with South Prospect Street; then northerly along the eastern side of the centerline of South Prospect Street to the intersection of Cliff Street; then westerly along the northern side of the centerline of Cliff Street to the intersection of U.S. Route 7; then briefly northerly along the eastern side of the centerline of U.S. Route 7 to the intersection of Spruce Street; then westerly along the northern side of the centerline of Spruce Street to the intersection of South Union Street; then northerly along the eastern side of the centerline of South Union Street to the intersection of Adams Street; then westerly along the northern side of the centerline of Adams Street to the intersection of South Winooski Avenue; then northerly along the eastern side of the centerline of South Winooski Avenue to the intersection of Maple Street; then westerly along the northern side of the centerline of Maple Street to the end of Maple Street; then continuing on a line due west across Lake Champlain to the boundary of the city of South Burlington in Lake Champlain; then northerly along the city line of South Burlington in Lake Champlain and continuing along the city line of South Burlington as it follows the eastern shore of Lake Champlain to the boundary of the town of Colchester; then northerly and then southeasterly along the town line of Colchester to the boundary of the city of Winooski; then southeasterly along the city line of Winooski to the boundary of the city of South Burlington; then southwesterly along the city line of South Burlington to the point of beginning......... three;

(5) Chittenden-North Senatorial District, composed of towns of Fairfax, Milton, Westford, and that portion of the town of Essex encompassed within a boundary beginning at the point where the western boundary line of the town of Essex intersects with VT Route 2A; then southerly along the eastern side of the centerline of VT Route 2A to the intersection of Gentes Road; then briefly easterly along the northern side of the centerline of Gentes Road to where it intersects with the railroad tracks before Lamore Road; then southerly along the eastern side of the railroad tracks to where they intersect with VT Route 289; then southeasterly along the northeastern side of the centerline of VT Route 289 to the intersection of Upper Main Street; then northeasterly along the northwestern side of the centerline of Upper Main Street to the intersection of Center Road; then easterly along the northern side of the centerline of Center Road to the intersection of Jericho Road; then southeasterly along the northeastern side of the centerline of Jericho Road to the intersection of Allen Martin Drive; then southwesterly along the southeastern side of the centerline of Allen Martin Road to the intersection of Sandhill Road; then southerly along the eastern side of Sandhill Road to the intersection of River Road; then westerly along the southern side of the centerline of River Road to where it intersects with Alder Brook; then southerly along the eastern side of Alder Brook to the boundary of the town of Williston; then easterly along the town line of Williston to the boundary of the town of Jericho; then northeasterly along the town line of Jericho to the boundary of the town of Westford; then westerly along the town line of Westford to the boundary of the town of Colchester; then southerly along the town line of Colchester to the point of beginning......... one;

(6) Chittenden-Southeast Senatorial District, composed of towns of Bolton, Charlotte, Hinesburg, Jericho, Richmond, Shelburne, South Burlington, St. George, Underhill, Williston, and that portion of the city of Burlington not included in Chittenden-Central Senatorial District ....... three;

(7) Essex Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Averill, Avery's Gore, Bloomfield, Brighton, Brunswick, Canaan, Concord, Derby, East Haven, Ferdinand, Granby, Guildhall, Holland, Kirby, Lemington, Lewis, Lunenburg, Lyndon, Maidstone, Morgan, Newport City, Norton, Victory, Warner's Grant, and Warren Gore ................ one;

(8) Franklin Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Alburgh, Bakersfield, Berkshire, Enosburgh, Fairfield, Franklin, Georgia, Highgate, Richford, St. Albans City, St. Albans Town, Sheldon, and Swanton ................ two;

(9) Grand Isle Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Grand Isle, Isle La Motte, North Hero, South Hero, and that portion of the town of Colchester encompassed within a boundary beginning at the point where the southern boundary line of Colchester and the northern boundary of the city of Winooski intersects with U.S. Route 7; then northerly along the western side of the centerline of U.S. Route 7 to the intersection of Hercules Drive; then easterly along the northern side of the centerline of Hercules Drive; then continue southerly along the eastern side of the centerline of Hercules Drive to the intersection of Vermont National Guard Road; then southeasterly along the northeastern side of the centerline of Vermont National Guard Road to the intersection of Hegeman Avenue; then northeasterly along the northwestern side of the centerline of Hegeman Avenue to the intersection of Barnes Avenue; then briefly northwesterly along the southwestern side of the centerline of Barnes Avenue to the intersection of Troy Avenue; then northeasterly along the northwestern side of the centerline of Troy Avenue to where it joins Hegeman Avenue; then briefly southeasterly along the northeastern side of the centerline of Hegeman Avenue to the intersection of Vermont Avenue; then briefly easterly along the northern side of the centerline of Vermont Avenue to where it intersects with the boundary of the town of Essex; then northeasterly along the town line of Essex to the boundary of the town of Milton; then northwesterly along the town line of Milton to the boundary of the town of South Hero; then southwesterly along the town line of South Hero to the state border of New York; then southerly along the state border of New York to the boundary of the city of South Burlington in Lake Champlain; then easterly along the city line of South Burlington to the boundary of the city of Burlington; then easterly along the city line of Burlington to the boundary of the city of Winooski; then northeasterly along the city line of Winooski; then continue along the city line of Winooski to the point of beginning................ one;

(10) Lamoille Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Belvidere, Cambridge, Eden, Elmore, Fletcher, Hyde Park, Johnson, Morristown, Waterville, and Wolcott................ one;

(11) Orange Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Bradford, Brookfield, Chelsea, Corinth, Fairlee, Randolph, Strafford, Topsham, Tunbridge, Vershire, Washington, West Fairlee, and Williamstown ................ one;

(12) Orleans Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Albany, Barton, Brownington, Burke, Charleston, Coventry, Craftsbury, Glover, Greensboro, Irasburg, Jay, Lowell, Montgomery, Newport Town, Newark, Sheffield, Sutton, Troy, Westfield, and Westmore ................ one;

(13) Rutland Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Benson, Brandon, Castleton, Chittenden, Clarendon, Danby, Fair Haven, Hubbardton, Ira, Killington, Mendon, Middletown Springs, Mt. Holly, Mt. Tabor, Pawlet, Pittsford, Poultney, Proctor, Rutland City, Rutland Town, Shrewsbury, Sudbury, Tinmouth, Wallingford, Wells, West Haven, and West Rutland ................ three;

(14) Washington Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Barre City, Barre Town, Berlin, Braintree, Cabot, Calais, Duxbury, East Montpelier, Fayston, Marshfield, Middlesex, Montpelier, Moretown, Northfield, Orange, Plainfield, Roxbury, Stowe, Waitsfield, Warren, Waterbury, Woodbury, and Worcester ................ three;

(15) Windham Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Athens, Brattleboro, Brookline, Dover, Dummerston, Grafton, Guilford, Halifax, Jamaica, Marlboro, Newfane, Putney, Rockingham, Townshend, Vernon, Wardsboro, Westminster, Whitingham, and Windham ................ two;

(16) Windsor Senatorial District, composed of the towns of Andover, Baltimore, Barnard, Bethel, Bridgewater, Cavendish, Chester, Hartford, Hartland, Ludlow, Norwich, Pittsfield, Plymouth, Pomfret, Reading, Royalton, Sharon, Springfield, Stockbridge, Thetford, Weathersfield, Weston, West Windsor, Windsor, and Woodstock ................ three.
17 V.S.A. § 2121 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2121
§ 2121. Eligibility of voters
Status: in_force

(a) Any person may register to vote in the town of his or her residence in any election held in a political subdivision of this State in which he or she resides who, on election day:

(1) is a citizen of the United States;

(2) is a resident of the State of Vermont;

(3) has taken the voter's oath; and

(4) is 18 years of age or more.

(b) Any person meeting the requirements of subdivisions (a)(1)-(3) of this section who will be 18 years of age on or before the date of a general election may register and vote in the primary election immediately preceding that general election.
17 V.S.A. § 1902 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1902
§ 1902. Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this chapter:

(1) “Apportionment standard for the House of Representatives” means the number obtained by dividing the total population in the State by the number of members of the House of Representatives of the General Assembly.

(2) “Apportionment standard for the Senate” means the number obtained by dividing the total population in the State by the number of members of the Senate.

(3) “Board” means the Legislative Apportionment Board.

(4) “Population” means the most recent census taken under the authority of Congress or a special census ordered to be taken by the Legislature.
17 V.S.A. § 2411 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2411
§ 2411. Applicability of other law
Status: in_force

Except as specifically provided in this chapter, all other provisions of this title shall govern the several procedures specified in this chapter for the making of nominations.
17 V.S.A. § 2539 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2539
§ 2539. Delivery of early voter absentee ballots
Status: in_force

(a) Default; town office or mail.

(1) Except as provided in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, unless the early or absentee voter votes in the town clerk's office as set forth in section 2537 of this title, the town clerk shall provide to the early or absentee voter who comes to the town clerk's office a complete set of early voter absentee ballots or mail a complete set of early voter absentee ballots to each early or absentee voter for whom a valid application has been filed.

(2) Except as provided in subdivision (3) of this subsection, the early voter absentee ballots shall be mailed forthwith upon the filing of a valid application or upon the town clerk's receipt of the necessary ballots, whichever is later.

(3)(A) For any general election, if a voter transfers his or her registration from another town or city in the State following the mailing of ballots to all active voters by the Secretary of State's office pursuant to section 2537a of this subchapter, before issuing an absentee ballot the clerk shall confirm the status of the ballot that was previously mailed to that voter by the Secretary of State and proceed as follows:

(i) If the voter has voted and returned the ballot issued to the voter by the Secretary of State to the town in which the voter was previously registered, the voter shall not be issued a ballot nor be allowed to cast another ballot in the same general election and shall be registered following the election.

(ii) If the voter did not receive or did not return the ballot that was previously sent to the voter by the Secretary of State, the voter may be issued another ballot for the general election if:

(aa) the voter returned the unvoted ballot that was previously issued to the voter; or

(bb) the voter signs an affidavit stating that the voter has not previously cast a ballot in that general election.

(B) If a voter registers to vote for the first time in Vermont following the time when the Secretary of State's office generated the address file to be used for the mailing of ballots to all active voters by the Secretary of State's office, the clerk shall either issue a ballot to the voter in person at the time of registration or mail a ballot to the voter within three business days, provided the voter's registration does not occur within five days of the election. If the clerk does not have ballots available at the time of registration, the clerk shall mail a ballot to the voter within three business days after obtaining ballots.

(b) Voters who are ill, injured, or have a disability. In the case of persons who are early or absentee voters due to illness, injury, or disability, if the voter or authorized person requests in his or her application or otherwise that early voter absentee ballots be mailed or electronically delivered, the town clerk shall mail or electronically deliver the ballots; otherwise the ballots shall be delivered to the voter by justices of the peace as set forth in section 2538 of this subchapter.

(c) Military or overseas voters.

(1) Early voter absentee ballots for military or overseas voters shall be sent air mail, first class, postpaid when such service is available, or they may be electronically delivered when requested by the voter.

(2)(A) The town clerk's office shall be open on the 46th day before any election that includes a federal office and the town clerk shall send on or before that day all absentee ballots to any military or overseas voter who requested an early voter absentee ballot on or before that day.

(B) On that day the town clerk shall complete any reporting requirements and any other responsibilities regarding the mailing of early voter absentee ballots to military or overseas voters, as directed by the Secretary of State.

(3) As used in this section, “overseas voters” means a person who was last domiciled in Vermont before leaving the United States and now resides outside the United States.

(d) Voters who participate in the Secretary of State's Address Confidentiality Program. In the case of persons who participate in the address confidentiality program administered by the Secretary of State set forth in 15 V.S.A. § 1152, if the voter or authorized person requests in the application or otherwise that early voter absentee ballots be mailed or electronically delivered, the town clerk shall mail or electronically deliver the ballots.
17 V.S.A. § 2456 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2456
§ 2456. Disqualifications
Status: in_force

Notwithstanding the preceding sections of this subchapter, no person shall serve as an election official in any election in which his or her name appears on a ballot of the Australian ballot system as a candidate for any office unless he or she is the only candidate for that office, or unless the office for which he or she is a candidate is that of moderator, justice of the peace, town clerk, treasurer, ward clerk, or inspector of elections. When an Australian ballot is not used, a person shall not serve as an election official during the election to fill any office for which he or she is a nominee.
17 V.S.A. § 2660 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2660
§ 2660. Conduct of election
Status: in_force

(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 for an election, unless otherwise provided by law; provided that when there is but one nominee for an office, unless objection is made, the legal voters may vote to instruct the town clerk to cast one ballot for such nominee and upon such ballot being cast he or she shall be declared elected.

(c) If no person has obtained a majority by the end of the third vote, the moderator shall announce that the person receiving the least number of votes in the last vote and in each succeeding vote shall no longer be a candidate, and the voting shall continue until a candidate receives a majority.

(d) The article entitled “other business” shall not be used for taking binding municipal action, and the moderator shall so rule.
17 V.S.A. § 2145c — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2145c
§ 2145c. Submission of voter registration forms by other persons or organizations
Status: in_force

Any person or any organization other than a voter registration agency that accepts a completed voter registration form on behalf of an applicant shall submit that form to the town clerk of the town of that applicant not later than seven days after the date of acceptance, or before the date of any primary or general election, whichever is sooner.
17 V.S.A. § 1908 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1908
§ 1908. Powers of Board
Status: in_force

The Legislative Apportionment Board shall have the following powers:

(1) To call for, and receive, the assistance of any State, county, or municipal official or employee in obtaining information regarding the population in any county, town, city, village, ward, precinct, or water, fire, or school district;

(2) To hold public hearings in any town or city for the purpose of obtaining information relevant to reapportionment of the General Assembly;

(3) To delegate, under regulations adopted by it, any of the foregoing powers to one or more of its members, or to investigators or hearing examiners in its employ.
17 V.S.A. § 2412 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2412
§ 2412. Withdrawal of candidacy
Status: in_force

(a)(1) A candidate who has been validly nominated by one of the methods prescribed in this chapter shall have a right to withdraw his or her candidacy up until 5:00 p.m. on the tenth day following the primary by filing a written notice of withdrawal with the town clerk in the case of a candidate for justice of the peace, and with the Secretary of State in the case of all other offices.

(2) The name of a candidate who has withdrawn in accordance with the provisions of this subsection shall not be printed on the ballot.

(b) After the date described in subdivision (a)(1) of this section, if the candidate has filed a written notice of withdrawal, the town clerk or Secretary of State may still remove the candidate's name from the ballot up until the printing deadline.
17 V.S.A. § 2602f — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2602f
§ 2602f. Recount of remaining ballots by vote tabulator
Status: in_force

(a) The vote tabulator team shall operate any vote tabulator used in the recount, with the assistance of the recruited town clerks or designees.

(b) The vote tabulator memory card or cards shall be programmed to read only the votes for the election that is the subject of the recount.

(c)(1) At the same time as any removed ballots are being hand counted, the vote tabulator team shall take any ballots from each container delivered to them and feed them through a vote tabulator.

(2) The vote tabulator team shall attempt to feed ballots into the vote tabulator in the same direction.

(3)(A) If the tabulator refuses a ballot, the vote tabulator team shall announce that occurrence and whether the ballot was counted, and may override that refusal.

(B) If the tabulator continues to refuse the ballot, the vote tabulator team shall announce that occurrence and return it to a counting team for hand counting.

(4) This process shall be used until all ballots from a container have been tabulated by a vote tabulator or otherwise returned to a counting team for hand counting.

(d)(1) This process shall be repeated until all ballots from a town have been fed through a vote tabulator.

(2) If there is more than one container for a town, the tabulator tape shall not be printed until ballots from all containers for that town have been tabulated.

(e)(1) After all ballots from a town have been tabulated by a vote tabulator, the vote tabulator team shall print the tabulator tape containing the unofficial results for that town, and deliver that tabulator tape to the county clerk in the presence of the clerk observer team.

(2) The county clerk shall then record the totals from the tabulator tape onto the summary sheet for the town in the same manner that he or she recorded the individual tally sheet totals from the hand-counted ballots.
17 V.S.A. § 2665 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2665
§ 2665. Notification to Secretary of State
Status: in_force

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.
17 V.S.A. § 2651a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2651a
§ 2651a. Constables; appointment; removal; elimination of office
Status: in_force

(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 appointed.

(2) A constable so appointed may be removed by the selectboard for just cause after notice and hearing.

(3) When a town votes to authorize the selectboard to appoint constables, the selectboard's authority to make such appointments shall remain in effect until the town rescinds that authority by the majority vote of the registered voters present and voting at an annual meeting duly warned for that purpose.

