Petitions for Brattleboro Town Officers, Windham Southeast School District (WSESD) Board Members, and Town Meeting Members are now available at the Town Clerk’s office. Town elections will be Tuesday, March 7 at the American Legion, located at 32 Linden St., Brattleboro, VT 05301.
Annual Representative Town Meeting will begin on Saturday, March 25, 2023. The location and format will be announced at a later date.
Petitions for Town Officers and WSESD Board Members must contain at least 30 valid signatures of registered Brattleboro voters and be filed in the clerk’s office no later than Monday, January 30 at 5 P.M. to have their name placed on the ballot.
Candidates for Town Meeting Member must file a nomination petition, issued by the Town Clerk’s office, with at least 10 valid signatures of voters from the district where the candidate lives no later than 5:00 P.M. on Monday, January 30. Incumbents for Town Meeting Member must return their Notice of Intent form no later than 5:00 P.M. on Monday, January 30.
Attached is a listing of vacancies along with the officer currently holding office. Also attached is a calendar of election related deadlines.
For more information on Representative Town Meeting, visit Brattleboro.org or reach out to the Town Clerk’s office at 802-251-8157 or townclerk@brattleboro.org
Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.
Thanks,
Hilary
Hilary Francis
Brattleboro Town Clerk
230 Main Street, Suite 108
Brattleboro, VT 05301
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OFFICERS TO BE ELECTED
ANNUAL TOWN MEETING
MARCH 7, 2023
OFFICE PRESENTLY SERVING
MODERATOR – 1 year David Gartenstein
LISTER – 3 years Thomas “Tom” Franks
LISTER – 2 years remaining of a 3 year term Danielle Leclaire
SELECTBOARD – 3 years Elizabeth McLoughlin
SELECTBOARD – 1 year (elect 2) Jessica Gelter
Timothy “Tim” Wessel
FIRST CONSTABLE – 1 year Richard H. Cooke
SECOND CONSTABLE – 1 year Ivan Hennessy
TRUSTEE OF PUBLIC FUNDS – 3 years Catherine “Kate” John
TRUSTEE OF PUBLIC FUNDS – 2 ys remaining of 3 yr term
UNIFIED SCHOOL DIRECTOR – 3 year (elect 1) Emily Murphy Kaur
UNIFIED SCHOOL DIRECTOR – 1 yr remaining of 3 yr term Robin Morgan
TOWN MEETING MEMBERS TO BE ELECTED
WINDHAM 7/BRATTLEBORO DISTRICT 1 14 members for 3 years
8 member for 2 years
0 member for 1 year
WINDHAM 8/BRATTLEBORO DISTRICT 2 16 members for 3 years
1 members for 2 years
1 member for 1 year
WINDHAM 9/BRATTLEBORO DISTRICT 3 16 members for 3 years
1 member for 2 years
2 member for 1 year
Number of Town Meeting members to be elected is subject to change based on resignations prior to ballot deadline.
….
2023
ANNUAL TOWN MEETING
ELECTION CALENDAR
Thursday, January 19 Last day (5:00 P. M.) to file petition requesting that an article be placed on the Warning for Annual Town Meeting and Unified School District (47 days preceding election). Approx. 469 (5%) signatures of registered Brattleboro voters required. 17 VSA 2642
Thursday, January 26 First day to post Warning for Annual Town Meeting and Unified School District (not more than 40 days preceding election) 17 VSA 2641 (a)
Monday, January 30 Last day (5:00 P.M.) to file Consent of Candidate for Town and Unified School District Officers (sixth Monday preceding election, 30 signatures required)17 VSA 2681 (a) and (b)
Last day (5:00 P.M.) to file Consent of Candidate to be a candidate for Town Meeting Member (sixth Monday preceding election, 10 signatures from candidate’s district required). Section 4, Acts of 1959, Number 302
Last day (5:00 P. M.) for Town Meeting Members who are candidates for re-election to give written notice to the Town Clerk (sixth Monday preceding election). Section 4, Acts of 1959, Number 302
Sunday, February 5 Last day to post Warning for Town Meeting and Unified School District (not less than 30 days preceding election). 17 VSA 2641(a)
Wednesday, February 15 Early ballots available. (not later than 20 days prior to election.) 17 VSA 2681(a)
Saturday, February 25 Last day to post sample ballots and voter information (for municipal elections, not less than 10 days preceding election). 17 VSA 2522(a)
Monday, March 6 Voters may request early ballots until 5:00 P.M. 17 VSA 2531(a)
TUESDAY, MARCH 7 TOWN and UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT ELECTIONS (first Tuesday in March).
Friday, March 17 Last day (5:00 P.M.) for a candidate for local office to file request for recount (within 10 days after election). 17 VSA 2683
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15 ANNUAL REPRESENTATIVE TOWN MEETING INFORMATIONAL SESSION AND DISTRICT CAUCUSES (date not set by statute and subject to change)
TUESDAY, MARCH 21 WSESD ANNUAL MEETING (Third Tuesday in March)
SATURDAY, MARCH 25 ANNUAL REPRESENTATIVE TOWN MEETING (third Saturday following first Tuesday in March). Section 6(f), Acts of 1959, Number 302
Tuesday, April 4 Last day (5:00 P.M.) for petition to be filed with Selectboard requesting question voted at Representative Town Meeting be submitted to voters of the Town at large (ten days after adjournment of meeting.) Requires 5% signatures of registered voters or 50 Town Meeting Members. See Charter, Article 3, Sect. 4.
Write-Ins: Now it isn't even mentioned....
If you’d like to write-in a candidate in Brattleboro, you must contact them and get them to sign up to be a write-in candidate, or else when you write them in, your vote will be thrown away!
It is a totally stupid rule that takes all the power of a write-in away from the voter.
A write-in should be counted, no matter who is written in. It is not a burden on the Town Clerk’s office to count votes. If it is, we need a new Town Clerk up to the task.
Only in Brattleboro is it up to the person being voted for to decide if the person voting’s vote gets counted.
Stupid, stupid, stupid.
So, go tell everyone you want to secretly vote for that you’d like to vote for them and ask them if they’ll please take the time and energy to contact the Town Clerk so that you won’t be disenfranchised. And if they won’t do it, tough luck, you can’t vote for the person you’d like to see elected. (Like you could a few years ago, ahem…)
It's Wrong
This is something that needs revisiting and correcting. We should, in a free election, vote for whomever we want to vote for with no restricted access.