Election Procedures

Town clerks, and other members of our boards of civil authority, know there is more to running Vermont’s elections than checklists and tabulators. In fact, the biggest challenge for those charged with running Vermont’s elections is doing what needs to be done before the next deadline passes.

At the Office of the Secretary of State, we work hard to help ensure that Vermont’s local officials run elections in a proper and legal manner. Election Procedures—A Guide for Election Officials is designed to be used as an overview of the election process and as a step-by-step reference for election officials for conducting elections. This guide is supplemented during the election year by elections bulletins and emailed by the Elections Division to the town clerks as a reminder of the various requirements of election administration as deadlines near.

Download the complete Election Procedures Guide or select individual appendicies for download below:

• Appendix A: Request for Early or Absentee Ballot
• Appendix B: Ballot Bag Packing Instructions
• Appendix C: VT Voter Affidavit Form for Undelivered/Lost Absentee Ballots
• Appendix D: Sworn Affirmation of Residency/Domicile for Challenged Voters
• Appendix E: Vermont Voter Bill of Right
• Appendix F: Notice to Voters- Instructions for Marking Your Ballot
• Appendix G: Sample Local Ballot
• Appendix H: Defective Ballot Envelope
• Appendix I: Replaced Ballot Envelope
• Appendix J: Defective Ballot Marking Cards
• Appendix K: Counting Rules for All Towns- Voter Intent
• Appendix L: Administrative Complaint Procedure
• Appendix M: Rule on What Constitutes a Vote
• Appendix N: Affidavit of No Ballot Cast
• Appendix P: Procedures for Use of Tabulators for Early Voting in the Clerk's Office
• Appendix Q: Defective Ballot Notice
• Appendix R: Elections Materials Retention Guidance

There have been changes to both federal and state election laws since previous versions of our elections procedures guide were published. Please discard all previous versions of this booklet.

Current Election Law- Title 17

The Elections Division produces an easy-to-read, unannotated version of the election laws, which we are pleased to provide in PDF format: Unannotated Vermont Election Laws

Current Elections Calendar

Please visit our online Elections Calendar page for more information or click to download a list of upcoming events.

Campaign Finance

The Campaign Finance Guide is provided for your reference. Please note: under the new campaign finance law, all campaign finance reports, including those required from local candidates, are to be filed with the Office of the Secretary of State, and not the local clerk. The Campaign Finance section of our website has more information and reporting forms that you can download and provide to local candidates.