(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) to the contrary, a vote to authorize the selectboard to appoint constables shall become effective only upon a two-thirds vote of those present and voting if a written protest against the authorization is filed with the selectboard at least 15 days before the vote by at least five percent of the voters of the town.

(c) The authority to authorize the selectboard to appoint the constable as provided in this section shall extend to all towns except those that have a charter that specifically provides for the election or appointment of the office of constable.

(d)(1) A town may vote at an annual meeting to eliminate the office of constable.

(2) If a town votes to eliminate the office of constable, the selectboard shall appoint a town officer to discharge the constable's duties, if any, subject to 24 V.S.A. § 1936a. The town officer shall proceed in the discharge of the constable's duties in the same manner and be subject to the same liabilities as are established by law for constables.

(3) A vote to eliminate the office of constable shall remain in effect until rescinded by majority vote of the registered voters present and voting at an annual meeting warned for that purpose.

(4) The term of office of any constable in office on the date a town votes to eliminate that office shall expire on the 45th day after the vote or on the date upon which the selectboard appoints a town officer under this subsection, whichever occurs first.
17 V.S.A. § 1845 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 32 / Section 1845
§ 1845. Qualifications of voters; conduct of election
Status: in_force

The qualifications of voters on the proposal of amendment, the checklist requirements for the election, and all other provisions relating to the conduct of the election shall be the same as those required at general elections.
17 V.S.A. § 2455 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2455
§ 2455. Election officials; duties; political party representation
Status: in_force

(a) The assistant election officers, together with the presiding officer and the board of civil authority, shall constitute the election officials.

(b) Except as may be specifically provided in this title, the presiding officer shall notify each election official of the hours when he or she shall be present to work at the polls and of the duties assigned to each election official.

(c) When the provisions of this title require two or more election officials of different political parties to perform an act, that political party representation requirement shall not be required if attempts to conform to it were not successful.
17 V.S.A. § 2903 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2903
§ 2903. Penalties
Status: in_force

(a) A person who knowingly and intentionally violates a provision of subchapter 2, 3, or 4 of this chapter shall be fined not more than $1,000.00 or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.

(b) A person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to $10,000.00 for each violation and shall refund to the Secretary of State an amount equivalent to any contributions or expenditures that violate subdivision 2983(b)(1) of this chapter.

(c) In addition to the other penalties provided in this section, a State's Attorney or the Attorney General may institute any appropriate action, injunction, or other proceeding to prevent, restrain, correct, or abate any violation of this chapter.
17 V.S.A. § 1974 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 1974
§ 1974. Voter omitted from list, voting in another political subdivision
Status: in_force

A person who is a resident and entitled to vote in a political subdivision in which a checklist of voters has been made previous to an election, whose name, through his or her neglect, is not entered thereon, who votes in another political subdivision at such election shall be fined not more than $200.00.
17 V.S.A. § 2586 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2586
§ 2586. Tally sheets; summary sheets; returns
Status: in_force

The Secretary of State shall design, prepare, and distribute a sufficient supply of the following forms, which may be used in each polling place during the counting process:

(1) Tally sheets.

(A) These sheets shall provide a place to identify the office or question for which the ballots are being counted, the name of each candidate for that office, and the signature of the pair of election officials actually counting the ballots.

(B) Votes for each candidate or question shall be recorded on the tally sheets by means of “tick” marks or some other convenient system, and the total shall then be written on the tally sheet.

(C) Blank votes (undervotes) and overvotes shall be indicated.

(D) In towns that count ballots by hand, all votes must be accounted for on the tally sheets.

(2) Summary sheets. These sheets shall be used to record the totals shown on all tally sheets in the polling place for each office or public question, and the sum of such totals. They shall provide a place to identify the office or public question, the candidates, and the signatures of the presiding officer and at least one other election official.

(3) Return. The return shall be prepared in duplicate and used to make the official report from each polling place of the grand totals of all votes cast in the polling place. It shall identify the polling place, and each candidate or question receiving votes, and shall be signed by the presiding officer and at least one other election official.
17 V.S.A. § 2546a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2546a
§ 2546a. Deposit of early voter absentee ballots in vote tabulator
Status: in_force

(a) Generally. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the board of civil authority may vote to permit elections officials to deposit early voter absentee ballots that have been processed in accordance with subsection 2546(a) of this subchapter and have not been deemed defective into the vote tabulator or ballot box in accordance with the provisions of this section and any guidance issued by the Secretary of State. Any such depositing of ballots shall take place at the town clerk's office during the 30 days preceding the election.

(b) Notice. If a board of civil authority votes to deposit ballots as described in subsection (a) of this section, the process shall be conducted during normal business hours if practicable or, if conducting the process at a time other than normal business hours, notice of the date(s), time(s), and location of the processing shall be posted at the clerk's office and two other public places at least three days in advance.

(c) Officials. The town clerk and at least two other election officials, from different political parties to the extent practicable, shall be present for the inspection of the sealed certificate envelopes and the processing of the ballots described in this section.

(d) Processing. The Secretary of State's office shall issue detailed procedures for conducting the processing of early ballots into the vote tabulator or ballot box pursuant to this section. A town or city shall follow the procedures issued by the Secretary of State's office for this purpose.

(e) Rules. The Secretary of State may adopt rules to implement the provisions of this section.
17 V.S.A. § 2569 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2569
§ 2569. Assistance to voter
Status: in_force

(a) A voter who declares to the presiding officer that he or she needs assistance to mark the ballot shall be assisted in the marking or registering of the ballot by a person of the voter's choice or two election officials of different party affiliations.

(b) A person who gives assistance to a voter in the marking of his or her ballot shall not in any way divulge any information regarding the choice of the voter or the manner in which the voter's ballot was cast.
17 V.S.A. § 2386 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2386
§ 2386. Time for filing statements
Status: in_force

(a) In the case of the failure of a major political party to nominate a candidate by primary, a statement shall be filed not later than 5:00 p.m. on the sixth day following the primary.

(b) In the case of the death or withdrawal of a candidate after the primary election, the party committee shall have seven days from the date of the death or withdrawal to nominate a candidate. In no event shall a statement be filed later than 60 days prior to the general election.

(c)(1) In the case of a nomination by a minor political party, a statement shall be filed not earlier than the fourth Monday in April and not later than 5:00 p.m. on the Thursday preceding the primary election described in section 2351 of this chapter and not later than 5:00 p.m. on the third day prior to the day of a special primary election.

(2) A statement shall apply only to the election cycle in which the statement is filed.

(d) In the case of a nomination for the office of justice of the peace, a statement shall be filed as set forth in section 2413 of this chapter.
17 V.S.A. § 2354 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2354
§ 2354. Signing petitions
Status: in_force

(a) Any number of voters may sign the same petition.

(b)(1) A voter's signature shall not be valid unless at the time he or she signs, the voter is registered and qualified to vote for the candidate whose petition he or she signs.

(2) Each voter shall indicate his or her town of residence next to his or her signature.

(c) The signature of a voter on a candidate's petition does not necessarily indicate that the voter supports the candidate.

(d) A petition shall contain the name of only one candidate.
17 V.S.A. § 2302 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2302
§ 2302. State chair to call caucus
Status: in_force

(a) The chair of the State committee of a party shall set a date for members of the party to meet in caucus in their respective towns. The date shall be between September 10 and September 30, inclusive, in each odd-numbered year.

(b) At least 14 days before the date set for the caucuses, the State chair shall mail or electronically mail a notice of the date and purpose of the caucuses to each town clerk and to each town and county chair of the party.
17 V.S.A. § 2103 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 41 / Section 2103
§ 2103. Definitions
Status: repealed

As used in this title, unless the context or a specific definition requires a different reading:

(1) “Early or absentee voter” means any voter of the State who has requested an early voter absentee ballot as provided in chapter 51, subchapter 6 of this title.

(2) “Accept” means to solicit, receive, or agree to receive.

(3) “Anything of value” means, without limitation, tangible or intangible property, money, commercial interests, or governmental employment. A promise to pay or deliver such property is a thing of value even if the promise is unenforceable or impossible to perform.

(4) “Australian ballot system” means the technique of having the polls open for voting on specified and warned matters during a warned, extended period, which may be during or after a municipal meeting, or both. An “Australian ballot” means a uniformly printed ballot, typically confined to the secret vote election of specified offices as previously warned to be voted upon by the Australian ballot system. The term “Australian ballot” includes any ballots counted by a vote tabulator approved for use in any election conducted in the State.

(5) “Board of civil authority” means, unless otherwise provided by municipal charter, in the case of a town, the selectboard and town clerk and the justices residing therein; in the case of a city, the mayor, aldermen, city clerk, and justices residing therein; in the case of a village, the trustees, village clerk, and the justices residing therein; and, in any case, such suitable member or members of unrepresented or insufficiently represented political parties as may be appointed members of the board of civil authority under the provisions of section 2143 of this title. Except as otherwise provided in this title, those members of the board of civil authority present and voting shall constitute a quorum, provided that official action may not be taken without the concurrence of at least three members of the board.

(6) “Campaign” means any organized or coordinated activity undertaken by one or more persons, any part of which is designed to influence the nomination, election, or defeat of any candidate or the passage, defeat, or modification of any public question.

(7) “Candidate” means an individual who has taken any affirmative action to become a candidate for public office. A person takes affirmative action by:

(A) accepting a contribution or making an expenditure directly or indirectly;

(B) filing the requisite petition for one of the named positions or being nominated by primary or otherwise; or

(C) publicly announcing that he or she seeks such a position.

(8) [Repealed.]

(9) “Contribution” means a payment, distribution, advance, deposit, loan, or gift of anything of value, paid or promised to be paid (whether or not the promise is legally enforceable) to a person or political committee for the purpose of supporting or opposing one or more campaigns, but shall not include services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering their time on behalf of a candidate or political committee, nor bona fide commercial loans. “Contribution” includes any transfer between committees or candidates. A contribution is deemed to be made on the date when any promise or pledge is made or when liability for anything of value is assumed.

(10) “County officer” means judge of Probate, assistant judge of the Superior Court, State's Attorney, sheriff, and high bailiff.

(11) “Election” means the procedure whereby the voters of this State, or any of its political subdivisions, select persons to fill public offices or act on public questions.

(12) “Expenditure” means a payment, disbursement, distribution, advance, deposit, loan, or gift of anything of value, paid or promised to be paid (whether or not the promise is legally enforceable) for the purpose of supporting or opposing any campaign.

(13) “File” or “filed” means deposited in the regularly maintained office of the official with whom the filing is to be made. A document is not “filed” until received at the official's office. If the last day for filing petitions, consent forms, or other documents or reports falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then the deadline shall be extended to 5:00 p.m. on the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.

(14) “Voter's oath” means the oath prescribed in Chapter II, § 42 of the Constitution of Vermont.

(15) “General election” means the election held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, in even-numbered years.

(16) “Give” means to offer, present, confer, pay, or deliver; also to agree or promise to do any of the foregoing. But it shall not include a promise openly made in the course of a campaign to support or oppose some named governmental action.

(17) “Legislative body” means the selectboard in the case of a town; the city council, mayor, and alder board in the case of a city; the trustees or bailiffs in the case of a village; the school board in the case of a school district; and the prudential committee in the case of a fire district.

(18)(A) “Local election” means any election that deals with the selection of persons to fill public office or the settling of public questions solely within a single municipality.

(B) “Local election” also means an election to settle a public question in several municipalities, in which the municipalities must unanimously concur if the question is to be approved.

(C) The election of a Representative to the General Assembly is not a “local election.”

(19) “Military service” means active service by any person, as a member of any branch or department of the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, or Marine Corps or as a reservist absent from the reservist's place of residence and undergoing training under Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, or Marine Corps direction, at a place other than the person's residence.

(20) “Military service early or absentee voter” means a person who is unable to attend at his or her regular polling place and who comes within one of the following categories:

(A) persons in the military service and their spouses and dependents;

(B) a patient in a veterans' hospital located in any place other than his or her place of residence; or

(C) civilians attached to or serving with the U.S. Armed Forces outside this State and their spouses and dependents when residing with or accompanying them.

(21) “Person” means any individual, business entity, labor organization, public interest group, or other organization, incorporated or unincorporated.

(22) [Repealed.]

(23) “Political party” is any group of individuals that has organized and filed its certificate of organization with the Secretary of State, pursuant to chapter 45 of this title.

(A) A “major political party” is a political party whose candidate for any State office in the most recent general election polled at least five percent of the vote cast for that office.

(B) A “minor political party” is any political party that is not a major political party.

(24) “Political subdivision” means any county, municipality (including cities, towns, and villages), representative district, senatorial district, school district, fire district, water, sewer, or utility district, ward, and any consolidation of the foregoing entities authorized under the laws of this State.

(25) “Primary” means any election that precedes a general or special election, for the purpose of permitting political parties to nominate, from among all of the candidates for any office, only that number of candidates equal to the number of persons to be elected to that office at the succeeding general or special election.

(26) “Public office” means any office in the U.S. government or any office in the government of this State or any of its political subdivisions that is filled by vote of the voters of the State or subdivision.

(27) “Public question” means any question, issue, proposition, or referendum (whether binding or advisory) submitted or required by law to be submitted to the voters of the State or any political subdivision of the State, for a decision.

(28) “Public servant” means the holder of any public office, as well as any employee of the State not in the classified service.

(29) “Representative district clerk” means, in each representative district, the clerk of that town or part of a town having the largest population in the district. However, when part of one town is joined with all of another town to form a representative district, the clerk of the latter town shall be representative district clerk.

(30) “Resident” means a natural person who is domiciled in this State as evidenced by an intent to maintain a principal dwelling place in the State indefinitely and to return there if temporarily absent, coupled with an act or acts consistent with that intent. A married person may have a domicile independent of the domicile of his or her spouse.

(31) “Senatorial district clerk” means the county clerk for those towns within a senatorial district aggregating the largest population.

(32) “Special election” means an election that is not provided for by law to be held at stated intervals.

(34) “Town” includes “city.”

(35) “Town clerk” means a town officer elected pursuant to section 2646 of this title or otherwise elected or appointed by law and performing those duties prescribed by 24 V.S.A. chapter 35.

(36) “Voter” means an individual who is qualified to vote in an election in this State or a political subdivision of this State, and whose name is registered on the checklist of a political subdivision of the State.

(37) “Year” means a calendar year.

(38) “State institution” means the Vermont State Hospital, correctional facilities, and other similar public institutions, established or funded, or both, by public funds within the State of Vermont, not including educational institutions.

(39) “Motor vehicle driver's license” means any personal identification document issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles under Title 23.

(40) “Secretary” means the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State shall be the chief State election official for purposes of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993.

(41) “Voter registration agency” or “agency” means all State offices that provide public assistance, all State offices that provide State-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities, any federal and nongovernmental offices that have agreed to be designated by the Secretary as a voter registration agency, and any State or local agency designated by the Secretary as a voter registration agency. State and local agencies designated by the Secretary may include the Departments of Taxes and of Labor and offices that provide services to persons with disabilities other than those that provide State-funded programs primarily engaged in providing services to persons with disabilities.

(42) “Voter registration application forms,” “application forms,” or “forms” mean the voter registration application forms or the voter registration application portion of a motor vehicle driver's license application approved by the Secretary of State under sections 2145 and 2145a of this title.

(43) “Vote tabulator” means a machine that registers and counts paper ballots and includes optical scan tabulators.

(33)(A) “State office” means the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Treasurer, Secretary of State, Auditor of Accounts, and Attorney General.

(B) “State officer” is the holder of a State office.
17 V.S.A. § 2657 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2657
§ 2657. Moderator
Status: in_force

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.
17 V.S.A. § 1815 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1815
§ 1815. Acceptance of candidacy
Status: in_force

On accepting such designation each candidate shall file his or her acceptance as follows:

“I do hereby accept this appointment as candidate for delegate to the convention to be held on the ............ day of ........................... ; and assent to the placing of my name on the ballot as For Ratification or Against Ratification.

Signed ......................................... ”
17 V.S.A. § 2144a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2144a
§ 2144a. Registration
Status: in_force

A person who desires to register to vote may apply in any of the following ways:

(1) Simultaneously with his or her application for, or renewal of, a motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card as provided in section 2145a of this chapter.

(2) By completing a voter registration application at a voter registration agency.

(3) By delivering, during regular hours, or mailing a completed application form to the office of the clerk of the town in which the applicant claims to be a resident.

