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Ballots

V.S.A. tit. 17, ch. 51, subch. 2
in effect

17 V.S.A. § 2471 General election ballot

2471. General election ballot (a)(1) A consolidated ballot shall be used at a general election, which shall list the several candidates for the offices to be voted upon. The offices of President and Vice President of the United States, U.S. Senator, U.S. Representative, Governor, Lieutenant Governor, State Treasurer, Secretary of State, Auditor of Accounts, Attorney General, State Senator, Representative to the General Assembly, Judge of Probate, assistant judge, State’s Attorney, sheriff, and high bailiff shall be listed in that order. Any statewide public question shall also be listed on the ballot, before the listing of all offices to be filled. (2) The ballot shall be prepared at State expense under the direction of the Secretary of State. The color of the ballot shall be determined by the Secretary of State. The printing shall be black. Ballots shall be printed on index stock and configured to be readable by vote tabulators. The font shall be at least 10 points for candidate names unless a name exceeds 24 characters, in which case the candidate may change his or her consent form name to 24 characters or less, or the font may be reduced as needed to fit the candidate name space. (b) Ballots for justices shall be prepared at town expense, under the direction of the town clerk, in the town in which they are to be used. The printing shall be black and shall conform as nearly as possible to the format of the general election ballot. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 42; 1985, No. 196 (Adj. Sess.), § 7; 1993, No. 138 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2007, No. 54, § 4; 2013, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 22.

17 V.S.A. § 2472 Contents

2472. Contents (a) The ballot shall be titled “OFFICIAL VERMONT GENERAL ELECTION BALLOT,” followed by the date of the election. Immediately below, the following instructions shall be printed: “Instruction to Voters: To vote for a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot, fill in the oval at the right of that person’s name and party designation. To vote for a candidate whose name is not printed on the ballot, write the person’s name on the blank line in the appropriate block and fill in the oval to the right of that blank line. When there are two or more candidates to be elected to one office, you may vote for any number of candidates up to and including the maximum number.” The name of the town or towns and legislative district in which the ballot is to be used shall be listed in the upper left hand corner. (b)(1) Each office to be voted upon shall be separately indicated and preceded by the word “For,” as: “For United States Senator.” Beneath the office to be voted upon shall appear the instructions: “Vote for not more than (the number of candidates to be elected).” (2) The names of the candidates for each office shall be listed in alphabetical order by surname, followed by the candidate’s town of residence, and the party or parties by which the candidate has been nominated, or in the case of independent candidates who have not chosen some other name or identification, by the word “Independent.” The word “party” shall not be printed on the ballot following a candidate’s party name. (3) To the right of the party designation shall be an oval in which the voter may indicate his or her choice by filling in the oval. (4) A candidate’s name shall not appear on the ballot more than once for any one office. (5)(A) In order to have votes listed for a write-in candidate under section 2587 of this title, not later than 5:00 p.m. on the Thursday preceding the election, a write-in candidate for the General Assembly, any State office, or any federal office shall complete a form of the Secretary of State’s design affirming that the candidate wants to have received votes listed under subdivision 2587(e)(3) of this title. The candidate shall file the form with either all town clerks within the candidate’s applicable district or the Secretary of State’s office in an electronic manner approved by the Secretary. The Secretary of State shall notify the appropriate town clerks of any filings made in accordance with this subsection (b) as soon as practicable. (B) Notwithstanding subdivision (A) of this subdivision (b)(5), a write-in candidate is not required to file if: (i) the candidate has already filed a consent to the printing of the candidate’s name on the ballot for a major political party, as provided in section 2361, 2385, or 2402 of this title; or (ii) no candidate is printed on the ballot, or if a candidate whose name is printed on the ballot dies or is otherwise disqualified prior to 7:00 p.m. on the election day. (c) Following the names of candidates for each office, there shall be as many blank write-in lines as there are persons to be elected to that office. To the right of each such line shall be the words “Write-In” and an oval identical to the ovals that follow the candidates’ names. Lines provided for writing in names for President and Vice President shall be separately designated by the words “President” and “Vice President.” (d) [Repealed.] (e) When an article is to be voted on and the legislative body determines that the article is too long or unwieldy to show in full on the ballot, it shall be sufficient for the ballot to show the article by the number and title for that article as they were listed in the warning for the election. However, the complete article shall be posted in a conspicuous place within each voting booth. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.),§§ 43-45; 2007, No. 54, § 5; 2013, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 23; 2015, No. 30, § 9, eff. May 26, 2015; 2017, No. 50, § 21; 2019, No. 131 (Adj. Sess.), § 121; 2025, No. 70, § 10, eff. June 25, 2025.

17 V.S.A. § 2473 Provisions relative to presidential election

2473. Provisions relative to presidential election (a) When the President and Vice President are to be elected, the ballot shall contain the names of all candidates for these offices, arranged in alphabetical order according to the surname of the presidential candidate of each party. The names of the electors shall not be printed on the ballot. A vote for the presidential and vice presidential nominees of a party shall constitute a vote for the electors nominated by that party. (b) The name and state of residence of the presidential and vice presidential candidate of each party shall be listed on separate lines joined together by a bracket, followed by the party designations and a single square for that pair of candidates. In lieu of the instructions: “Vote for not more than (the number of candidates to be elected),” the following instructions shall appear: “Mark ONE oval only.” (c)(1) If a candidate whose name is not printed on the ballot receives the greatest number of votes for President, the Secretary of State shall notify him or her of that fact, and within two weeks thereafter, the candidate shall file with the Secretary of State a list of voters equal to the number of electors that the State is entitled to elect. The list shall be signed by the candidate personally. (2) The persons so named shall be electors, having the duties prescribed in this title. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 2007, No. 54, § 6; 2019, No. 67, § 12.

