With mailed ballots, Election Day is the last day to vote

Nov. 5, 2022  |  By Lisa Scagliotti 

Vermonters who haven’t yet cast their General Election ballots can vote early until Monday or do so in person on Tuesday. 

Many communities around the state including Waterbury and Duxbury have secure ballot drop boxes where ballots may be returned until an appointed time on Monday when town clerks will empty the boxes and lock them as they shift their attention to readying the polls for Tuesday’s voting. Voters may also bring ballots into their town clerk’s offices on Monday during regular hours. 

On Tuesday, voting in Waterbury will be set up at Brookside Primary School from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. School will be in session and voters are asked to use the rear entrance to the school, especially during morning drop-off and afternoon pickup times for students. 

Volunteers and a sheriff will be on site throughout the day to direct people to avoid congestion, school officials said. 

Of Waterbury’s 4,507 registered voters, 1,690 had already returned ballots by midday Friday, according to former Town Clerk Carla Lawrence who was at the town offices on Friday assisting with pre-election tasks. Lawrence stepped down at the end of August with a promise to assist through the general election. 

New Town Clerk Karen Petrovic said she was working with school officials regarding signs and directions for voters for traffic flow to be as smooth as possible on Tuesday given all of the activity at the school. She also reminds voters to not drop any ballots off at the town offices on Tuesday.  

In Duxbury, voting will be set up in drive-through format at the town offices/garage along Vermont Route 100 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. 

In all cases, voters are asked to bring their ballots with them to the polls. They can mark them at the voting location on Tuesday or turn them in already marked and sealed. 

Petrovic explained that voters who forget their ballot or need a new one for any reason can still vote but will need to sign an affidavit stating that they have not voted yet. 

Anyone who is not registered to vote may also do so at the town offices on Monday or at the polls on Tuesday. Vermont voting law allows for same-day registration. For example, five people registered to vote at the special meeting last week of the Edward Farrar Utility District, Lawrence said.

This election has a full ballot with offices from U.S. Senate and House seats to statewide posts including governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, etc. along with every seat in the Vermont Legislature and various judges, sheriff and justices of the peace. Two questions pose potential amendments to the Vermont Constitution as well. 

Find more election coverage including House candidate surveys in the News section and letters from candidates and others in the Opinion section.