(4) By completing a voter registration application and delivering it to the presiding officer before the close of the polls at the polling place of the town in which the person seeks to register. In towns with more than one polling place, the polling place shall be that which covers the area in which the person resides.
17 V.S.A. § 1813 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1813
§ 1813. Election of delegates
Status: in_force

The election of delegates shall take place not less than three nor more than 12 months after the call, but in no case shall it occur within 40 days of the date fixed by law for a general or primary election.
17 V.S.A. § 2507 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2507
§ 2507. Distribution of checklists
Status: in_force

The town clerk shall furnish the presiding officer of each polling place with two certified copies of the checklist applicable to that polling place. One copy shall be used to check voters before they enter within the guardrail, and, unless the board of civil authority votes not to use an exit checklist, the other copy shall be used to check voters as they leave.
17 V.S.A. § 2651c — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2651c
§ 2651c. Lack of elected lister; appointment of lister; elimination of office; hiring assessors
Status: in_force

(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 majority and the selectboard is unable to find a person or persons to appoint as a lister or listers under the provisions of 24 V.S.A. § 963, the selectboard may appoint an assessor to perform the duties of a lister as set forth in Title 32 until the next annual meeting.

(2) The appointed person need not be a resident of the town and shall have the same powers and be subject to the same duties and penalties as a duly elected lister for the town.

(b)(1) A town may vote by ballot at an annual meeting to eliminate the office of lister.

(2)(A) If a town votes to eliminate the office of lister, the selectboard shall notify the Director of Property Valuation and Review within 14 days and employ or contract a professionally qualified assessor, who, prior to conducting any work, shall meet the training requirements established by the Director under 32 V.S.A. § 4052 and need not be a resident of the town.

(B) The assessor shall have the same powers, discharge the same duties, proceed in the discharge thereof in the same manner, and be subject to the same liabilities as are prescribed for listers or the board of listers under the provisions of Title 32.

(3) A vote to eliminate the office of lister shall remain in effect until rescinded by majority vote of the registered voters present and voting at an annual or special meeting warned for that purpose.

(c) The term of office of any lister in office on the date a town votes to eliminate that office shall expire on the 45th day after the vote or on the date upon which the selectboard employs or contracts an assessor under this subsection, whichever occurs first.

(d) The authority to vote to eliminate the office of lister as provided in this section shall extend to all towns except those towns that have a charter that specifically provides for the election or appointment of the office of lister.

(e) If an assessor is employed or contracted to assist an elected board of listers, the board of listers shall retain the same powers and duties, discharge those powers and duties in the same manner, and be subject to the same liabilities as those imposed on listers or the board of listers under the provisions of Title 32.
17 V.S.A. § 2154 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2154
§ 2154. Statewide voter checklist
Status: in_force

(a) The Secretary of State shall maintain a uniform and nondiscriminatory statewide voter checklist. This checklist shall serve as the official voter registration list for all elections in the State. In maintaining the statewide voter checklist, the Secretary shall:

(1) limit a town clerk to adding, modifying, or deleting applicant and voter information on the portion of the checklist for that clerk's municipality;

(2) limit access to the statewide voter checklist for a local elections official to verifying whether the applicant is registered in another municipality in the State by a search for the individual voter;

(3) notify a local elections official when a voter registered in that official's district registers in another voting district so that the voter may be removed from that official's district checklist;

(4) provide adequate security to prevent unauthorized access to the checklist;

(5) ensure the compatibility and comparability of information on the checklist with information contained in the Department of Motor Vehicles' computer systems; and

(6) make reasonable efforts on an ongoing basis to compare the information on the checklist with data or information contained in any State agency's database, a database administered by the federal government, or any database of another state or consortium of states, where possible, in an effort to maintain the accuracy and currency of the checklist.

(b)(1) A registered voter's month and day of birth, driver's license or nondriver identification number, telephone number, email address, and the last four digits of his or her Social Security number shall be kept confidential and are exempt from public inspection and copying under the Public Records Act.

(2) A public agency as defined in 1 V.S.A. § 317 and any officer, employee, agent, or independent contractor of a public agency shall not knowingly disclose a copy of all of the statewide voter checklist, a municipality's portion of the statewide voter checklist, or any other municipal voter checklist to any foreign government or to a federal agency or commission or to a person acting on behalf of a foreign government or of such a federal entity for the purpose of:

(A) registration of a voter based on his or her information maintained in the checklist;

(B) publicly disclosing a voter's information maintained in the checklist; or

(C) comparing a voter's information maintained in the checklist to personally identifying information contained in other federal or state databases.

(c)(1) Any person wishing to obtain a copy of all of the statewide voter checklist must swear or affirm, under penalty of perjury pursuant to 13 V.S.A. chapter 65, that the person will not:

(A) use the checklist for commercial purposes; or

(B) knowingly disclose the checklist to any foreign government or to a federal agency or commission or to a person acting on behalf of a foreign government or of such a federal entity in circumvention of the prohibited purposes for using the checklist set forth in subdivision (b)(2) of this section.

(2) The affirmation shall be filed with the Secretary of State.

(d) An elections official shall not access the portion of the statewide voter checklist that is exempt from public inspection pursuant to 1 V.S.A. § 317(c)(31), except for elections purposes.
17 V.S.A. § 2904a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2904a
§ 2904a. Reports to the State Ethics Commission
Status: in_force

Upon receipt of a complaint made in regard to a violation of this chapter or of any rule made pursuant to this chapter, the Attorney General or a State's Attorney shall:

(1) Forward a copy of the complaint to the State Ethics Commission established in 3 V.S.A. chapter 31. The Attorney General or State's Attorney shall provide this information to the Commission within 10 days of his or her receipt of the complaint.

(2) File a report with the Commission regarding his or her decision as to whether to bring an enforcement action as a result of that complaint. The Attorney General or State's Attorney shall make this report within 10 days of that decision.
17 V.S.A. § 2310 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2310
§ 2310. Election of State committee
Status: in_force

(a)(1) The chair of the county committee shall be a member of the State committee.

(2) Each county committee shall be entitled to elect at least two additional members of the State committee. These delegates need not be members of the county committee.

(3) If the rules or bylaws of a State committee provide for apportionment of additional members of the State committee to come from the county, the county committee also shall elect those additional members.

(b) All county committee members and officers and all persons elected to the State committee shall be voters in the county from which they are elected.

(c) County committee members and delegates to the State committee shall serve for two years following their election or until their successors are elected or appointed.
17 V.S.A. § 2147 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2147
§ 2147. Alteration of checklist
Status: repealed

(a) Pursuant to section 2150 of this title, the board of civil authority or, upon request of the board, the town clerk shall add to the checklist the names of the voters added and the names omitted by mistake and shall strike the names of persons not entitled to vote. The list so corrected shall not be altered except by:

(1) adding the names of persons as directed by any Superior judge on appeal;

(2) adding the names of persons who are legal voters at the election but whose names are further discovered to be omitted from the completed checklist solely through inadvertence or error;

(3) adding the names of persons who present a valid application for addition to the checklist of that town or a copy thereof, and who otherwise are qualified to be added to the checklist;

(4) [Repealed.]

(5) subdividing the checklist as provided in section 2501 of this title, including the transfer of names of voters who have moved within a town in which they are already registered from one voting district within that town to another; or

(6) adding the names of persons who previously submitted an incomplete application and who provide that information on or before election day.

(b) Any correction or transfer may be accomplished at any time until the closing of the polls on election day. Each voter has primary responsibility to ascertain that his or her name is properly added to and retained on the checklist.
17 V.S.A. § 2536 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2536
§ 2536. Furnishing early voter absentee ballot envelopes
Status: in_force

Upon request, for any statewide primary, presidential primary, or general election, the Secretary of State shall furnish the envelopes prescribed in sections 2535 and 2542 of this title to town clerks in such numbers as they request. The cost of absentee ballot envelopes for local elections shall be borne by the municipality.
17 V.S.A. § 2481 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2481
§ 2481. Printed ballots required
Status: in_force

Except in the case of voice votes from the floor, divisions, or voting at a floor meeting by paper ballot at a local election, no voting shall occur in any local, primary, or general election that does not use printed ballots.
17 V.S.A. § 2592 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2592
§ 2592. Canvassing committees; canvass of votes in general or special elections
Status: in_force

(a) For all State and national offices and statewide public questions, the Secretary of State and the chair of the State committee of each major political party (or designee) shall constitute a canvassing committee to receive and tally returns and issue certificates.

(b) For all county offices and countywide public questions, the county clerk and the chair of the county committee of each major political party (or designee) shall constitute a canvassing committee to receive and tally returns and issue certificates.

(c) For State Senator, the senatorial district clerk and the chair of the county committee of each major political party (or designee) in the county for which the senatorial district clerk is clerk shall constitute a canvassing committee to receive and tally returns and issue certificates.

(d) For State Representative, the representative district clerk and one other election official from the district shall serve as a canvassing committee to receive and, if necessary, tally returns and issue certificates.

(e) In the case of the canvassing committees in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, if there is no party organization or party chair in the county, the State committee chair may designate a person to serve on the appropriate canvassing committee.

(f) In the case of primary elections, the canvass of votes shall be made as provided in subchapter 1 of chapter 49 of this title.

(g) In the case of general or special elections, each canvassing committee shall meet at 10:00 a.m. one week after the day of the election and proceed to canvass the votes as provided in subsections (h) through (m) of this section. The canvassing committee may recess from time to time until it has completed its work.

(h)(1) The canvassing committee shall declare the person receiving the largest number of votes for each office to be elected, and it shall issue a certificate of election, signed by a majority of the canvassing committee, in substantially the following form:

State of Vermont )

) s.s.

................ County )

At .............................. , on the ............ day of ..................... 20 .......... , a canvassing committee appointed by law completed a canvass of the returns cast at a general election held on the ................ day of .............................. , 20 ........ for the office of ..................... . The committee hereby certifies that .......................................... of .................... was duly elected to the office by the voters present and voting.

.........................................

.........................................

(2) The committee shall send or deliver the certificate to the candidate elected. In the case of representatives to the General Assembly, the committee shall also send or deliver a copy of each certificate to the Secretary of State.

(i) In the case of justices of the peace, the town clerk shall send or deliver a certificate signed by the town clerk and one other election official to each candidate elected. The Secretary of State shall provide certificate forms for this purpose. The town clerk shall also file with the Secretary of State a list of the names and addresses of justices of the peace and shall notify the Secretary of State of any changes in the list as filed.

(j) The certificate shall be a sufficient credential of such person's election, unless superseded by a court order as provided by subchapter 9 of this chapter.

(k)(1) In the case of the State offices, the canvassing committee shall prepare a certificate of election but shall not sign it.

(2) The prepared certificate shall be presented to the official canvassing committee appointed by the General Assembly, pursuant to Chapter II, § 47 of the Constitution of the State of Vermont, for their use if they desire.

(l)(1) In the case of a tie vote, the canvassing committee shall forthwith petition the appropriate Superior Court for a recount pursuant to section 2602 of this title.

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection, either of the candidates that is involved in a tie may notify the appropriate Superior Court that he or she is withdrawing, in which case the court shall certify the other candidate as the winner.

(m) Each canvassing committee shall file a report of its findings with the Secretary of State, who shall preserve the reports as permanent records.
17 V.S.A. § 2573 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2573
§ 2573. No counting before polls close
Status: in_force

In towns that do not use vote tabulators, the ballot boxes shall not be opened nor the ballots counted before the closing of the polls. In towns using vote tabulators, the tabulator counts shall not be viewed or printed before the closing of the polls.
17 V.S.A. § 2705 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 57 / Section 2705
§ 2705. Checklist
Status: in_force

The checklist for the primary shall be the checklist to be used at the annual town meeting, except that the names of residents of unorganized towns and gores shall be added to the checklist in the manner provided in section 2123 of this title and it shall be stated next to their names that they are eligible to vote in the presidential primary but not on town meeting items. Towns that do not hold an annual meeting on the first Tuesday or the Monday evening before the first Tuesday in March shall update their checklist before the election as required by chapter 43 of this title.
17 V.S.A. § 2475 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2475
§ 2475. Death or withdrawal of candidate
Status: in_force

When a candidate dies or withdraws and the vacancy is filled as provided in chapter 49 of this title, the name supplied for the vacancy shall be inserted instead of the original nomination. If the ballots have already been printed, the officer who furnished them shall prepare and furnish new ballots. The town clerk in each town shall, upon delivery of the new ballots, immediately destroy all original ballots except those already supplied to or used by early or absentee voters. Such early or absentee voter ballots shall be acceptable and counted with the other ballots.
17 V.S.A. § 2602e — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2602e
§ 2602e. Sorting ballots; ballot review; recount of removed ballots by hand
Status: in_force

(a) Sorting ballots.

(1) While the checklist is being examined, if applicable under section 2602d of this subchapter, after emptying a container onto his or her table, the county clerk shall separate ballots from the container into a number of batches equal to the number of counting teams, with each batch being of approximately equal size.

(2) Each counting team shall take a batch of ballots from the county clerk's table to the counting team's table.

(3) Two persons who represent different candidates on a counting team shall sort that batch into stacks of 50 ballots, and the remaining members of the team shall recount each stack to ensure that there are 50 ballots in it.

(4)(A) The counting teams shall combine any ballots not placed into a stack of 50, and one of those counting teams shall separate those combined ballots into stacks of 50 and recount them in accordance with subdivision (3) of this subsection.

(B) For any final stack that contains fewer than 50 ballots, the county clerk shall affix to the top of that stack a note indicating how many ballots are contained in it.

(b) Ballot review and removal.

(1)(A) For each stack, a counting team shall review each ballot within the stack and remove from that stack each ballot upon which, for the office in question, the voter recorded his or her vote or votes in that race in any manner other than completely filling in the oval to the right of a preprinted candidate's name.

(B) Each counting team shall also remove any plain paper or damaged ballots.

(2) A ballot shall be removed only if at least two members of the counting team agree to its removal.

(3) A ballot without markings for the office in question shall not be removed.

(4) A ballot that is not removed upon this first review shall not be reviewed again.

(c) Delivery of remaining ballots.

(1) Each counting team shall then attach to that stack a note indicating the number of ballots remaining in the stack.

(2) The county clerk shall deliver those remaining ballots to the vote tabulator team.

(d) Hand count of removed ballots; questionable votes.

(1) Each counting team shall then separate the removed ballots into stacks of 50 in accordance with the process set forth in subdivision (a)(3) of this section.

(2) The counting team shall then hand count the votes for the office in question on the removed ballots, and mark the results on a tally sheet for each stack of 50 removed ballots and any remaining stack with less than 50.

(3)(A) This hand count shall be in accordance with the rules for counting ballots set forth in section 2587 of this chapter, except that if two persons on the counting team do not agree on how to count a vote, the ballot shall be set aside as containing a questionable vote.

(B)(i) For any questionable vote, a copy of the ballot shall be made, and this copy shall be clearly marked on its face, identifying it as a copy. Once the recount of a container is completed, any such copies shall be placed on the top of the other ballots and shall remain together with the other ballots.

(ii) Each original ballot with a questionable vote shall be attached to a note that identifies it by town, county, polling place, and container seal number. The originals of these ballots with questionable votes shall be clipped to the summary sheet for that town, along with a copy of the official return of votes, and submitted to the court for a final decision.

(iii) The county clerk shall record the number of ballots containing questionable votes to be submitted to the court on the summary sheet for the town.

(C) At the end of the hand count for a container, two persons from each counting team who represent different candidates shall deliver any tally sheets from their table to the county clerk in the presence of the clerk observer team.

(D) The county clerk, in the presence of the clerk observer team, shall record the totals from each tally sheet onto the summary sheet for the town.

(e) This process shall be completed for as many containers as there are for each town.
17 V.S.A. § 2314 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2314
§ 2314. Officers required
Status: in_force

Every committee of a political party is required to elect a chair, a vice chair, a secretary, and a treasurer, who need not be members of the committee at the time of their election, but who become members, with full voting rights, upon their election. A committee may also elect from among its members such other officers as it deems appropriate to its work.
17 V.S.A. § 1906c — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1906c
§ 1906c. Division of districts having three or more Representatives
Status: in_force

(a) An initial district entitled to three or more Representatives under section 1893 of this title shall be divided into single- and two-member representative districts as provided in this section.

(b) As soon as practical after enactment of a final plan for initial districts under section 1906 of this title, the boards of civil authority of the town or towns within an initial district having three or more Representatives shall meet and prepare a proposal for division of the district. Each board shall have one vote, provided that the proposal shall not provide for a representative district line to be drawn through a town if the board of civil authority of that town objects.

(c) In making a proposal under this section, the boards of civil authority shall consider:

(1) preservation of existing political subdivision lines;

(2) recognition and maintenance of patterns of geography, social interaction, trade, political ties, and common interests;

(3) use of compact and contiguous territory;

(4) incumbencies.

(d) In no initial district divided under this section shall the percentage of deviation result in a representative district that extends the limits of the overall range of the percentage of deviation in the initial district plan for reapportionment enacted by the General Assembly under section 1906 of this title.

