Elections & Voting Information

Are You Eligible to Vote?

Any person may register to vote in the town of his or her residence who, on Election Day:

is a citizen of the United States;
is a resident of the state of Vermont (and a resident of the town in which you apply to be added to the checklist);
has taken, or has previously taken, the Voter’s Oath (formerly called the “Freeman’s Oath”); and
is 18 years of age or more.

Any person meeting the requirements above who will be 18 on or before the date of a general election may register and vote in the primary election immediately preceding that general election. See 17 V.S.A. § 2121.

For purposes of voter registration, the Vermont Statutes define residency as follows:

“Resident” shall mean a person who is domiciled in the town as evidenced by an intent to maintain a principal dwelling place in the town indefinitely and to return there if temporarily absent, coupled with an act or acts consistent with that intent. 17 V.S.A. § 2122(b).

How to Register to Vote

Complete the Applications for Addition to the Checklist. You must include your Vermont Driver's License Number on the form. If you do not have a Vermont Driver's License Number or if your license is suspended, include the last 4 digits of your Social Security Number. Be sure to take the Voter’s Oath if you have not voted in Vermont before. Once it is completed you must submit the form to the Town Clerk. You will also be given an opportunity to register to vote when you register your car, get a driver’s license or renew your registration or license.

Get A Voter Registration Form

Voter registration forms are called “Applications for Addition to the Checklist”

Applications for Addition to the Checklist may be downloaded as a pdf file or a Word document. You can also get Applications for Addition to the Checklist from the Town Clerk.

Voter Registration Deadlines

Beginning January 1, 2017, eligible persons may register to vote on any day up to and including the day of the election. Registration is available during all normal business hours of the Town Clerk's office on days preceding the election and during polling hours on Election Day.

If for any reason your name is not on the voter registration list when you arrive at the polls, you can simply fill out a registration form and vote that day. Vermont now has same day voter registration.

Once you are registered to vote you do not need to re-register unless you move to a new town.

How to Vote in West Fairlee

Here is some basic information for you, the voter. If you have any questions after reading this poster, or at any time during the voting process, ask your Town Clerk or an Election Official.

Check-in:
Go to “Check In Here”. Give your name and, if asked, your residence to the Election Official. Wait until your name is repeated and checked off by the Election Official. The Election Official will hand you a ballot and may provide instructions. Go to a vacant booth.

Mark Your Ballot:
Fill in the oval for either “YES” or “NO” for each question on the question ballot and/or the oval next to each candidate you wish to vote for on the candidate ballot. If you mark the wrong oval by mistake, ask the Election Official for a new ballot.

Vote:
Place your voted ballot into the ballot box slot and, if asked, give your name to the Election Official monitoring the ballot box.

What To Do If:

You're not on the checklist
If for any reason your name is not on the voter registration list when you arrive at the polls, you can simply fill out a registration form and vote that day. Vermont now has same day voter registration. If the problem isn‘t cleared up to your satisfaction, call the Secretary of State‘s office at 1-800-439-VOTE (8683).
You're Disabled, Visually Impaired, Can't Read or Can't Get From your Car to the Polling Place
Tell an Election Official. You may bring a friend or relative to help you as long as she or he is a registered voter. A ballot may be brought out to your car by two Election Officials so you can vote there.

It Is Illegal To:

Knowingly vote more than once either in the same town or in different towns.
Try to tell another person how to vote once you‘re inside the building where voting is taking place.
Mislead the Board of Civil Authority about your own or another person‘s eligibility to vote.
Show your marked ballot to others in order to let them know how you voted.
Make a mark on your ballot which would identify it as yours.

Please Don't:

Chat or socialize in the voting area especially when people are in the process of voting.
Leave brochures, buttons or other campaign literature in the voting booth.

Voting By Early or Absentee Ballot

Vote By Mail
Any voter can request that the Town Clerk mail them an early voter absentee ballot. This ballot will arrive with a return envelope so that the ballot, once voted, can be returned to the clerk so that it can be counted on Election Day. The clerk must receive the ballot by the close of polls on Election Day in order to be counted. A ballot can be requested any time before an election. Clerks will mail absentee ballots within the 30 days prior to the election.

Hand Delivered Ballots
A voter may pick up a ballot at the Town Clerk’s office at any time beginning thirty days prior to the general or primary election. A voted early voter absentee ballot, in a sealed envelope, can be hand delivered to the clerk on Election Day or prior to Election Day. The ballot can be returned to the clerk or delivered to the polling place by the voter or any person the voter authorizes to return the ballot for him or her. A person can only pick up his or her own ballot from the clerk’s office.

Vote Early
A Voter may vote at the Town Clerk’s office in person any time thirty days before a primary or general election or 20 days before a municipal election.

Early voter absentee ballots must be returned to the Town Clerk’s office before the close of the office on the day before the election OR to the polling place before 7:00 p.m. on the day of the election in order to be counted in the election.