Voting for Australian (Secret) Ballot on March 3rd is a vote for including all Brattleboro voters in All decision-making.
Many voters cannot attend a Town Meeting or Representative Town Meeting.
Healthcare workers, hospitality industry workers, first-responders at the fire stations, shut-in seniors, or myriad others working at jobs where taking time off is not an option.
But every voter can cast their vote in person or by mail in the comfort of their own home. Yet they can’t vote on the most important issue on the ballot. Why? Because in Brattleboro the Budget can only be voted on by Representative Town Meeting.
Defenders of Representative Town Meeting say there is value in listening to what our neighbors have to say, that Town meeting allows us to consider new ideas or perspectives. Well, in theory that’s true. Except that it’s only those neighbors who can attend get their voices heard. Again, the service workers so critical to the success of our community will not be able to attend the meeting and will not be able to participate.
Why are Town Meeting advocates so anxious to limit the right of others to vote? There is ample opportunity to talk and discuss issues. Four months of Selectboard Budget meetings, a Town Informational meeting, commissions and committees all taking place where the issues are thoroughly discussed and debated. The fact is, “the budget has been combed and groomed to death” as one participant stated at a recent Selectboard Meeting. Why then do we need more discussion when it results in excluding voters?
Brattleboro today has long prided itself on its inclusiveness. Just six-years ago we voted to lower the voting age to 16 to do just that. So why is it when it comes to the most important issue on the Ballot …the Budget, there is resistance to expanding participation?
The answer I think is Tradition. Town Meeting in Vermont has a long tradition. Representative Town Meeting while not as long, still is long enough to be a tradition.
Part of that tradition also includes changing with the times. It has evolved over the last 250 years. Originally only landed white men were allowed to vote. Then all white men were included. In 1870 African American men were included. Finally, in 1920, women were no longer excluded.
Brattleboro needs to adapt once more to continue to grow the tradition of inclusion. It needs to allow every voter to vote on every issue.
Vote Yes on Article II to end Representative Town Meeting
Vote Yes on Article III to have Australian (Secret)Ballot
Vote No on Article IV on Open Town Meeting.
Vote in the privacy of a voting booth or at your kitchen table.