(e) On or before April 1 of the year of the general election next after enactment of the final plan under section 1906 of this title, the boards of civil authority of the town or towns within each initial district subject to this section shall present a proposal for division to the Clerk of the House, and the proposal shall be referred to the appropriate committee. If the boards of civil authority are unable to obtain a majority vote on a proposed division, they shall notify the Clerk of the House, on or before April 1, of their failure to agree on a proposal, and the General Assembly shall divide the initial district into representative districts.

(f) Representative districts proposed under this section shall become effective when approved by the General Assembly before adjournment sine die. The General Assembly shall approve representative districts proposed by the boards of civil authority if they are consistent with the standards set forth in this section.
17 V.S.A. § 1843 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 32 / Section 1843
§ 1843. Process of voting; making returns; conduct of meetings
Status: in_force

(a)(1) At those meetings the voters may vote by ballot for or against the article of amendment.

(2) The same officer shall preside in each such meeting as provided in section 2680 of this title.

(b) The board of civil authority shall, in open meeting, receive, sort, and count the votes of the voters for and against the article of amendment and the result shall be declared by the presiding officer. That result shall be recorded by the clerk of the town or city and true returns thereof shall be made, sealed up, and sent by the clerk by mail or otherwise to the Secretary of State as provided in section 2588 of this title.

(c) The polls for voting on the article of amendment shall be open as provided in section 2561 of this title.
17 V.S.A. § 1842 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 32 / Section 1842
§ 1842. Time of voting; warning
Status: in_force

(a) The people shall be assembled for the purpose of voting on the article of amendment in their respective towns and cities at the same time and place as for the general election, on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, in even-numbered years, and the warning for each meeting shall contain an article, in substance as follows:

“To see if the voters will vote to accept or reject the proposed article of amendment to the Constitution of Vermont.”

(b) The omission of that article from the warning shall not invalidate nor affect the vote on the proposed article of amendment, and the voters of each town or city shall vote on the article of amendment whether the warning contains the foregoing article or not.
17 V.S.A. § 2732 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 57 / Section 2732
§ 2732. Meeting of electors
Status: in_force

(a) The electors shall meet at the State House on the first Tuesday after the second Wednesday in December next following their election to vote for the President and Vice President of the United States, agreeably to the laws of the United States.

(b)(1) If there is a vacancy in the electoral college on that day, occasioned by death, refusal to act, neglect to attend, failure of a person elected to qualify, or for other cause, the other electors present shall at once fill such vacancy viva voce and by a plurality of votes.

(2) When all the electors appear or a vacancy therein is filled, the electors shall perform the duties required of them by the Constitution and laws of the United States.

(3) If a vacancy occurs and is filled as aforesaid, the electors shall attach to the certificate of their votes a statement showing how such a vacancy occurred and their action thereon.

(c)(1) Each elector shall vote for the candidates for President and Vice President who were nominated by the same political party or organization that nominated the elector or for the legal successor who has replaced that candidate for President and Vice President due to the candidate's death, resignation, or disqualification.

(2) Each elector shall present the elector's completed ballots to the Secretary of State, who shall examine them.

(3)(A) The Secretary of State shall accept and count the ballots of an elector who has voted for the candidates for President and Vice President required under subdivision (1) of this subsection (c).

(B) The Secretary of State shall not accept and shall not count an elector's ballots if the elector has not marked both ballots or has marked one ballot in violation of subdivision (1) of this subsection (c).

(4) If an elector refuses to present a ballot, presents an unmarked ballot, or presents a ballot marked in violation of subdivision (1) of this subsection, then the elector's office is vacated, the Secretary of State shall declare the creation of the vacancy, and the vacancy shall be filled as set forth in subsection (b) of this section.
17 V.S.A. § 2901 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2901
§ 2901. Definitions
Status: in_force

As used in this chapter:

(1) “Candidate” means an individual who has taken affirmative action to become a candidate for State, county, local, or legislative office in a primary, special, general, or local election. An affirmative action shall include one or more of the following:

(A) accepting contributions or making expenditures totaling $500.00 or more;

(B) filing the requisite petition for nomination under this title or being nominated by primary or caucus; or

(C) announcing that the individual seeks an elected position as a State, county, or local officer or a position as Representative or Senator in the General Assembly.

(2) “Candidate's committee” means the candidate's campaign staff, whether paid or unpaid.

(3) “Clearly identified,” with respect to a candidate, means:

(A) the name of the candidate appears;

(B) a photograph or drawing of the candidate appears; or

(C) the identity of the candidate is apparent by unambiguous reference.

(4) “Contribution” means a payment, distribution, advance, deposit, loan, or gift of money or anything of value, paid or promised to be paid for the purpose of influencing an election, advocating a position on a public question, or supporting or opposing one or more candidates in any election. As used in this chapter, “contribution” shall not include any of the following:

(A) a personal loan of money to a candidate from a lending institution made in the ordinary course of business;

(B) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering their time on behalf of a candidate, political committee, or political party;

(C) unreimbursed travel expenses paid for by an individual for himself or herself who volunteers personal services to a candidate;

(D) unreimbursed campaign-related travel expenses paid for by the candidate or the candidate's spouse;

(E) the use by a candidate or volunteer of his or her own personal property, including offices, telephones, computers, and similar equipment;

(F) the use of a political party's offices, telephones, computers, and similar equipment;

(G) the payment by a political party of the costs of preparation, display, or mailing or other distribution of a party candidate listing;

(H) documents, in printed or electronic form, including party platforms, single copies of issue papers, information pertaining to the requirements of this title, lists of registered voters, and voter identification information created, obtained, or maintained by a political party for the general purpose of party building and provided to a candidate who is a member of that party or to another political party;

(I) compensation paid by a political party to its employees whose job responsibilities are not for the specific and exclusive benefit of a single candidate in any election;

(J) compensation paid by a political party to its employees or consultants for the purpose of providing assistance to another political party;

(K) campaign training sessions provided to three or more candidates;

(L) costs paid for by a political party in connection with a campaign event at which three or more candidates are present; or

(M) activity or communication designed to encourage individuals to register to vote or to vote if that activity or communication does not mention or depict a clearly identified candidate.

(5) “Election” means the procedure whereby the voters of this State or any of its political subdivisions select a person to be a candidate for public office or to fill a public office or to act on public questions, including voting on constitutional amendments. Each primary, general, special, or local election shall constitute a separate election.

(6) “Electioneering communication” means any communication that refers to a clearly identified candidate for office and that promotes or supports a candidate for that office or attacks or opposes a candidate for that office, regardless of whether the communication expressly advocates a vote for or against a candidate, including communications published in any newspaper or periodical or broadcast on radio or television or over the internet or any public address system; placed on any billboards, outdoor facilities, buttons, or printed material attached to motor vehicles, window displays, posters, cards, pamphlets, leaflets, flyers, or other circulars; or contained in any direct mailing, robotic phone calls, or mass electronic or digital communications.

(7) “Expenditure” means a payment, disbursement, distribution, advance, deposit, loan, or gift of money or anything of value, paid or promised to be paid, for the purpose of influencing an election, advocating a position on a public question, or supporting or opposing one or more candidates.

(A) Expenditures may include those expenses that are necessary to allow a candidate to campaign, such as expenses for the care of a dependent family member that are incurred as a direct result of campaign activity.

(B) As used in this chapter, “expenditure” shall not include any of the following:

(i) a personal loan of money to a candidate from a lending institution made in the ordinary course of business;

(ii) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering their time on behalf of a candidate, political committee, or political party;

(iii) unreimbursed travel expenses paid for by an individual for himself or herself who volunteers personal services to a candidate; or

(iv) unreimbursed campaign-related travel expenses paid for by the candidate or the candidate's spouse.

(8) “Four-year general election cycle” means the 48-month period that begins 38 days after a general election for a four-year-term office.

(9) “Full name” means an individual's full first name, middle name or initial, if any, and full legal last name, making the identity of the person who made the contribution apparent by unambiguous reference.

(10) “Independent expenditure-only political committee” means any one or more individuals, or any corporation, labor organization, public interest group, or other entity, excluding a political party, that accepts contributions or makes expenditures in any amounts within any two-year general election cycle for the purpose of supporting or opposing candidates, influencing an election, or advocating for or against a public question; conducts its activities entirely independent of candidates; does not give contributions to candidates, political committees, or political parties; does not make related expenditures; and is not closely related to a political party or to a political committee that makes contributions to candidates or makes related expenditures. “Independent expenditure-only political committee” includes any “self-funded individual,” meaning an individual who receives no contributions from any other source for the purpose of supporting or opposing candidates, influencing an election, or advocating for or against a public question.

(11) “Mass media activity” means a television commercial, radio commercial, internet advertisement, mass mailing, mass electronic or digital communication, literature drop, newspaper or periodical advertisement, robotic phone call, or telephone bank, that includes the name or likeness of a clearly identified candidate for office.

(12) “Party candidate listing” means any communication by a political party that:

(A) lists the names of at least three candidates for election to public office;

(B) is distributed through public advertising such as broadcast stations, cable television, newspapers, and similar media or through direct mail, telephone, electronic mail, a publicly accessible site on the internet, or personal delivery;

(C) treats all candidates in the communication in a substantially similar manner; and

(D) is limited to:

(i) the identification of each candidate, with which pictures may be used;

(ii) the offices sought;

(iii) the offices currently held by the candidates;

(iv) the party affiliation of the candidates and a brief statement about the party or the candidates' positions, philosophy, goals, accomplishments, or biographies;

(v) encouragement to vote for the candidates identified; and

(vi) information about voting, such as voting hours and locations.

(13) “Political committee” or “political action committee” means any formal or informal committee of one or more individuals or a corporation, labor organization, public interest group, or other entity, not including a political party, that accepts contributions or makes expenditures in any amounts in any two-year general election cycle for the purpose of supporting or opposing one or more candidates, influencing an election, or advocating a position on a public question in any election, and includes a legislative leadership political committee.

(14) “Political party” means a political party organized under chapter 45 of this title and any committee established, financed, maintained, or controlled by the party, including any subsidiary, branch, or local unit thereof, and shall be considered a single, unified political party. The national affiliate of the political party shall be considered a separate political party.

(15) “Public question” means an issue that is before the voters for a binding decision.

(16) “Single source” means an individual, partnership, corporation, association, labor organization, or any other organization or group of persons that is not a political committee or political party.

(17) “Telephone bank” means more than 500 telephone calls of an identical or substantially similar nature that are made to the general public within any 30-day period.

(18) “Two-year general election cycle” means the 24-month period that begins 38 days after a general election.

(19) “Legislative leadership political committee” means a political committee established by or on behalf of a political party caucus within a chamber of the General Assembly.
17 V.S.A. § 1907 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1907
§ 1907. Senate apportionment
Status: in_force

(a)(1) On or before July 1 of each year following the taking of a decennial census under the authority of Congress, the Board shall prepare a proposal for reapportionment of the Senate, apportioning the 30 senatorial seats among the counties or combinations of counties with a maximum of three members in each proposed district, and in such manner as to achieve substantial equality in the choice of members as guaranteed by the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

(2) The Chair of the Board shall transmit such proposal to the Secretary of the Senate and it shall be referred to the appropriate committee.

(b) The General Assembly shall then accept the proposal and enact it into law or enact into law a substitute plan for reapportionment of the Senate that limits each senatorial district to a maximum of three members.
17 V.S.A. § 2358 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2358
§ 2358. Examining petitions; supplementary petitions
Status: in_force

(a) The officer with whom primary petitions are filed shall examine them and ascertain whether they contain a sufficient number of legible signatures. The officer shall not attempt to ascertain whether there are a sufficient number of signatures of actual voters, however, unless the officer has reason to believe that the petitions are defective in this respect.

(b) If found not to conform, the officer shall state in writing on a particular petition why it cannot be accepted, and within two business days from receipt, the officer shall return it to the candidate in whose behalf it was filed. In such case, supplementary petitions may be filed not later than 10 days after the date for filing petitions. However, supplementary petitions shall not be accepted if petitions with signatures of different persons totaling at least the required number were not received by the filing deadline.

(c) A signature shall not count for the purpose of meeting the requirements of section 2355 of this title if the officer with whom primary petitions are filed:

(1) cannot identify the name of the person who signed; or

(2) if necessary, determines that the person is not on the checklist of the town that the person indicates as his or her town of residence.

(d) An officer with whom primary petitions may be filed may obtain from the appropriate town clerks certified copies of current checklists as needed to verify the adequacy of primary petitions; town clerks who are asked by a filing officer to furnish certified copies of checklists for this purpose shall furnish the copies promptly and without charge.
17 V.S.A. § 2751 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 58 / Section 2751
§ 2751. Article I-Membership
Status: in_force

Any state of the United States and the District of Columbia may become a member of this agreement by enacting this agreement.
17 V.S.A. § 2654 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2654
§ 2654. Refusal to serve
Status: in_force

A person may refuse to accept election or appointment to any municipal office.
17 V.S.A. § 1904 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1904
§ 1904. Legislative Apportionment Board
Status: in_force

(a) There is hereby created the Legislative Apportionment Board, consisting of: a special master designated by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court; one resident of the State of Vermont for five years immediately preceding the appointment, appointed by the Governor from each political party that has had more than three members serve as members of the General Assembly, who are not all from the same county, for at least three of the five biennial legislative sessions since the taking of the previous decennial census of the United States; and one resident of the State of Vermont for the five years immediately preceding the appointment, elected by the State committee of each of those political parties, a quorum of each committee being present and voting. No member of the Board shall serve as a member or employee of the General Assembly, or of either house thereof. The special master so designated shall be Chair of the Board, and shall call such meetings as may be necessary for the accomplishment of the duties of the Board hereafter set forth. The Secretary of State of Vermont shall be secretary of the Board, but shall have no vote. For the purpose of determining representation of a political party under this section, if a candidate for election to the General Assembly accepted a nomination from more than one political party, that candidate's party affiliation shall be only that political party to which he or she filed a petition for nomination.

(b) Members of the Board shall first be selected on or before July 1, 1990, and thereafter members shall be selected decennially before July 1 and shall serve until their successors are selected. The appointing or electing authority shall fill vacancies.

(c) For administrative purposes, the Board shall be part of the office of the Secretary of State, and funds for the Board's operation shall be appropriated for the Secretary of State, provided, however, that expenditures of such appropriation shall be directed by the Board.

(d) Members of the Board not receiving a salary from the State shall receive per diem compensation and expenses as provided in 32 V.S.A. § 1010.

(e) The Board may employ or contract for such expert assistants or services, or both, as may be necessary to carry out its duties.
17 V.S.A. § 2946 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2946
§ 2946. Candidate's attribution to previous cycle
Status: in_force

A candidate's expenditures related to a previous campaign and contributions used to retire a debt of a previous campaign shall be attributed to the earlier campaign.
17 V.S.A. § 2371 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2371
§ 2371. Nominees; notice to nominees
Status: in_force

(a) The canvassing committee shall prepare and sign certificates of nomination and mail or deliver in person to each candidate nominated a notice of his or her nomination within two days after their meeting. On each certificate the canvassing committee shall indicate the name, town of residence, party affiliation, and mailing address of the candidate nominated. At the same time that they mail or deliver the certificates of nomination, the canvassing committees shall also file with the office of the Secretary of State a list showing the vote for each candidate of each party for each office.

(b) Unless a person who is notified of being nominated withdraws the candidacy, the person's name, residence, and party affiliation shall be printed upon the general election ballot in the same manner as they appear in the notice of nomination; provided, however, that within five days of the date of mailing or personal delivery a candidate may request that an error in the candidate's name, residence, or party affiliation be corrected or that the candidate's preference as to the candidate's own name be used on the ballot. The candidate shall also have the right to make the choice as set forth in section 2474 of this title.
17 V.S.A. § 2458 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2458
§ 2458. Complaint procedure
Status: in_force

(a) The Secretary of State shall adopt rules to establish a uniform and nondiscriminatory complaint procedure to be used by any person who believes that a violation of this title or any other provision of 52 U.S.C. chapter 209, subchapter III (Uniform and Nondiscriminatory Election Technology and Administration Requirements) has occurred, is occurring, or is about to occur in the course of any election in which a candidate for federal office appears on the ballot.

(b) As used in this section, “complaint” means a statement in writing made by a voter stating, with particularity, the violation, notarized, and sworn or affirmed under penalty of perjury.

(c) The Secretary's rules shall provide for an informal proceeding to hear complaints for all complainants unless a formal hearing is requested. Formal complaints held pursuant to this section shall be in conformance with the rules adopted by the Secretary.

