Public Assets Institute > Blog > Vote in the August 11 primary

Vote in the August 11 primary

It’s summer in Vermont. And despite the pandemic, we can still do some of the things we usually do this time of the year: go for a hike, hit a bike trail, go to a swimming hole. These activities might look a little different: more masks, for one thing, smaller groups for another, and socially-distanced lines waiting for creemees. And there’s one more summer activity that will look a little different this year: Vermont’s August 11 primary.

Back in June, the Legislature worked with the Secretary of State to pass legislation making voting by mail available to all Vermonters for the November general election. And this week, Secretary Condos announced that all registered voters will be automatically sent ballots for the November election.

The August primary looks a little different. Rather than sending all voters a ballot, registered Vermonters should have received a postcard asking if they would like to request a ballot by mail. There are three ways to request a ballot by mail:

  1. Online at vermont.gov
  2. By mail using this paper form
  3. In person at the town clerk’s office (hours and availability may have changed due to the pandemic)

When you receive your ballot, you need to follow the instructions carefully for your vote to be counted. As in person, Vermont respects voters’ privacy about which primary they choose to vote in. This means you’ll get ballots for all three parties and will have to return all three, one voted and the other two blank. For a great video explainer of what to do, check out this one from our partners at VPIRG.

There are many things about this summer that don’t feel typical. But getting your vote counted doesn’t have to be one of them. Vermont has made it easy to exercise this fundamental right, and the more than 100,000 early requests show Vermonters are taking advantage of it. Now if only those ballots came with a maple creemee.

Posted by Stephanie Yu on July 23, 2020 at 10:23 am

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