17 V.S.A. § 2474 Choice of party

2474. Choice of party (a)(1) A person nominated by any means for the same office by more than one political party may elect, not later than 5:00 p.m. on the tenth day following the primary election, the party or parties in which the nominee will be a candidate. The nominee shall notify in writing the Secretary of State or town clerk, as the case may be, of such choice by that deadline, and only the party or parties that the nominee so elects shall be printed next to the nominee’s name on the ballot. (2) If the nominee does not notify the Secretary of State or the town clerk of his or her choice of party, the Secretary of State shall print on the ballot those parties next to the nominee’s name by listing in this order: (A) the major political party for which the nominee had his or her name printed on the ballot in the primary; (B) any major political parties that nominated the nominee by the party committee, in the order in which the nominations were submitted to the Secretary of State; (C) any major political parties for which the nominee received write-in votes, in an order from highest to lowest vote counts; and (D) any minor political parties that nominated the nominee by party committee, in the order in which the nominations were submitted to the Secretary of State. (b)(1) A candidate for State office who is the nominee of two or more political parties shall file with the Secretary of State, not later than 5:00 p.m. the tenth day following the primary election, a statement designating for which party the votes cast for him or her shall be counted for the purposes of determining whether his or her designated party shall be a major political party. The party so designated shall be the first party to be printed immediately after the candidate’s name on the ballot. (2) If a candidate does not file the statement by that deadline, the Secretary of State shall designate the party for which the votes cast shall be counted as provided in subdivision (a)(2) of this section. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1989, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 2; 2003, No. 59, § 19; 2013, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 24; 2015, No. 30, § 10, eff. May 26, 2015.

17 V.S.A. § 2475 Death or withdrawal of candidate

2475. Death or withdrawal of candidate When a candidate dies or withdraws and the vacancy is filled as provided in chapter 49 of this title, the name supplied for the vacancy shall be inserted instead of the original nomination. If the ballots have already been printed, the officer who furnished them shall prepare and furnish new ballots. The town clerk in each town shall, upon delivery of the new ballots, immediately destroy all original ballots except those already supplied to or used by early or absentee voters. Such early or absentee voter ballots shall be acceptable and counted with the other ballots. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 46; 2001, No. 6, § 12(b), eff. April 10, 2001.

17 V.S.A. § 2478 Number of paper ballots to be printed and furnished

2478. Number of paper ballots to be printed and furnished (a) For primary elections, the Secretary of State shall furnish each town with a sufficient number of printed ballots based on the history of voter turnout in the town and in consultation with the town clerk. (b) For general elections, the Secretary of State shall furnish each town with a number of printed ballots approximately equal to 100 percent of the number of voters on the checklist for the primary election. (c) If necessary due to unusual growth of the checklist, a town clerk may request additional ballots from the Secretary of State at least 40 days before the election. (d) For local ballots, the town clerk shall cause such number of ballots to be printed and furnished as the board of civil authority shall designate. (e) [Repealed.] Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1979, No. 200 (Adj. Sess.), § 48; 1981, No. 239 (Adj. Sess.), § 15; 1985, No. 109 (Adj. Sess.); 1991, No. 127 (Adj. Sess.); 2003, No. 94 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; 2013, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 25.

17 V.S.A. § 2479 Manner of distribution

2479. Manner of distribution Not later than 45 days before the election, the Secretary of State shall furnish the prepared ballots to the clerk of each town. Ballots shall be sent in securely fastened packages by mail or in some other safe manner, with marks on the outside clearly designating the polling place for which they are intended and the number of ballots enclosed. The town clerk shall store the ballots, except for ballots used as early or absentee voter or sample ballots, in a secure place until the day of the election, at which time the town clerk shall deliver them in sufficient quantities to the presiding officer in each polling place, together with any ballots prepared by the town clerk. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1; amended 1985, No. 197 (Adj. Sess.), § 3; 2001, No. 6, § 12(b), eff. April 10, 2001; 2001, No. 83 (Adj. Sess.), § 5; 2007, No. 54, § 7; 2009, No. 73 (Adj. Sess.), § 9, eff. April 7, 2010.

17 V.S.A. § 2480 Substitute ballots

2480. Substitute ballots If the ballots to be furnished to a polling place are not duly delivered or if, after delivery, they are destroyed or stolen or if the number proves insufficient, the presiding officer shall cause other ballots to be prepared substantially in the form of those so wanting. Upon delivery of such ballots at the polling place by him or her, accompanied by his or her statement under oath, which shall be recorded by the town clerk, that the same have been so prepared and furnished by him or her and that he or she failed to receive the original ballots or that the same have been destroyed or stolen or that the number has proved insufficient, the ballot clerks shall cause such substituted ballots to be used in place of those wanting. Added 1977, No. 269 (Adj. Sess.), § 1.

17 V.S.A. § 2481 Printed ballots required

2481. Printed ballots required Except in the case of voice votes from the floor, divisions, or voting at a floor meeting by paper ballot at a local election, no voting shall occur in any local, primary, or general election that does not use printed ballots. Added 2013, No. 161 (Adj. Sess.), § 26.
Source: Vermont General Assembly (legislature.vermont.gov)URL: https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/chapter/17/051Fetched: 10/21/2026

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