(d) Any decision of the Secretary may be appealed to the Superior Court in the county where the individual resides.
17 V.S.A. § 2602i — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2602i
§ 2602i. Costs
Status: in_force

(a) Recount committee members and assistants designated by the county clerk shall be paid by the State at the same per diem and mileage rates and according to the same procedures by which jurors are paid.

(b)(1) These and other necessary expenses, as approved by the court, shall be paid by the State through the Court Administrator's Office.

(2) The Secretary of State shall bear the costs of recounts conducted under this subchapter and shall reimburse the Court Administrator's Office.
17 V.S.A. § 2649 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2649
§ 2649. Number of officers
Status: in_force

(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 of this chapter or the town has voted to eliminate the office of lister under the provisions of section 2651c of this chapter; and

(C) three auditors, unless the town has voted to eliminate the office of auditor under the provisions of section 2651b of this chapter.

(2) Except as otherwise provided, at each annual meeting, one selectboard member, one lister, and one auditor shall be elected, each for a term of three years.

(b) A town so voting may elect one or two road commissioners for a term of one, two, or three years, as provided in section 2646 of this chapter.

(c) A town so voting may elect three water commissioners. The terms of the water commissioners shall be the same as those of selectboard members under sections 2646 and 2650 of this chapter, except that of those commissioners first elected, one shall have a term of one year, one a term of two years, and one a term of three years. One or two additional water commissioners may be authorized for one- or two-year terms as provided in subsection 2650(b) of this chapter relating to additional selectboard members.
17 V.S.A. § 2902 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2902
§ 2902. Exceptions
Status: in_force

The definitions of “contribution,” “expenditure,” and “electioneering communication” shall not apply to:

(1) any news story, commentary, or editorial distributed through the facilities of any broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical publication that has not been paid for or such facilities are not owned or controlled by any political party, committee, or candidate; or

(2) any communication distributed through a public access television station if the communication complies with the laws and rules governing the station and if all candidates in the race have an equal opportunity to promote their candidacies through the station.
17 V.S.A. § 2306 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2306
§ 2306. Procedure upon failure to hold caucus
Status: in_force

If the voters of the party residing in any town fail to hold a caucus on the day designated by the State chair, any three or more voters of the party residing in the town may call and hold a caucus at any time thereafter, in the manner provided in sections 2303 through 2305 of this title. Those voters calling the caucus shall designate one person among them to perform the duties prescribed in section 2303 for the town chair.
17 V.S.A. § 2542 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2542
§ 2542. Signing certificate
Status: in_force

(a) There shall be printed on the face of the envelope provided for use in returning early voter absentee ballots a certificate in substantially the following form:

“Early or Absentee Voter Ballots of __________ ”

(print your name)

I, ___________ , solemnly swear or affirm that I am a resident of the town (city) of _________ , State of Vermont, and that I am a legal voter in this town (city).

_________________________________________

(your signature)

(b) The early or absentee voter must sign the certificate on the outside of the envelope in order for the ballot to be valid. When an early or absentee voter is physically unable to sign his or her name, he or she may mark an “X” or take an oath swearing or affirming to the statement on the certificate. The officers who deliver the ballots shall witness the mark or oath and sign their names with a statement attesting to this fact on the envelope.
17 V.S.A. § 1816 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1816
§ 1816. Form of ballot
Status: in_force

The form of the ballot to be used shall be as follows:

DELEGATES TO CONVENTION TO VOTE UPON THE FOLLOWING PROPOSED AMENDMENT TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES:

(Here shall follow the text of the proposed amendment.)

Instructions

To vote for all the delegates who stand For Ratification, make an (X) in the square at the head of the column marked NAMES FOR RATIFICATION. To vote for all the delegates who stand Against Ratification, make a cross (X) in the square at the head of the column marked NAMES AGAINST RATIFICATION. If you do not wish to vote for every candidate in one column, make a cross (X) opposite the name of the candidates of your choice, not to exceed fourteen in all. If you do not wish to vote for the candidates named in the column “For Ratification” or the candidates named in the column “Against Ratification” you may write in the names of other delegates not to exceed fourteen in number in the spaces provided below. Ballots on which more than fourteen names are marked will be considered defective.

[insert wide measure camera copy here]
17 V.S.A. § 2360 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2360
§ 2360. Preservation of petitions
Status: in_force

The Secretary of State and county and town clerks shall retain the primary petitions filed with them until 30 days following the general election for which they were used, at which time they may be destroyed.
17 V.S.A. § 2145 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2145
§ 2145. Application forms
Status: repealed

(a) The voter registration application shall be in the form approved by the Federal Election Commission or by the Secretary of State. The application form approved by the Secretary shall include:

(1) A place for the applicant to swear or affirm, by checking the appropriate box, that he or she meets all voter eligibility requirements set forth in section 2121 of this title and a place for the signature of the applicant affirming, under penalty of perjury, that all information submitted by the applicant is accurate and truthful. The affirmation shall include the following information:

(A) The applicant's place and date of birth.

(B) The applicant's town of legal residence.

(C) The applicant's street address or a description of the physical location of the applicant's residence. The description must contain sufficient information so that the town clerk can determine whether the applicant is a resident of the town.

(D)(i) If the applicant has been issued a current and valid driver's license or nondriver's identification, the applicant's driver's license number or nondriver's identification number;

(ii) If the applicant does not possess a driver's license number, the last four digits of the applicant's Social Security number; or

(iii) If the applicant does not possess a Social Security number, the town clerk shall contact the Secretary of State and the Secretary shall assign a unique identifier for the applicant.

(E) The applicant's email address, which shall be optional to provide.

(2) The voter's oath.

(3) Space for the town clerk to document action on the application.

(4) The following statements:

(A) “If you were provided with this application form by a voter registration agency, you may decline to register. If you decline to register, your failure to register will remain confidential and will be used only for voter registration purposes.”

(B) “If you are submitting this application through a voter registration agency, the office through which you submitted this application will remain confidential and will be used only for voter registration purposes.”

(5) [Repealed.]

(b) [Repealed.]

(c) A board of civil authority or town clerk may not require a person to complete any form other than that approved under subsection (a) of this section or section 2145a of this title; nor may the board of civil authority or the town clerk require all applicants or any particular class or group of applicants to appear personally before a meeting of the board or routinely or as a matter of policy require applicants to submit additional information to verify or otherwise support the information contained in the application form.

(d) When the board of civil authority acts on an application to add a name to the checklist, it or, upon request of the board, the town clerk shall notify the applicant by returning one copy of the completed application to the applicant and shall notify the town in which the applicant was last registered to vote, whether within or without the State of Vermont, by submitting the notification electronically within the statewide voter checklist system or by mailing a copy of the completed application to that town before adding the applicant's name and mailing address to the checklist. The original application shall be filed in the office of the town clerk.

(e) The Secretary of State shall provide each town clerk and voter registration agency with a sufficient number of forms at State expense.

(f) A person who makes a false statement in completing a voter registration application form or the voter registration portion of an application for a motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card or of an application for the services of a designated automatic voter registration agency knowing the statement to be false shall be subject to the penalties of perjury as provided in 13 V.S.A. § 2901, except that a person who is not eligible to register to vote and who otherwise completes the application accurately shall not be considered to have made a false statement under this subsection by his or her unintentional failure to decline to register on a motor vehicle driver's license or nondriver identification card application under section 2145a of this chapter or on a designated automatic voter registration agency's application under subsection 2145b(e) of this chapter.

(g) A voter who moves from one address in a town in which that voter is registered to another address in the same town, or whose name has been changed, shall not be required to reapply as provided in this section, but shall notify the town clerk of his or her new name or address, unless such information has been provided to the Department of Motor Vehicles or a voter registration agency, so that the voter's name may be changed or transferred, if necessary, to the proper subdivision of the checklist. The voter registration application form may be used to notify the clerk or the board that the voter has changed his or her name or address.
17 V.S.A. § 1824 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1824
§ 1824. Compensation
Status: in_force

The compensation of each delegate shall be $10.00 and actual expenses.
17 V.S.A. § 2967 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2967
§ 2967. Additional campaign reports; candidates for State office and the General Assembly
Status: in_force

(a) In addition to any other reports required to be filed under this chapter, a candidate for State office or for the General Assembly who accepts a monetary contribution in an amount over $2,000.00 within 10 days of a primary or general election shall report the contribution to the Secretary of State within 24 hours of receiving the contribution.

(b) A report required by this section shall include the following information:

(1) the full name, town of residence, and mailing address of the contributor; the date of the contribution; and the amount contributed; and

(2) the amount contributed or loaned by the candidate to his or her own campaign.
17 V.S.A. § 2012 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 2012
§ 2012. Procuring change in list wrongfully
Status: in_force

A person who, directly or indirectly, procures or causes to be procured or aids in procuring the name of a person to be inserted on a checklist of voters, knowing such person not to be a voter in the political subdivision for which such list is made or, directly or indirectly, procures or causes to be procured or aids in procuring the name of a person to be erased from such list, knowing him or her to be a legal voter in such political subdivision, shall be fined not more than $200.00.
17 V.S.A. § 2643 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2643
§ 2643. Special meetings
Status: repealed

(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 the municipal clerk. A voter may withdraw his or her name from a petition for a special meeting at any time prior to the signing of the warning by a majority of the legislative body.

(b) [Repealed.]

(c) The legislative body may rescind the call of a special meeting called by them but not a special meeting called on application of five percent of the voters.
17 V.S.A. § 2521 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2521
§ 2521. Warnings and notices
Status: in_force

(a) Not less than 30 days before the election, the town clerk shall cause a warning and notice to be posted informing the voters of the town about the election.

(1) The warning shall include the date and time of the election, location of the polling place or places, nature of the election, and offices or questions to be voted upon.

(2) The notice shall contain information on voter registration and early or absentee voting, on how to obtain ballots, mark them, get help marking them, and obtain new ballots if an error is made; information about offenses relating to elections; instructions on how to get help if there is a problem on election day; instructions for registrants by mail; instructions for first-time voters; instructions on who may cast a provisional ballot; instructions on how to cast a provisional ballot; information on federal and State laws prohibiting fraud and misrepresentation; instructions on how to contact the appropriate official if a person believes any of his or her rights to vote have been violated; and other appropriate information.

(3) The warning and notice shall be posted in at least two public places within each town and in or near the town clerk's office. If a town has more than one polling place, the warning and notice shall be posted in at least two public places within each voting district and in or near the town clerk's office.

(4) The checklist shall also be posted as required in section 2141 of this title.

(b) The Secretary of State shall prepare forms for the warning and notice and shall furnish each town clerk with at least five copies of the forms for each polling place in the town at least five days before they must be posted. Information required in the warnings and notices that varies from town to town shall be left blank by the Secretary of State and filled in by the town clerk.
17 V.S.A. § 1932 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 1932
§ 1932. Counting ballots and opening ballot boxes before proper time
Status: in_force

A presiding officer at a primary or general election who allows the ballots for representative to the General Assembly, or State, county, or congressional officers to be counted or, except as provided in section 2499 of this title, the ballot box containing the same to be opened before the closing of the polls shall be fined not more than $200.00 nor less than $20.00.
17 V.S.A. § 2755 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 58 / Section 2755
§ 2755. Article V-Definitions
Status: in_force

For purposes of this agreement:

(1) “Chief election official” shall mean the state official or body that is authorized to certify the total number of popular votes for each presidential slate.

(2) “Chief executive” shall mean the governor of a state of the United States or the mayor of the District of Columbia.

(3) “Elector slate” shall mean a slate of candidates who have been nominated in a state for the position of presidential elector in association with a presidential slate.

(4) “Presidential elector” shall mean an elector for President and Vice President of the United States.

(5) “Presidential elector certifying official” shall mean the state official or body that is authorized to certify the appointment of the state's presidential electors.

(6) “Presidential slate” shall mean a slate of two persons, the first of whom has been nominated as a candidate for President of the United States and the second of whom has been nominated as a candidate for Vice President of the United States, or any legal successors to such persons, regardless of whether both names appear on the ballot presented to the voter in a particular state.

(7) “State” shall mean a state of the United States and the District of Columbia; and

(8) “Statewide popular election” shall mean a general election in which votes are cast for presidential slates by individual voters and counted on a statewide basis.
17 V.S.A. § 2414 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2414
§ 2414. Candidates for State and legislative office; disclosure form
Status: in_force

[Subsection (a) effective until January 1, 2026; see also subsection (a) effective January 1, 2026 set out below.]

(a) Each candidate for State office, State Senator, or State Representative shall file with the officer with whom consent of candidate forms are filed, along with his or her consent, a disclosure form prepared by the State Ethics Commission that contains the following information in regard to the previous calendar year:

(1) Each source, but not amount, of personal income of the candidate and of his or her spouse or domestic partner, and of the candidate together with his or her spouse or domestic partner, that totals more than $5,000.00, including any of the sources meeting that total described as follows:

(A) employment, including the employer or business name and address and, if self-employed, a description of the nature of the self-employment without needing to disclose any individual clients; and

(B) investments, described generally as “investment income.”

(2) Any board, commission, or other entity that is regulated by law or that receives funding from the State on which the candidate served and the candidate's position on that entity.

(3) Any company of which the candidate or his or her spouse or domestic partner, or the candidate together with his or her spouse or domestic partner, owned more than 10 percent.

(4) Any lease or contract with the State held or entered into by:

(A) the candidate or his or her spouse or domestic partner; or

(B) a company of which the candidate or his or her spouse or domestic partner, or the candidate together with his or her spouse or domestic partner, owned more than 10 percent.

[Subsection (a) effective January 1, 2026; see also subsection (a) effective until January 1, 2026 set out above.]

(a) Each candidate for State office, county office, State Senator, or State Representative shall file with the officer with whom consent of candidate forms are filed, along with the candidate's consent, a disclosure form created and maintained by the State Ethics Commission that contains the following information in regard to the previous 12 months:

(1) each source, but not amount, of personal income of the candidate and of the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, and of the candidate together with the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, that totals more than $5,000.00:

(A) including the candidate's employer or business name and address; and

(B) if self-employed, a description of the nature of the self-employment, including the names of any clients whose principal business activities are regulated by or that have a contract with any municipal or State office, department, or agency, provided that this information is known to the candidate or the candidate's domestic partner and that the disclosed information is not confidential information;

(2) any board, commission, or other entity that is regulated by law on which the candidate served and the candidate's position on that entity;

(3)(A) any company of which the candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, or the candidate together with the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, owned more than 10 percent; and

(B) the details of any loan made to or by any applicable company in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3) that is not a commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course of business, including any borrower and lender;

(4) any company of which the candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, or the candidate together with the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, had an ownership or controlling interest in any amount, and in the previous 12 months the company had business before or with any municipal or State office, agency, or department;

(5) any lease or contract with the State held or entered into by:

(A) the candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner; or

(B) a company of which the candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, or the candidate together with the candidate's spouse or domestic partner, owned more than 10 percent;

(6) a generalized description, but not amount, to the best of the candidate's knowledge, of the following investments held by a candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner:

(A) individual stock holdings valued at $25,000.00 or more, which a candidate exercises control over or has the ability to buy or sell, which shall be listed individually;

(B) interests in investment funds valued at $25,000.00 or more that a candidate or the candidate's spouse or domestic partner has the ability to exercise control over the composition of assets within a fund, which shall be listed individually;

(C) interests in virtual currencies, as defined in 8 V.S.A. § 2500, valued at $25,000.00 or more, which shall be listed individually;

(D) interests in trusts valued at $25,000.00 or more, which shall be listed individually;

(E) municipal or State bonds issued in the State of Vermont valued at $25,000.00 or more, which shall be listed individually; and

(F) the details of any loan valued at $10,000.00 or more, made to the candidate or the candidate's spouse that is not a commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course of business; and

(7) the full name of the candidate's spouse or domestic partner.

[Subsection (b) effective until January 1, 2026; see also subsection (b) effective January 1, 2026 set out below.]

(b) In addition, if a candidate's spouse or domestic partner is a lobbyist, the candidate shall disclose that fact and provide the name of his or her spouse or domestic partner and, if applicable, the name of his or her lobbying firm.

[Subsection (b) effective January 1, 2026; see also subsection (b) effective until January 1, 2026 set out above.]

(b) In addition, if a candidate's spouse or domestic partner is a lobbyist, the candidate shall disclose that fact and provide the name of the candidate's spouse or domestic partner and, if applicable, the name of the lobbying firm.

[Subsection (c) effective until January 1, 2026; see also subsection (c) effective January 1, 2026 set out below.]

