Good afternoon,
Below is information that might be helpful to know for March 5th local elections.
Attached is a sample ballot from each of Brattleboro’s three districts. All districts’ ballots are the same except for Town Meeting Members for each district. Absentee ballots are currently available at the Town Clerk’s Office and may be requested until 5:00 pm on Monday, March 4. Sample ballots can also be found on our website at www.brattleboro.orgunder Elections.
Polling place for all three districts in Brattleboro is the American Legion, 32 Linden Street, from 7:00 am until 7:00 pm.
The entire American Legion parking lot (with the exception of reserved spaces), the State building parking lot (with the exception of “fleet” spaces), and the metered spots along the side of the Municipal Center will all be reserved for voters on election day. There are handicapped parking spaces close to the American Legion entrance. There is a ramp entrance, with a wheelchair available if needed.
Town Meeting members are still needed in each district – District 1 has 5 three-year seats open, 9 two-year seats open, and 4 one-year seats open; District 2 has 2 one-year seats open; and District 3 has 5 three-year seats open, 3 two-years seats open, and 2 one-year seats open.
Anyone interested in running for a position as a write-in candidate must file a Declaration of Candidacy with the town clerk by the close of the polls on election day in order for their votes to be counted. Declarations of Candidacy will be posted on a bulletin board at the polls so voters will be aware of those interested in vacant positions. A minimum of ten votes are required to be elected.
Election information is posted onwww.brattleboro.org
Election results will be posted on the town website as soon as possible after the polls close that evening.
Vermont has same day voter registration, however to save time on Election Day it is advisable to register in advance to vote by contacting the Town Clerk’s Office or online athttps://olvr.sec.state.vt.us/ .
Office hours for the Brattleboro Town Clerk’s office are 8:30AM – 5:00PM, Monday through Friday. In addition to regular hours, the office will open Saturday, March 2, from 9AM to noon for early voting and will be closed Tuesday, March 5, election day.
Contact the Brattleboro Town Clerk if you have any election questions 251-8129 orhfrancis@brattleboro.org
Thanks. Hilary
Hilary Francis
Brattleboro Town Clerk
230 Main Street, Suite 108
Brattleboro. VT 05301
hfrancis@brattleboro.org
ph 802-251-8129
fax 802-257-2312
Please be advised that your email communication to the Town may be considered public record and may be subject to disclosure under the Vermont Open Public Records Act.
District 1 Sample Ballot – 3 5 2019
District 2 Sample Ballot – 3 5 2019
District 3 Sample Ballot – 3 5 2019
Candidates' Forum
With a last-minute realization that before voting I need to learn something about the candidates, I watched the Candidate’s forum. Here is a link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrLiVRGUQQg&t=1269s
After introducing themselves, the candidates addressed issues facing our community such as poverty, drug addiction, accessibility, economic development, finding revenue sources (such as one percent local sales tax) and changing State law to give Brattleboro greater self rule so that we could have more ways to raise revenue. A theme throughout every topic seemed to be the contrast between high-minded aspirations and practical proposals. Practical proposals seem particularly elusive because of limited resources with which to address not-so-limited problems.
In watching the video, I paid particular attention to the discussion on diversity. I particularly identified with the personal experiences discussed by Oscar Heller’s. I felt that Oscar is particularly passionate about diversity, not solely as a cerebral concept, but as a heartfelt value.
Although by ancestry I am not white, by my appearance I am identified as white so that I benefit from the distorted values of our racist culture. In reading my accounts of what I heard from the candidates, you will see that I have strong views, which may offend some.
I suggest that you watch the video and form your own opinions based, not on my accounts, but on what the candidates actually said.
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Ben Copeland said that we need job training and opportunities.
Tim Wessel starts at 32:17. He said that in seeking a new Human Resources director a criteria of Town Manager Peter Elwell will be someone with experience in diversity and equity. Citing a figure of 20% of the graduates of Brattleboro’s school system being children of color, we want to move in the direction of having the town employees better reflect the population, but not quotas.
Oscar – Spoke very heartfelt about Vermont being much less diverse than the cities where he has lived: “I miss that very much.” He said that the more diverse a community is, the stronger it is. For tangible steps to take, he said that in hiring we should cast a wide net and not just friends, networks, because in Brattleboro that will be less diverse. He also said that diversity should not just be something that is on our minds, but that we have to make sure that local decision-makers are explicitly not just white men. I did not like “we have to make sure,” and I did not like the word “explicitly” for the following reasons: “We have to make sure…” sounds like the people who are really in charge [probably white men] have to choreograph the composition of public bodies to make them look right. I think his heart is in the right place, but he inadvertently is expressing a bit of paternalism. [I am honoring Oscar with a strong critique because I like him the best :-)]
Elizabeth – Human Resources should caste a wide net, not just among the population of Brattleboro but a wide net geographically. If we only recruit from town population, we will tend to get friends and relatives of current employees. She said that diversity is not just about people of color, but women and LGBT people. In my opinion she was the person most strongly grounding her good aspirations in an actual, practical suggestion (casting a wide net geographically). Oscar had spoken about casting a wide net, but Elizabeth’s specifying not just a wide net locally, but also a geographically wide net showed me that she her thought process would contribute much to the Selectboard.
Franz — He thinks that diversity has been talked about a lot by the Selectboard, and that Brattleboro is a welcoming place.
“We can open our doors and we can offer opportunities and then people have to decide to walk through the doors and take the opportunities, and I’m not sure how you get to that place. And I would also like to say that it would warm my heart [he puts his hand on his heart with an open posture and warm, soft expression on his face] if I saw Republicans involved in town affairs too. Diversity cuts that way as well.”
Note: He said that Brattleboro is already a welcoming place for people of color, but did not show by his demeanor and words that he himself welcomes people of color anywhere near the way he expressed by his body language and words, his warm, welcoming feelings for Republicans. This fellow seems to be reciting the required support for ethnic diversity, but clearly his heart is not as open to people of color as it is to Republicans.
Dan – Said that, “Vermont needs to wake up to racism,” citing Kiah Morris’ experience as an example of the reality of our problems with discrimination and racism. “Folks can’t but they need to feel that they are genuinely welcome.” He did not offer any practical policy, but to be fair there is not much that a Selectman can do to neutralize the impact of one or two yahoos yelling racial insults from a car. He added that we need to provide a path to well-paying jobs.
Thanks!
I appreciate the additional coverage and reporting!