Search for Press Releases and Commentary




Front Porch Forum: June Update from Secretary of State’s Office

June 1, 2025

Announcement

Quick reminder: you can follow what our office is up to in between these monthly updates on our social media pages. Links to our Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky accounts are right at the top of our “linktree” page: https://linktr.ee/vtsos

There’s also a link there to our past Front Porch Forum posts and all of our Commentary/Press Releases.

Calling all 5th Grade Teachers – Introducing the Kid Governor® Program to Vermont!

I’m so excited to announce that my office will be introducing the national civic education initiative, Kid Governor®, to Vermont this year! Kid Governor® is a free program that teaches fifth-grade students about state government, voting, and the importance of civic engagement through an authentic election for their state’s Kid Governor. The program will debut during the 2025-26 school year, with its first election in November 2025. I’ll work directly with the winning candidate and their “cabinet” to advance their goals!

To learn all about it, and get involved, check out our dedicated webpage: https://vt.kidgovernor.org/

Please spread the word to your local schools – I’m hoping the FPF community can help us ensure that we have participation from every corner of the state!

On a related note, and open to all K-8 students, the Good Citizen Challenge 2025 is live! Among the many fantastic activities you can complete as part of the challenge is the “Future Voter” sticker design contest!

https://goodcitizenvt.com/good-citizen-challenge-2025/

New Voter Portal

Our Elections Division has been working hard over this “off-season” to upgrade our online systems for voter registration and information! We’ve just completed the work for our new, state-of-the-art Vermont Voter Portal:

https://vote.vermont.gov

This is a one-stop-shop for everything voting related. You can register to vote, and if you’re already registered, you can sign in to get details about upcoming elections and manage information like address changes, etc.

Safe at Home Program

We’re working to increase awareness of our Safe at Home program, an address confidentiality and mail forwarding service that can be a key part of an overall safety plan.

The program serves survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, stalking, human trafficking, and providers and patients of legally protected healthcare (reproductive and gender-affirming care).

Here's a video overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KTTvpAQ6ce0

Learn more and sign up here: https://sos.vermont.gov/secretary-of-state-services/safe-at-home/

Interested in Serving as a Public Member on a Professional Board?

Our Office of Professional Regulation (OPR) is responsible for protecting the public by setting and enforcing regulatory standards for more than 50 professions. We need members of the public to work with us to ensure that regulation remains focused on the interests of consumers and patients!

This is a great opportunity to serve alongside members of a profession to represent the public perspective as they work on rulemaking and policy, develop recommendations for the legislature, and conduct quasi-judicial hearings on cases of alleged misconduct.

Learn more and apply at our webpage here: https://sos.vermont.gov/opr/about-opr/become-a-board-member-or-advisor/

And reach out to us directly with any questions at: SOS.OPRBoardsandAdvisors@vermont.gov





Contact Information

Office of the Vermont Secretary of State

128 State Street

Montpelier, VT 05633

802-828-2363

Contact the Secretary

Sarah Copeland Hanzas, Secretary of State


State of Vermont Coat of Arms