(c) In addition, each candidate for State office shall attach to the disclosure form described in subsection (a) of this section a copy of his or her most recent U.S. Individual Income Tax Return Form 1040; provided, however, that the candidate may redact from that form the following information:

(1) the candidate's Social Security number and that of his or her spouse, if applicable;

(2) the names of any dependent and the dependent's Social Security number; and

(3) the signature of the candidate and that of his or her spouse, if applicable.

[Subsection (c) effective January 1, 2026; see also subsection (c) effective until January 1, 2026 set out above.]

(c) In addition, each candidate for State office shall attach to the disclosure form described in subsection (a) of this section a copy of the candidate's most recent U.S. Individual Income Tax Return Form 1040; provided, however, that the candidate may redact from that form the following information:

(1) the candidate's Social Security number and that of the candidate's spouse, if applicable;

(2) the names of any dependent and the dependent's Social Security number;

(3) the signature of the candidate and that of the candidate's spouse, if applicable;

(4) the candidate's street address; and

(5) any identifying information and signature of a paid preparer.

[Subsection (d) effective until January 1, 2026; see also subsection (d) effective January 1, 2026 set out below.]

(d)(1) A senatorial district clerk or representative district clerk who receives a disclosure form under this section shall forward a copy of the disclosure to the Secretary of State within three business days of receiving it.

(2)(A) The Secretary of State shall post a copy of any disclosure forms and tax returns he or she receives under this section on his or her official State website. The forms shall remain posted on the Secretary's website until the date of the filing deadline for petition and consent forms for major party candidates for the statewide primary in the following election cycle.

(B) Prior to posting, the Secretary shall redact from a tax return the information permitted to be redacted under subsection (c) of this section, if the candidate fails to do so.

[Subsection (d) effective January 1, 2026; see also subsection (d) effective until January 1, 2026 set out above.]

(d)(1) A senatorial district clerk or representative district clerk who receives a disclosure form under this section shall forward a copy of the disclosure to the Secretary of State within three business days after receiving it.

(2)(A) The Secretary of State shall post a copy of any disclosure forms and tax returns the Secretary receives under this section on the Secretary's official State website. The forms shall remain posted on the Secretary's website until the date of the filing deadline for petition and consent forms for major party candidates for the statewide primary in the following election cycle.

(B) Prior to posting, the Secretary shall redact from a tax return the information permitted to be redacted under subsection (c) of this section, if the candidate fails to do so.

[Subsection (e) effective until January 1, 2026; see also subsection (e) effective January 1, 2026 set out below.]

(e) As used in this section:

(1) “Domestic partner” means an individual with whom the candidate has an enduring domestic relationship of a spousal nature, as long as the candidate and the domestic partner:

(A) have shared a residence for at least six consecutive months;

(B) are at least 18 years of age;

(C) are not married to or considered a domestic partner of another individual;

(D) are not related by blood closer than would bar marriage under State law; and

(E) have agreed between themselves to be responsible for each other's welfare.

(2) “Lobbyist” and “lobbying firm” shall have the same meanings as in 2 V.S.A. § 261.

[Subsection (e) effective January 1, 2026; see also subsection (e) effective until January 1, 2026 set out above.]

(e) As used in this section:

(1) “Commercially reasonable loan made in the ordinary course of business” means a loan made:

(A) in the usual manner on any recognized market;

(B) at the price current in any recognized market at the time of making the loan; or

(C) otherwise in conformity with reasonable commercial practices among lenders typically dealing in the type of loan made.

(2) “Confidential information” means information that is exempt from public inspection and copying under 1 V.S.A. § 315 et seq. or is otherwise designated by law as confidential.

(3) “County office” means the office of assistant judge of the Superior Court, high bailiff, judge of Probate, sheriff, or State's Attorney.

(4) “Domestic partner” means an individual with whom the candidate has an enduring domestic relationship of a spousal nature, provided the candidate and the domestic partner:

(A) have shared a residence for at least six consecutive months;

(B) are at least 18 years of age;

(C) are not married to or considered a domestic partner of another individual;

(D) are not related by blood closer than would bar marriage under State law; and

(E) have agreed between themselves to be responsible for each other's welfare.

(5) “Lobbyist” and “lobbying firm” have the same meanings as in 2 V.S.A. § 261.

(6) “Investment fund” means a widely held investment fund that is publicly traded or available, including a mutual fund, regulated investment company, common trust fund maintained by a bank or similar financial institution, pension or deferred compensation plan, and any other pooled investment fund.
17 V.S.A. § 2523 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2523
§ 2523. Posting at polling place on election day
Status: in_force

(a) Before the polls open on election day, the presiding officer shall post copies of the warning and notice and the sample ballots conspicuously in and about the polling place so that voters can reasonably be expected to see them before voting.

(b) The presiding officer shall ensure that signs are placed on or near the ballot boxes informing voters of procedures for depositing ballots. The Secretary of State shall supply the signs.
17 V.S.A. § 2352 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2352
§ 2352. Nomination of candidates prior to special election
Status: in_force

When the Governor or any court, pursuant to law, orders a special election to be held for any of the offices covered by section 2351 of this title, a special primary election shall be held on the Tuesday that falls not less than 60 days nor more than 66 days prior to the date set for the special election. The nomination of candidates prior to a special election, including nomination both by primary and by other means, shall be governed by the rules applicable to nomination of candidates prior to the general election, except as may be specifically provided in this chapter. The term “general election,” as used in this chapter, shall be deemed to include a special election, unless the context requires a different interpretation.
17 V.S.A. § 2452 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2452
§ 2452. Presiding officer
Status: in_force

(a) The town clerk shall be the presiding officer unless the town by vote at an annual meeting or by charter shall provide otherwise. If the regular presiding officer is unavailable or unable to preside at any given election, then the board of civil authority shall promptly appoint a voter of the town to serve as the presiding officer at that election.

(b) If more than one polling place is used, the board shall appoint a presiding officer for each additional polling place. These presiding officers for additional polling places shall be appointed for no more than two year terms, but may be reappointed and may have their appointments revoked.
17 V.S.A. § 2602c — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2602c
§ 2602c. Preparation for recount; general rules
Status: in_force

(a) Recount area; preserving order.

(1)(A) The county clerk shall designate an area within which the recount shall take place.

(B) Persons who are not committee members or who have not been designated as impartial assistants by the county clerk shall be permitted to view the recount in progress, but shall not be permitted within the recount area.

(2) The county clerk shall preserve order. If a person, after notice, is persistently disorderly and refuses to withdraw from the premises, the county clerk may cause the person to be removed from the premises.

(b) Preliminary requirements. Before the recount begins and any containers are opened:

(1) Explaining procedures. The county clerk shall explain the recount procedures that are to be followed and shall answer questions relating to such procedures.

(2) Blank ballots; vote tabulator test.

(A) The county clerk shall obtain blank ballots from the town clerks of the towns subject to the recount. These blank ballots shall be used as test ballots to perform the vote tabulator test described in this subdivision (2).

(B)(i) The vote tabulator team shall perform a test of the vote tabulators that will be used by marking and feeding into each tabulator a minimum of 10 test ballots. The test ballots shall be marked with various votes for each candidate for the office subject to the recount.

(ii) If more than one memory card is to be used, such a test shall be performed for each memory card.

(C) If a vote tabulator does not tabulate these votes accurately, it shall not be used.

(D) Once the test is completed, these ballots and the tabulator tape containing the results of the test shall be sealed in an envelope that shall be dated and marked “TEST BALLOTS—DO NOT COUNT.” This envelope shall then be kept separate from the rest of the containers.

(c) Tables. Each team shall have a separate table and the county clerk shall have a separate table, and all of these tables shall be spaced apart.

(d) Separating containers, polling places, and towns. Each recount team shall:

(1) recount the contents of one container before opening another container at its table;

(2) recount the contents of all the containers relating to one polling place before moving to those of another polling place; and

(3) complete the recount for one town before moving to material relating to another town.

(e) Recording containers. For each town, the number of containers shall be counted and recorded on the summary sheet for that town.

(f) Inspecting containers and seals.

(1) Containers. Before opening, each container shall be inspected, and if no tag is present, replacement manila tags shall be affixed, specifying date of election and name of town and polling place.

(2) Seals.

(A) Each seal shall be inspected to see if it is intact, and the county clerk shall attach to any container with a defective seal a tag stating that the seal was defective and containing the information that was contained on the defective seal.

(B) If a seal number does not match the seal number reported by the town clerk on the official return of votes, the county clerk shall contact the town clerk to request an explanation for that difference. The county clerk shall record any explanation on the summary sheet for that town.

(g) Uncounted containers. Uncounted containers shall be kept in one part of the room and moved to the other side as they are counted.

(h) Checklist container. If there is more than one container from a polling place, the county clerk shall open first the container that is identified as containing the checklist, if applicable.

(i) Opening containers. The county clerk shall empty the contents of each container onto his or her table in the presence of the clerk observer team.

(j) Materials not to be distributed. The county clerk shall ensure that teams are not given, and the teams shall not count:

(1) ballots marked defective or contained in a defective ballot envelope;

(2) unused ballots that were not distributed to voters; or

(3) ballots returned by voters who requested replacement ballots, or ballots contained in a replaced ballot envelope.

(k) Recording defective ballots. In the presence of the clerk observer team, the county clerk shall mark the number of defective ballots from the official return of votes for each town on the summary sheet for that town.
17 V.S.A. § 2357 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2357
§ 2357. Place of filing petition
Status: in_force

(a) Primary petitions and consent forms shall be filed as follows:

(1) For State and congressional officers, with the Secretary of State;

(2) For county officers with the county clerk;

(3) For State Senator, with the senatorial district clerk;

(4) For Representative to the General Assembly, with the representative district clerk.

(b) The public official designated to accept a petition shall not accept a nominating petition unless a completed and signed consent form is filed at the same time.
17 V.S.A. § 2587 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2587
§ 2587. Rules for counting votes
Status: in_force

(a)(1) In counting votes, election officials shall attempt to ascertain the intent of the voter as expressed by markings on the ballot and in a manner that is consistent with guidance that shall be adopted by rule by the Secretary of State.

(2) If it is impossible to determine the intent of the voter for any office or public question, the vote shall be counted as a blank or overvote, as the case may be, for that office or question; but that determination shall not control any other office or question appearing on the ballot for which the voter's intent can be determined.

(3) If they have any doubt about the intent of the voter or any other question about a vote, the election officials counting the vote shall bring it to the presiding officer, who shall present the question of how to treat the vote to the assembled election officials. The decision of how to treat the vote shall be made by majority vote of the election officials who are present.

(b) If the voter marks more names than there are persons to be elected to an office, or marks contradictory sides on any public question, overvotes equal to the number of candidates to be elected to the office must be recorded on the tally sheet for that office or question.

(c)(1) A write-in vote for a candidate whose name is preprinted on the ballot shall be counted as a vote for that candidate.

(2) A person who receives more than one vote for the same office on any ballot shall be entitled to one vote, and one vote only.

(d) If the board of civil authority decides by majority vote of those present that any markings on a ballot were made for the purpose of enabling it to be identified and the vote traced, so as to defeat the secrecy of the ballot:

(1) that ballot shall be:

(A) rejected;

(B) marked defective and affixed with a note from the presiding officer as to why it was marked defective; and

(C) placed in the defective ballot envelope in accordance with subsection 2547(b) of this chapter; and

(2) the election officials may edit the vote tabulator totals reported on the vote tabulator tape, as necessary.

(e)(1) In the case of “write-in” votes, the act of writing in the name of a candidate or pasting a label containing a candidate's name upon the ballot, without other indications of the voter's intent, shall constitute a vote for that candidate, even though the voter did not fill in the square or oval after the name.

(2) The election officials counting ballots and tallying results shall:

(A) count write-in votes:

(i) for candidates who have filed in compliance with section 2370, 2472, or 2702 of this title or who have filed a consent to the printing of the candidate's name on the ballot for a major political party, as provided in section 2361, 2385, or 2402 of this title; or

(ii) for all candidates if no candidate is printed on the ballot, or if a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot dies or is otherwise disqualified prior to 7:00 p.m. on election day;

(B) add together the names of candidates counted under subdivision (A) of this subdivision (e)(2) that are clearly the same person, even though a nickname or last name is used; and

(C) record the name and vote totals on the tally sheet only of a write-in candidate having votes counted pursuant to subdivision (A) of this subdivision (e)(2) and list those candidates individually, and record all other write-in votes on the tally sheet as in aggregate as “other write-ins.”

(3) Notwithstanding any contrary provisions in subdivision (2)(A) of this subsection, if the number of “other write-ins” for the same nomination or office equals or exceeds the number of votes cast for any candidate for the same nomination or office who appears to have been nominated or elected, election officials shall record the name and vote totals on the tally sheet for all candidates for that nomination or office. If this result occurs in a multiple-municipality district, but one or more municipalities did not record the name and vote totals for all candidates, the Secretary of State, on the day after the election, shall order the town clerk to reconvene the board of civil authority. In the presence of at least two other election officials who are not members of the same political party, the clerk shall open the ballot containers, list all write-ins for this nomination or office individually, and record write-in votes for all candidates. The clerk shall then place the entire contents in containers, affix new seals, and transmit the new seal numbers.

(f) When the same number of persons are nominated for the position of justice of the peace as there are positions to be filled, the presiding officer may declare the whole slate of candidates elected without making individual tallies, providing each person on the slate has more votes than the largest number of write-in votes for any one candidate.
17 V.S.A. § 2947 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2947
§ 2947. Contributions from a candidate
Status: in_force

This subchapter shall not be interpreted to limit the amount a candidate may contribute to his or her own campaign.
17 V.S.A. § 2151 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 43 / Section 2151
§ 2151. Federal district court
Status: in_force

Within 10 days after the date of a presidential election, the town clerk shall send an unmarked checklist, which was up to date as of election day, to the clerk of the federal district court for the district of Vermont, and shall receive the normal fee for such documents.
17 V.S.A. § 2662 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2662
§ 2662. Validation of municipal meetings
Status: in_force

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 within the scope of the municipal powers, may be corrected and legalized by vote at a regular meeting or special meeting of the municipality called and duly warned for that purpose. The question to be voted upon shall substantially be, “Shall the action taken at the meeting of this town (or city, village or district) held on (state date) in spite of the fact that (state the error or omission), and any act or action of the municipal officers or agents pursuant thereto be readopted, ratified, and confirmed.” Errors or omissions in the conduct of an original meeting that are not the result of an unlawful notice or warning or noncompliance within the scope of the warning may be cured by a resolution of the legislative body of the municipality by a vote of two-thirds of all its members at a regular meeting or a special meeting called for that purpose, stating that the defect was the result of oversight, inadvertence, or mistake. When an error or omission of this nature has been thus corrected by resolution, all business within the terms of the action of the qualified voters shall be as valid as if the requirements had been initially complied with, condition, however, that the original action thereby corrected by the legislative body was in compliance with the legal exercise of its corporate powers.
17 V.S.A. § 2682a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2682a
§ 2682a. Write-in candidates
Status: in_force

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.
17 V.S.A. § 2648 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2648
§ 2648. Exceptions
Status: in_force

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 audit his or her spouse's official accounts.
17 V.S.A. § 2652 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2652
§ 2652. Road and water commissioners
Status: in_force

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 the town shall elect a road commissioner or commissioners, or water commissioners, as provided in section 2651 of this chapter.
17 V.S.A. § 1906a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1906a
§ 1906a. Final division into representative districts
Status: in_force

(a) Each initial district listed in section 1893 of this title that is entitled to one Representative shall constitute a Representative district and may elect one Representative at elections for Representatives until the next reapportionment.

(b) Each initial district listed in section 1893 of this title that is entitled to elect two Representatives shall constitute a representative district and may elect two Representatives at elections for Representatives until the next reapportionment, unless such district is divided into two single-member representative districts as provided in section 1906b of this title, in which case the resulting single-member representative districts shall each be entitled to elect one Representative at elections for Representatives until the next reapportionment.

(c) Each initial district listed in section 1893 of this title that is entitled to elect three or more Representatives shall be further divided into single- or two-member representative districts or a combination of single- and two-member representative districts, as provided in section 1906c of this title, each of which shall be entitled to elect the appropriate number of Representatives at elections for Representatives until the next reapportionment.

(d) A copy of the final plan for initial districts, and approved plans for dividing multi-member districts into representative districts, shall be filed with the Secretary of State and shall be available for public inspection. In addition, a copy of the plan for dividing a multi-member initial district into representative districts shall be filed with the town clerk of each town in the district so divided.
17 V.S.A. § 1972 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 1972
§ 1972. Showing ballot; interference with voter
Status: in_force

(a) A voter who, except in cases of assistance as provided in this title, allows his or her ballot to be seen by another person with an apparent intention of letting it be known how he or she is about to vote or makes a false statement to the presiding officer at an election as to his or her inability to mark his or her ballot or places a distinguishing mark on his or her ballot or a person who interferes with a voter when inside the guard rail or who, within the building in which the voting is proceeding, endeavors to induce a voter to vote for a particular candidate, shall be fined $1,000.00.

