Early voting for the November general election is now underway, with ballots going out Monday.
Vermont has one of the most expansive early voting and mail-in ballot laws in the country.
Ballots are sent to every registered voter 45 days before the election. Voters can cast their ballots by mailing them back to their Town Clerk, dropping them off at the clerk’s office or in person on Election Day.
Vermont Public’s senior political correspondent Bob Kinzel recently joined host Jenn Jarecki to discuss some more of the unique provisions of early voting. This interview was produced for the ear. We highly recommend listening to the audio. We’ve also provided a transcript, which has been edited for length and clarity.
Jenn Jarecki: Bob, to start with, why did Vermont adopt a 45-day early voting and mail-in ballot law?
Bob Kinzel: Well, Jenn, there are really a couple of reasons. First, the state wanted to ensure that there was enough time for overseas military voters to cast their ballots. That set up the 45-day timeline. And lawmakers decided if it was going to be used for these overseas voters, why not make it available to everybody?
Then, there were concerns about voting in person on election day in 2020 during the COVID pandemic. So, lawmakers decided on a plan to send ballots out to all voters that year. It's been well-received and it's remained part of our election system. Secretary of State Sarah Copeland Hanzas, thinks this policy has been good for the democratic process in Vermont.
Sarah Copleand Hanzas: Voters that I talk to, by and large, really appreciate having that extra time with their ballot, and they also appreciate that there isn't a hurdle or a barrier or a step that they have to take in order to get a hold of their ballot.
Bob Kinzel: The state is in the process of sending these ballots out right now. They're going out in batches. They're going out today, tomorrow, Wednesday, most should be out by Thursday. If a person hasn't received one by Oct. 5, they're encouraged to contact their local town clerk so they can get one in the near future.
Jenn Jarecki: Bob, with so many people using the mail-in option, how does that impact the workload of town clerks?
Bob Kinzel: It's made a huge difference. They'll now have ballots being returned every day for the next six weeks, so that's going to keep them busy. At the same time, Brattleboro Town Clerk Hilary Francis told me that the policy of sending out ballots to every voter has taken one huge responsibility off of her shoulders.
Hilary Francis: Previously, it was a lot of work taking all the calls from voters who — a lot of voters want to vote, and we have to put in their requests and prep the ballot packets and mail them. And you know, that work is now taken off of our plates, the state does that automatically.
Bob Kinzel: So, for the next six weeks, town clerks will have to securely store these mailed-in ballots — usually in a safe — and then they'll have to upgrade their checklist to reflect that this group of people has actually submitted a ballot.
Jenn Jarecki: I'm glad you mentioned security, Bob because I know there are folks concerned about voter fraud with mail-in ballots. What safeguards are in place to prevent that from happening?
Bob Kinzel: Well, there are several. First, the town clerks know that ballots have been sent out to all of their registered voters. So, if and when these ballots are mailed back — and about 40% will be — this information is recorded on the town's checklist. So, it's documented that this person has already voted and won't be able to vote again. Hilary Francis feels this current system works well.
Hilary Francis: We've had situations where we've had to reach out to people to try and clarify and understand, but it's never been like a fraudulent experience. And the system is set up in such a way that, like, you can't enter a vote for the same person twice.
Bob Kinzel: I also want to mention that the Legislature has passed a law known as "ballot curing." Now this means, in the event that a person doesn't exactly follow the procedures when voting by mail — for instance, maybe they didn't sign or date their ballot — the law requires a town clerk to contact this person directly and let them know that their ballot is incomplete and that they need to come by and fix it.
You know, it's interesting, Jenn, about half of all states allow this process. The other states that don't, reject these ballots as being incomplete and they don't count them at all.
Jenn Jarecki: Does Brattleboro Town Clerk Hilary Francis have any recommendations for lawmakers to consider next session to make the voting system even easier for voters to understand?
Bob Kinzel: She sure does. Her word is, "Let's have some consistency." She thinks voters are very confused because different systems are used for our different elections.
Hilary Francis: If we're mailing ballots, let's mail ballots for all elections. Or let's not mail ballots, unless it's by request, for any elections. You know, there's confusion when it comes to the presidential primary being different from the state primary. It's like every election is so geared towards the needs of that election, which makes sense, but then it adds a lot of confusion.
Bob Kinzel: Secretary of State Copeland Hanzas says she understands what the clerks are saying, but the solution is complicated because the state only runs the November general election. Town Meeting Day is administered by the individual towns. And right now, if they want to mail out ballots to all their voters, they can, but this is expensive, and it's paid for at the local level. The August primary is organized by the major political parties. So, being consistent has some major challenges.
Jenn Jarecki: I've got a practical question now for you, Bob. What happens if I lose my ballot after it's been sent to me?
Bob Kinzel: No worries. You contact your local town clerk, they provide you with an affidavit where you swear that you've lost your ballot and you get another one. And again, when you do officially submit your ballot, it's recorded on the local checklist, so if you happen to find your original ballot — maybe it's under the couch or the dog ate it — you can't vote twice.
Jenn Jarecki: Well, one more question for you, Bob. What happens if I vote by mail or I vote early, and then something happens in a race and I change my mind? Can I go back and change my vote?
Bob Kinzel: No, you can't. That is not allowed once you've voted and submitted your ballot, that is it. So, folks should be sure that they know who they want to vote for before using an early or mail-in ballot.
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