39 Towns Postpone Town Meetings Tuesday Because of Nor’Easter Amid Confusion

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Secretary of State David Scanlan is pictured in this file photo

Please check your town’s website before heading out to vote.

update by 4:28 p.m. 51 meetings had been postponed.

There has been considerable confusion about Tuesday’s town meetings after the Secretary of State and Attorney General said at 1:14 p.m. today Monday that people could vote by absentee ballot today Monday March 13 if they lived in a town with a National Weather Service winter weather warning.

A short time later, the Secretary of State said that 39 towns have cancelled Tuesday’s meetings so people could only vote absentee if they were unable to make the new meeting date in those towns. The Secretary of State didn’t provide the new dates for those towns.

In accordance with RSA 669:1 V, below is a list of Towns that have notified the Secretary of State of postponements as of 3 p.m. Monday:

Alton, Amherst, Andover, Barrington, Bedford, Bennington, Bradford, Brookline, Chester, Chesterfield, Conway Village Fire District , Deering Farmington, Gilford, Goffstown, Greenville, Harrisville, Hillsborough, Hudson, Jaffrey, Keene School District,  Lyndeborough, Marlborough, Milford, Milton, Mont Vernon, Nelson, New Boston, Nottingham,  Rindge,  Salisbury, Sullivan, Tamworth, Wakefield, Washington, Westmoreland, Wilton,  Winchester, Windsor.

The page will be updated here: https://www.sos.nh.gov/

At 1:14 p.m. Monday Secretary of State Dave Scanlan and Attorney General John Formella said people who live in towns with National Weather Service winter weather advisory can vote today, Monday, March 13 by absentee ballot and later provided a copy of the law, but then changed after some towns postponed.

669:1 Election Dates. –
V. (a) If the National Weather Service issues a weather event warning applicable to a town on a date when an election is scheduled, which the moderator reasonably believes may cause the roads to be hazardous or unsafe, or if an accident, fire, natural disaster, or other emergency occurs that the moderator reasonably believes may render use of the election location unsafe on the date of the election, then the moderator may, after consulting with town officials, postpone the election. To the extent practical, prior to making a decision to postpone, the moderator shall consult with the governing body, the clerk, and as appropriate for the circumstances the police chief, the fire chief, the road agent, and the local emergency management director. The moderator shall document any decision to postpone the election and notify the secretary of state by phone or electronic mail of the postponement within 2 hours of the decision to postpone.

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