(b) It shall be the duty of the election officers to see that the offender is duly prosecuted for a violation of this section.
17 V.S.A. § 2656 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2656
§ 2656. Qualification and registration of voters
Status: in_force

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 title prior to any municipal meeting at which there will be voting. The presiding officer shall follow reasonable and necessary procedures to ensure that persons who are not voters of the town do not vote.
17 V.S.A. § 2546b — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2546b
§ 2546b. Early voting in town clerk's office; deposit into vote tabulator
Status: in_force

(a)(1) A board of civil authority may vote to permit its town's registered early or absentee voters to vote in the town clerk's office in the same manner as those voting on election day by marking their early voter absentee ballots and depositing them into a vote tabulator or secure ballot box.

(2) If a board of civil authority votes to permit early voting as described in subdivision (1) of this subsection, the town's process for conducting this early voting shall conform to the provisions of this section and to procedures that the Secretary of State shall adopt for this purpose.

(b)(1) During business hours in the town clerk's office, the secure ballot box or vote tabulator and ballot bin shall be in a secured area accessible only to election officials and voters. The vote tabulator unit shall be secured with an identifiable seal and the ballot box containing voted ballots shall remain locked at all times and secured with an identifiable seal. Neither seal shall be broken prior to the time of closing the polls on election day.

(2) Once early voting has commenced in the town clerk's office, the town clerk or designee shall certify each day in a record prepared for this purpose that the seals on the vote tabulator and secure ballot box are intact.

(3) When an election official is not present or at times other than business hours, the secure ballot box or sealed vote tabulator and ballot bin shall be secured in the town clerk's office vault.

(4) The town clerk shall maintain a record of each early or absentee voter who voted in person in accordance with this section and shall mark these voters as having voted early in the clerk's office in the online election management system.

(c) On the day of the election:

(1) The secure ballot box or sealed vote tabulator and ballot bin shall be transferred to the polling place on election day by two election officials and shall not be opened until the polls have closed on election day.

(2) When the vote tabulator is turned on at the polling place, the town clerk shall verify that the number of ballots that the vote tabulator displays as having been counted matches the number of voters who deposited their early voter absentee ballots in the vote tabulator in accordance with this section and any early voter absentee ballots that were processed and deposited in the vote tabulator under section 2546a of this subchapter.

(3) All early voter absentee ballots shall be commingled with those voted at the polls on election day prior to being examined for the purpose of identifying write-in votes.
17 V.S.A. § 2688 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2688
§ 2688. Recount on question submitted
Status: in_force

(a) A registered voter or, in the case of a union school district, at least one registered voter from each member of the union district may demand a recount of ballots on any question submitted to the vote of the municipality using the Australian ballot system, if the margin by which the question passed or failed is less than five percent of the total votes cast on the question.

(b) The request shall be filed with the municipal clerk within 10 days after the vote. The procedure shall be the same as in the case of recount of the votes cast for a candidate at an election.

(c) The petitioner and his or her designated representative and a voter representing the other side of the question voted upon and his or her designated representative may inspect the vote and observe the recount under the guidance of the board of civil authority.
17 V.S.A. § 2480 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2480
§ 2480. Substitute ballots
Status: in_force

If the ballots to be furnished to a polling place are not duly delivered or if, after delivery, they are destroyed or stolen or if the number proves insufficient, the presiding officer shall cause other ballots to be prepared substantially in the form of those so wanting. Upon delivery of such ballots at the polling place by him or her, accompanied by his or her statement under oath, which shall be recorded by the town clerk, that the same have been so prepared and furnished by him or her and that he or she failed to receive the original ballots or that the same have been destroyed or stolen or that the number has proved insufficient, the ballot clerks shall cause such substituted ballots to be used in place of those wanting.
17 V.S.A. § 2685 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2685
§ 2685. Conduct of recount
Status: in_force

(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 section 2685a of this subchapter and otherwise in the same manner as the votes were counted on the day of the election.

(2) When the ballot for the office is printed on index stock and configured to be readable by vote tabulator, the town clerk and board of civil authority shall conduct the recount by vote tabulator, pursuant to the procedure set forth in chapter 51, subchapter 9 of this title to the greatest extent practicable, if:

(A) the candidate who petitions for a recount requests that it be conducted by vote tabulator;

(B) the board of civil authority, at a meeting held not less than 60 days prior to a local election and warned pursuant to 24 V.S.A. § 801, has voted to require the municipality for which it is elected to use vote tabulators in subsequent recounts; or

(C) the municipality has voted to use vote tabulators in subsequent recounts pursuant to a meeting warned for the purpose.

(b) The petitioner, the opposing candidates, and their designated representatives may inspect the ballots and observe the recount under the guidance of the board.

(c) The board shall certify the result to the town clerk, who shall declare the result.

(d) After the recount, the board shall seal the ballots and other materials back in the containers and the town clerk shall safely store them as provided in section 2590 of this title.
17 V.S.A. § 2753 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 58 / Section 2753
§ 2753. Article III-Manner of appointing presidential electors in member states
Status: in_force

(a) Prior to the time set by law for the meeting and voting by the presidential electors, the chief election official of each member state shall determine the number of votes for each presidential slate in each State of the United States and in the District of Columbia in which votes have been cast in a statewide popular election and shall add such votes together to produce a “national popular vote total” for each presidential slate.

(b) The chief election official of each member state shall designate the presidential slate with the largest national popular vote total as the “national popular vote winner.”

(c) The presidential elector certifying official of each member state shall certify the appointment in that official's own state of the elector slate nominated in that state in association with the national popular vote winner.

(d) At least six days before the day fixed by law for the meeting and voting by the presidential electors, each member state shall make a final determination of the number of popular votes cast in the state for each presidential slate and shall communicate an official statement of such determination within 24 hours to the chief election official of each other member state.

(e) The chief election official of each member state shall treat as conclusive an official statement containing the number of popular votes in a state for each presidential slate made by the day established by federal law for making a state's final determination conclusive as to the counting of electoral votes by Congress.

(f) In event of a tie for the national popular vote winner, the presidential elector-certifying official of each member state shall certify the appointment of the elector slate nominated in association with the presidential slate receiving the largest number of popular votes within that official's own state.

(g) If, for any reason, the number of presidential electors nominated in a member state in association with the national popular vote winner is less than or greater than that state's number of electoral votes, the presidential candidate on the presidential slate that has been designated as the national popular vote winner shall have the power to nominate the presidential electors for that state and that state's presidential elector certifying official shall certify the appointment of such nominees.

(h) The chief election official of each member state shall immediately release to the public all vote counts or statements of votes as they are determined or obtained.

(i) This article shall govern the appointment of presidential electors in each member state in any year in which this agreement is, on July 20, in effect in states cumulatively possessing a majority of the electoral votes.
17 V.S.A. § 2616 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2616
§ 2616. Jurisdiction to prosecute criminal offenses
Status: in_force

The State's Attorney in any county in which all or a part of any violation of this title was committed shall have authority to prosecute such violations. The prosecution shall be conducted before the Vermont Criminal Division of the Superior Court.
17 V.S.A. § 2404 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2404
§ 2404. Preservation of statements
Status: in_force

The Secretary of State shall preserve all statements until three months after the general election, after which they may be destroyed.
17 V.S.A. § 2646a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2646a
§ 2646a. Town officers; town vote to allow election of nonresidents
Status: in_force

(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 officers. However, this section shall not apply to members of the legislative body of the municipality or justices of the peace. For the municipality's boards or commissions that are established by State law and are required to be composed of residents, the majority of the members of the boards or commissions shall be residents of the municipality.

(2) The proposal must be approved by the voters at any annual or special meeting warned for that purpose.

(b) The proposal may be made by the legislative body of the municipality or by petition of five percent of the voters of the municipality. The proposal shall identify the town office that may be filled by a nonresident.
17 V.S.A. § 1825 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1825
§ 1825. Effect of congressional prescription of the manner of holding conventions
Status: in_force

If, on or about the time of submitting any such amendment, Congress, in the resolution submitting the same, or by statute, shall prescribe the manner in which the conventions shall be constituted, the preceding provisions of this chapter shall be inoperative. The convention shall be constituted and shall operate as the resolution or act of Congress shall direct, and all officers of the State who may by the resolution or statute be authorized or directed to take any action to constitute such a convention for this State are hereby authorized and directed to act thereunder and in conformity thereto, with the same force and effect as if acting under a statute of this State.
17 V.S.A. § 2356 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 49 / Section 2356
§ 2356. Time for filing petitions
Status: in_force

(a) Primary petitions for major party candidates shall be filed not earlier than the fourth Monday in April and not later than 5:00 p.m. on the fourth Thursday after the first Monday in May preceding the primary election prescribed by section 2351 of this chapter, and not later than 5:00 p.m. of the 62nd day prior to the day of a special primary election.

(b) A petition or statement of nomination shall apply only to the election cycle in which the petition or statement of nomination is filed.
17 V.S.A. § 2591 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2591
§ 2591. Return not received
Status: in_force

If any canvassing committee does not receive in due time any return required to be forwarded to it, it shall notify the clerk of the town from which the return is lacking, who shall forthwith make another certified copy of the record in his or her office of the lacking return and transmit the same to the committee.
17 V.S.A. § 2478 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2478
§ 2478. Number of paper ballots to be printed and furnished
Status: repealed

(a) For primary elections, the Secretary of State shall furnish each town with a sufficient number of printed ballots based on the history of voter turnout in the town and in consultation with the town clerk.

(b) For general elections, the Secretary of State shall furnish each town with a number of printed ballots approximately equal to 100 percent of the number of voters on the checklist for the primary election.

(c) If necessary due to unusual growth of the checklist, a town clerk may request additional ballots from the Secretary of State at least 40 days before the election.

(d) For local ballots, the town clerk shall cause such number of ballots to be printed and furnished as the board of civil authority shall designate.

(e) [Repealed.]
17 V.S.A. § 2664 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2664
§ 2664. Budget
Status: in_force

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 list, to be appropriated for laying out and repairing highways and for other necessary town expenses. If a town votes specific amounts in lieu of a rate on a dollar of the grand list, the selectboard shall, after the grand list book has been computed and lodged in the office of the town clerk, set the tax rate necessary to raise the specific amounts voted. The selectboard may apply for grants and may accept and expend grants or gifts above those that are approved in the town budget. The selectboard shall include, in its annual report, a description of all grants or gifts accepted during the year and associated expenditures.
17 V.S.A. § 2568 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2568
§ 2568. Removing ballots from polling place; replacement and unused ballots
Status: in_force

(a) Removing ballots from polling place. A person shall not take or remove a ballot from the polling place before the close of the polls.

(b) Replacement ballots.

(1) If a voter desires a replacement ballot, he or she may obtain another, not exceeding three in all, upon each time returning to an election official the previous ballot he or she was provided.

(2) If a ballot is returned to an election official by a voter desiring a replacement ballot, the ballot returned by the voter shall be immediately delivered to the presiding officer or his or her designee, who shall tear it in half and place it in an envelope containing all ballots returned by the voters that is clearly marked “Do Not Count—Replaced Ballots.” At the close of the polls, this envelope shall be sealed and delivered to the clerk pursuant to section 2590 of this chapter.

(c) Unused ballots. Ballots originally delivered to the presiding officer that remain undistributed to the voters shall be preserved and returned to the town clerks, and following the election, they may be destroyed or distributed by the town clerk for educational purposes or for any other purpose the town clerk deems appropriate.
17 V.S.A. § 1905 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1905
§ 1905. House apportionment-Tentative proposal
Status: in_force

On or before July 1 of the year following each decennial census under the authority of Congress, the Board shall prepare a tentative proposal for the reapportionment of the House of Representatives. Whenever, in the tentative proposal, it appears that one town or city should be divided into two or more initial districts, or that part of one town or city should be combined with part or all of another town or city to form an initial district, the Board shall immediately notify the board of civil authority of each town and city thus affected. The boards of civil authority may, on or before August 1, recommend to the Legislative Apportionment Board the manner in which initial district lines within those towns and cities should be drawn, always having regard for the standards of apportionment set forth in section 1903 of this title. Upon request of any board of civil authority, the Legislative Apportionment Board shall designate one of its members, or a person designated in section 1908 of this title, to call and preside without vote over a joint meeting of two or more boards of civil authority for the purpose of making joint recommendations.
17 V.S.A. § 1821 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 31 / Section 1821
§ 1821. Construction of chapter
Status: in_force

The provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed so that the real will of the voters shall not be defeated and so that the voters shall not be deprived of their right because of informality or failure to comply with provisions of law as to notice or conduct of the election or of certifying the results thereof.
17 V.S.A. § 2570 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2570
§ 2570. Depositing ballots
Status: in_force

(a) In primary elections, the voter shall first hand any unvoted primary ballots to the appropriate election official, who shall deposit those ballots in a receptacle marked for unvoted primary ballots. The voter shall then deposit the voted ballot in the ballot box or vote tabulator, unless the voter requires assistance in depositing the ballot.

(b) In all other elections, the voter shall, without displaying the marks thereon and under the supervision of an election official, deposit each ballot into the proper ballot box or in the vote tabulator.

(c) Except as provided in section 2569 of this title, no election official or other person shall look at the contents of any ballot.
17 V.S.A. § 2588 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2588
§ 2588. Filing returns
Status: in_force

For any primary or general election:

(1)(A) In towns that count all ballots by hand, as the count of votes for each office or public question is completed, the presiding officer and at least one other election official shall collect the tally sheets, enter the totals shown on the tally sheets upon the summary sheets, add and enter the sum of the figures, and sign the summary sheets.

(B) As each summary sheet is completed, the presiding officer shall publicly announce the results.

(2)(A) In towns that use vote tabulators, after the close of the polls and after all remaining absentee or transfer ballots have been fed into the vote tabulator, the presiding officer shall insert the ender card and the tabulator will print a tape of unofficial results. The presiding officer shall print at least one additional copy of the tabulator tape.

(B) The unofficial results from the tape may be publicly announced, and one copy of the printed tape may be posted in the polling place upon a placard that clearly states: “Unofficial incomplete results.”

(3) The town clerk shall report as soon as practicable on the day of the election the unofficial vote counts of all candidates whose names appeared on the ballot to the Secretary of State. The report shall be made by electronically submitting the vote counts on the Secretary's online elections reporting system or, if unable to submit electronically, by submitting those vote counts to the Secretary of State by telephone, facsimile, or e-mail.

(4) The Secretary shall ensure that any vote counts submitted by telephone, facsimile, or e-mail are entered into his or her online elections reporting system as soon as practicable after he or she receives them.

(5) The Secretary's online elections reporting system shall cause the unofficial vote counts to be posted immediately on the Secretary's official website as soon as those vote counts are submitted.

(6)(A) The presiding officer and one other election official then shall proceed either to complete the return at once, or to store the summary sheets in a safe and secure place until their retrieval for completion of the return. In any event, not later than 48 hours after the polls close, the presiding officer and at least one other election official shall transfer the totals from the summary sheets to the proper spaces on the return, and both shall sign the return.

(B) The town clerk shall store the summary sheets safely so that the public cannot reasonably have access to them for a period of 90 days without the town clerk's consent.

(C) The original of the return shall be delivered to the town clerk. In a manner prescribed by the Secretary of State and within 48 hours of the close of the polls, the town clerk shall deliver to the Secretary of State, the senatorial district clerk, the county clerk, and the representative district clerk one certified copy each of the return. The town clerk shall also make a copy available to the public upon request.
17 V.S.A. § 1893b — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34 / Section 1893b
§ 1893b. House of Representatives Districts
Status: in_force

Notwithstanding the processes outlined in chapter 34A of this title regarding the enactment of initial districts and the subdivision of initial districts, for the 2022 reapportionment of the House of Representatives, the State is divided into the following districts for the House of Representatives, each of which shall be entitled to the indicated number of Representatives:
17 V.S.A. § 2548 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2548
§ 2548. Voting in person
Status: in_force

(a) Prior to the opening of the polls, the municipal clerk shall provide the election officials of each polling place with a list of the names of all persons who have voted early in the clerk's office or marked and returned early voter absentee ballots, and these persons shall not thereafter vote in person in the same election.

(b)(1) A voter who has been issued an early ballot, either by the Secretary of State's office pursuant to section 2537a of this subchapter or otherwise by the town clerk, but who has not returned the voter's voted ballot to the clerk, may vote in person at the polling place on election day.

(2) If the voter brings the voter's marked ballot enclosed in the signed certificate envelope, the voter may submit that certificate envelope containing the voted ballot to the entrance checklist official for processing along with any other early or absentee ballots. The voter shall be marked off the checklist and the clerk shall record the voter as having returned the absentee ballot on election day in the online election management system.

(3) If the voter brings the marked ballot, but it is not enclosed in the certificate envelope, the voter shall be marked off the checklist and be allowed to cast that ballot into the secure ballot box or tabulator in the same manner as other voters who are voting in the polling place. The clerk shall record any such voter as having voted in person on election day in the online election management system.

(4) If the voter brings the unmarked ballot, the voter shall be marked off the checklist and allowed to proceed to a voting booth to mark that ballot and cast it into the ballot box or tabulator in the same manner as other voters who are voting in the polling place. The presiding officer may choose to provide any such voter with a new ballot in exchange for the unvoted ballot that the voter brought to the polls. The clerk shall record any such voter as having voted in person on election day in the online election management system.

(5) If the voter does not bring a marked or an unmarked ballot with them to the polls, the voter shall be required to sign an affidavit that the voter has not previously cast a ballot in the election and only then shall they be checked off the checklist and allowed to vote in the same manner as all other voters who are voting at the polling place. The clerk shall record any such voter as having voted in person on election day in the online election management system. Any affidavits signed by voters at the polling place pursuant to this section shall be retained for a period of 90 days following the election.
17 V.S.A. § 1906 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 34A / Section 1906
§ 1906. Initial districts; final proposal; final plan
Status: in_force

Upon receiving recommendations made under section 1905 of this title, the Board shall consider the same, and shall, not later than August 15, prepare a final proposal for dividing the State into initial districts for the election of 150 Representatives. The Chair of the Board shall, on or before August 15, transmit such proposal to the Clerk of the House, and the proposal shall then be referred to the appropriate committee. The General Assembly shall then accept the proposal and enact it into law or substitute another plan for reapportionment; provided, however, that

(1) the plan for initial districts finally approved shall be in conformity with the provisions of this chapter; and

(2) be duly enacted during the said biennial legislative session.
17 V.S.A. § 2454 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2454
§ 2454. Assistant election officers
Status: in_force

(a) Prior to the day of the election, the board of civil authority shall appoint a sufficient number of voters from each municipality to serve as assistant election officers. As far as possible, the board shall attempt to appoint an equal number of persons from each major political party. Each assistant election officer shall be sworn prior to entering on the performance of his or her duties. An assistant town clerk may serve as an assistant elections officer, regardless of his or her residence.

(b) The board of civil authority may appoint residents of a municipality who are 16 or 17 years old to serve as assistant elections officers in their respective polling places. Youth assistant elections officers shall have the same duties as adult assistant elections officers but shall work under the direct supervision of adult elections officials.
17 V.S.A. § 2021 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 2021
§ 2021. Destruction of or fraudulent acts pertaining to primary election documents; alteration or delay of ballots
Status: in_force

A person who falsely makes or willfully defaces or destroys a primary petition, certificate of nomination, or nomination paper or any part thereof, or any letter of assent or of withdrawal, or who files a primary petition, certificate of nomination, nomination paper, letter of assent, or letter of withdrawal knowing the same or any part thereof to be falsely made, or who suppresses a primary petition, certificate of nomination, nomination paper, letter of assent, or letter of withdrawal or any part thereof that has been filed, or forges or falsely makes the official endorsement upon a ballot to be used at a primary or at an election or willfully destroys or defaces such a ballot or willfully delays the delivery of such ballots shall be fined $200.00.
17 V.S.A. § 2666 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2666
§ 2666. Improper influence
Status: in_force

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.
17 V.S.A. § 2016 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 35 / Section 2016
§ 2016. Aiding unqualified voter to vote
Status: in_force

A person who willfully aids or abets a person who is not a duly qualified voter in voting or attempting to vote at a local, primary, or general election shall be fined not more than $200.00.
17 V.S.A. § 2532a — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2532a
§ 2532a. Mobile polling stations
Status: in_force

Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to the contrary, the Secretary of State may authorize a town clerk to establish a mobile polling station at which two or more election officials who are not all members of the same political party shall make absentee ballots available. The town clerk shall notify the public of the mobile polling station three days prior to operation by posting at the town clerk's office and at the mobile polling station site the date and hours that the mobile polling station will operate. The Secretary of State shall establish procedures that ensure that:

(1) prior to distributing a ballot, the election officials shall verify that the voter's name is on the town checklist or will register the individual to vote if he or she is not registered and is qualified to vote in the town. The election officials shall make a list of the names of each voter who has voted at the mobile polling site;

(2) each voter shall place his or her ballot in an early absentee ballot envelope, seal and sign the certificate, and return the ballot envelope to the election officials;

(3) upon the closure of the mobile polling place, the election officials shall immediately return the ballot envelopes, list of names, and any unvoted ballots to the town clerk who shall add each voter's name to the list of early or absentee voters and commingle the envelopes with other returned early absentee ballot envelopes in the vault. Ballots that are returned along with a new voter registration form shall be kept in a secure place in the vault until the registration process has been completed and then processed as in this subdivision.
17 V.S.A. § 2986 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 61 / Section 2986
§ 2986. Monetary amounts adjusted for inflation
Status: in_force

The monetary amounts contained in sections 2983-2985 of this subchapter shall be adjusted for inflation pursuant to the Consumer Price Index as provided in section 2905 of this chapter.
17 V.S.A. § 2642 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2642
§ 2642. Warning and notice contents
Status: in_force

(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 include the offices and the questions to be voted upon.

(3)(A) The warning shall also contain any article or articles requested by a petition signed by at least five percent of the voters of the municipality and filed with the municipal clerk not less than 47 days before the day of the meeting.

(B) The clerk receiving the petitions shall immediately proceed to examine them to ascertain whether they contain the required number of signatures of registered voters set forth in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3). If found not to conform, he or she shall state in writing on the petition why it cannot be accepted, and within 24 hours from receipt, he or she shall return it to the petitioners. In this case, supplementary petitions may be filed not later than 48 hours after the petition was returned to the petitioners by the clerk or the filing deadline set forth in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3), whichever is later. However, supplementary petitions shall not be accepted if petitions with signatures of different persons totaling at least the number specified in subdivision (A) of this subdivision (3) were not filed by the filing deadline.

(C) A petition submitted under this subdivision (3):

(i) may include more than one proposed article;

(ii) shall contain the petition language on each page on which signatures are collected; and

(iii) shall include the printed name, signature, and street address of each voter who signed the petition.

(D) A voter may withdraw his or her name from a petitioned article at any time prior to the signing of the warning by a majority of the legislative body.

(b) The posted notice that accompanies the warning shall include information on voter registration, information on early or absentee voting where applicable, and other appropriate information.
17 V.S.A. § 2534 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2534
§ 2534. List of early or absentee voters
Status: in_force

(a) The Secretary of State shall make accessible for each primary election, presidential primary election, and general election a statewide list of voters who have requested an early voter absentee ballot. The list shall contain the State voter identification number, name, registration address, address the ballot was mailed to, and legislative district of each voter.

(b) Upon receipt of the valid applications, the town clerk shall update the Secretary of State's statewide list of early or absentee voters by a method approved by the Secretary of State.
17 V.S.A. § 2494 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 51 / Section 2494
§ 2494. Construction with other laws
Status: in_force

(a) Except as this subchapter affects the method of registering votes and ascertaining the result, the laws of this State pertaining to elections shall be applicable. The laws pertaining to early or absentee voters shall in no way be affected by this subchapter, and votes cast by early or absentee voters shall be counted with votes counted on vote tabulators.

(b) In towns using vote tabulators, the board of civil authority may vote to open polling places at 5:00 a.m., provided that at least three elections officials are present, two of whom are from different parties. If all early voter absentee ballots have not been deposited into the vote tabulators before the closing of the polls at 7:00 p.m., the elections officials shall continue to deposit ballots using the same procedure as provided in subsection 2561(b) of this title, treating each ballot as a voter waiting to cast his or her ballot at the close of the polls.
17 V.S.A. § 2680 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2680
§ 2680. Australian ballot system; general
Status: in_force

(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 meeting called for that purpose, votes to have them apply.

(b) Officers. Once a municipality votes to elect any or all officers by the Australian ballot system, the officers shall be elected in that manner until the municipality votes to discontinue use of the system. A vote on whether to use the Australian ballot system to elect officers shall be in substantially the following form:

(1) “Shall (name of municipality) elect its (specify the municipal officer or officers to be elected) by Australian ballot?” or

(2) “Shall (name of municipality) elect all municipal officers by Australian ballot?”

(c) Budgets.

(1) A vote on whether to use the Australian ballot system to establish the budget shall be in substantially the following form:

“Shall (name of municipality) adopt its (name of individual budget article) or (all budget articles) by Australian ballot?”

(2) If a budget voted on by Australian ballot is rejected, the legislative body shall prepare a revised budget.

(A) The legislative body shall establish a date for the vote on the revised budget and shall take appropriate steps to warn a public informational meeting on the budget and the vote. The date of the public informational meeting shall be at least five days following the public notice. The date of the vote shall be at least seven days following the public notice.

(B) The vote on the revised budget shall be by Australian ballot and shall take place in the same locations that the first vote was taken; provided, however, that if that polling place is unavailable, the vote may be held at a different location, with notice posted of the meeting location at the original location.

(C) The budget shall be established if a majority of all votes cast are in favor. If the revised budget is rejected, the legislative body shall repeat the procedure in this subsection until a budget is adopted.

(D) Once a municipality votes to establish its budget by the Australian ballot system, the vote on the budget shall be taken by Australian ballot until the municipality votes to discontinue use of the system.

(d) Public questions.

(1) A vote on whether to use the Australian ballot on public questions other than the budget shall be in substantially the following form:

“Shall (name of municipality) vote on (specify the public question) by Australian ballot?”

or

“Shall (name of municipality) vote on all public questions by Australian ballot?”

(2) Once a municipality has voted to vote on any specific or all public questions by Australian ballot, the votes shall be taken by Australian ballot until the municipality votes to discontinue use of the system.

(e) Use. A municipality shall not use the Australian ballot system at the same election at which its voters decide that the system shall be used.

(f) Presiding officer. The presiding officer for any election or part of an election using the Australian ballot system shall be the town clerk or as otherwise provided in section 2452 of this title.

(g) Early and absentee voting. At the time the Australian ballots are available, which shall be not less than 20 days before the election, early and absentee voting shall be permitted in accordance with chapter 51, subchapter 6 of this title.

(1) The legislative body of a town, city, or village may vote to mail a ballot to all active registered voters in the town, city, or village.

(2) A school board may, after receiving the approval of the legislative body of each member town in the district, vote to mail its annual meeting ballot to all active registered voters in the district. In such case, the town clerk and election officials in the member towns shall be responsible for the mailing of the ballots but all costs associated with the mailing of ballots shall be borne by the school district.

(3) Ballots shall be mailed not less than 20 days before the election, or as soon as they are available.

(4) The mailing of ballots shall be conducted to the extent practicable in accordance with chapter 51, subchapter 6 of this title.

(h) Hearing.

(1) Whenever a municipality has voted to adopt the Australian ballot system of voting on any public question or budget, except the budget revote as provided in subsection (c) of this section, the legislative body shall hold a public informational hearing on the question by posting warnings at least 10 days in advance of the hearing in at least two public places within the municipality and in the town clerk's office.

(2)(A) The hearing shall be held within the 30 days preceding the meeting at which the Australian ballot system is to be used. The legislative body shall be responsible for the administration of this hearing, including the preparation of minutes.

(B) In a town that has voted to start its annual meeting on any of the three days immediately preceding the first Tuesday in March in accordance with subsection 2640(b) of this title, the hearing under this subsection may be held in conjunction with that meeting, in which case the moderator shall preside.

(3) A hearing held pursuant to this subsection shall be video recorded and a copy of the recording shall be posted in a designated electronic location until the results of the meeting have been certified.
17 V.S.A. § 2687 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2687
§ 2687. Appeal to Superior Court
Status: in_force

Within five days after the declaration of the clerk, an aggrieved candidate may appeal to the Superior Court by giving a written notice to that effect to the other candidates who appeared before the board of civil authority. The original of the notice shall be filed with the county clerk. No entry fee shall be charged in these matters. The Superior Court shall immediately issue an order directing the town clerk to transmit to the county clerk all ballots, papers, and records affecting the appeal, and fixing a time for hearing in open court or before a referee not later than five days from the making of the order. The order shall be served upon the town clerk and all other candidates who have appeared before the board. A reference may be ordered upon any or all questions. At the time and place so fixed, the matter shall be summarily heard and determined and the costs taxed as in other civil actions.
17 V.S.A. § 2646 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 55 / Section 2646
§ 2646. Town officers; qualification; election
Status: repealed

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.

(2) A town clerk, unless the town has voted to authorize the selectboard to appoint the town clerk as provided in section 2651e of this chapter. The term of office for a town clerk shall be for one year, unless a town votes that the clerk shall be elected for a term of three years. When a town votes for a three-year term for the office of town clerk, that three-year term shall remain in effect until the town rescinds it by the majority vote of the legal voters present and voting at an annual meeting, duly warned for that purpose.

(3) A town treasurer, unless the town has voted to authorize the selectboard to appoint the treasurer as provided in section 2651f of this chapter. The term of office of a town treasurer shall be for one year, unless a town votes that a town treasurer shall be elected for a term of three years. When a town votes for a three-year term for the office of town treasurer, that three-year term shall remain in effect until the town rescinds it by the majority vote of the legal voters present and voting at an annual meeting, duly warned for that purpose.

(4) One selectboard member for a term of three years who shall be elected by ballot.

(5) One lister for a term of three years who shall be elected by ballot, unless the town has voted to eliminate the office of lister in accordance with the provisions of section 2651c of this chapter.

(6) One auditor for the term of three years who shall be elected by ballot, unless the town has voted to eliminate the office of auditor in accordance with the provisions of section 2651b of this chapter.

(7) A first constable, and if needed a second constable, unless the town has voted to authorize the selectboard to appoint constables as provided in section 2651a of this chapter. The terms of office of the first and second constable elected or appointed shall be for one year unless a town votes that they shall be elected or appointed for terms of two years. When a town votes for a two-year term for the offices of first and second constable, the two-year terms shall remain in effect until the town rescinds them by a majority vote of the legal voters voting at an annual meeting, duly warned for that purpose.

(8) [Repealed.]

(9) A collector of delinquent taxes, if the town so votes, for a term of one year unless a town votes that a collector of delinquent taxes shall be elected for a term of three years. When a town votes for a three-year term for the collector of delinquent taxes, that three-year term shall remain in effect until the town rescinds it by the majority vote of the legal voters present and voting at an annual meeting, duly warned for that purpose.

(10) [Repealed.]

(11) [Repealed.]

(12) A trustee of public funds if the town so votes.

(13) A trustee of public money, but only in towns that retain possession of a portion of the surplus funds of the United States received under the Act of 1836.

(14) A cemetery commissioner if the town so votes.

(15) One or more patrol officers to patrol town highways under the direction of the selectboard, if the town so votes.

(16) One or two road commissioners who shall be elected by ballot if the town so votes; otherwise they shall be appointed by the selectboard as provided in section 2651 of this chapter. The road commissioners shall be elected for a term of one year unless a town votes that the commissioners shall be elected for a term of two or three years. When a town votes for a two-year or three-year term for the office of road commissioner, that two-year or three-year term shall remain in effect until the town rescinds it by the majority vote of the legal voters present and voting at an annual meeting, duly warned for that purpose.

(17) Three water commissioners, unless the town votes to elect additional selectboard members, in which case the number of water commissioners shall, at the discretion of the selectboard members, be the same as the number of members that comprise the selectboard. The commissioners shall be elected by ballot if the town so votes; otherwise they shall be appointed by the selectboard as provided in section 2651 of this chapter.

(18) Five members of an advisory budget committee, if the town so votes, unless the town votes to elect additional advisory budget committee members. The advisory budget committee members shall be elected by ballot, unless the town votes to have those members appointed by the selectboard.
17 V.S.A. § 2308 — VT Code / Title 17 / Chapter 45 / Section 2308
§ 2308. Composition of county committee
Status: in_force

(a) The number of delegates to the county committee that each town caucus is entitled to elect shall be apportioned by the State committee, based upon the number of votes cast for the party's candidate for Governor in the last election, provided that each town caucus shall be entitled to elect at least two delegates.

(b) Delegates to the county committee shall be voters of the town, but need not be members of the town committee.

(c) Delegates shall serve for two years following their election or until their successors are elected or appointed.