Student Voting Project | Vermont

Voting at School

ID Requirements

First-time voters who register by mail must either vote in person or mail in a copy of required identification with their registration form.[1] Those who register through registration drives are considered to have registered in person and are not subject to the requirement.[2]  If you did not provide proper identification with your registration, you must show one of the following forms of identification at the polls on Election Day: a valid photo ID; a copy of a current utility bill; a copy of a current bank statement; or a copy of any government document that shows the current name and address of the voter.[3]  Student IDs, cellular telephone bills, student housing bills, and online printouts of bills will all be accepted.[4]  If you cannot show ID, you will be allowed to vote after completing an affirmation at the polls.[5]

Registration Requirements

In Vermont, registering to vote is known as having your name placed on the “checklist.” Your application to have your name placed on the checklist must be received by the town clerk by 5 p.m. on the Wednesday before the election.[6] A mail application is considered received if it is postmarked by the deadline.[7]  If you are not eligible to register before the voter registration deadline (if, for example, you would turn 18 between the deadline and the election), you may file a written notice of intention to apply before the registration deadline.[8] Then, once you become eligible, the town clerk must accept your application if you file it before the polls close on Election Day.[9]

Residency Requirements

Vermont’s constitution provides that “all voters, having a sufficient, evident, common interest with, and attachment to the community” have a right to vote.[10] Vermont statutes require voters to be residents of the state[11], and “residence” is defined as domicile.[12] Vermont law also includes a gain or loss provision stating that students shall not “gain or lose a residence solely” because of presence in or absence from the state while a student.[13]  While Vermont law requires that voters have an intent to remain “indefinitely,”[14] Vermont courts have explicitly held that a student who “has no definite plans to leave” and only intends to “possibly leave” his college town after graduation still has indefinite intent to remain.[15]

The court stated that students “should be permitted to vote in their school communities” if they are genuine residents of those communities and “are more closely tied to these communities than they are to the communities in which their parents live.”[16] The Secretary of State’s office acknowledges that people may have two residences, and says that because the law creates a subjective standard for determining residency, a voter “must decide which [residence] is his or her ‘principal’ dwelling place.”[17]  The Secretary of State’s office strongly encourages all students to vote where they wish.[18]

Students who lived in Vermont before moving elsewhere to attend school, and who wish to establish or keep their Vermont voting residency (i.e., at their parents’ Vermont address), should have no problem doing so unless they’ve already registered to vote in another state.  Like all states, Vermont allows students to keep their voting residency even if they move out of the district to attend school, and the only way you might lose this residency is by establishing residency in a new state.  While registering to vote in another state is not automatically considered an abandonment of your Vermont residency, some judges or officials might view it as such.

If the town clerk questions your eligibility to vote when you first apply, they will refer your application to the local elections board.[19]  The board reviews your application and can examine you under oath. If they find that you are ineligible to vote in Vermont, the board must notify you and state their reason in writing.[20] Vermont courts have noted that in determining your residency, the board must “bear in mind that election laws are to be liberally construed and that a very heavy burden of proof must be met if persons are to be disenfranchised.”[21] If the elections board denies your application, you can appeal to a superior or district judge in your county through an informal process (which means that no filing fee or lawyer is required).[22] The appeal must be completed with sufficient speed in order to enable you to vote in the upcoming election. At the hearing, anyone, including the applicant, may present evidence.[23]  Once you are on the checklist for a particular election, your eligibility to vote cannot be challenged at the polls.[24]

Absentee Requirement

In Vermont, any voter—including first-time voters—can vote absentee.[25] A mail-in application to vote absentee is available on the Secretary of State’s web site. Your application must be received by the town clerk by the day before the election.[26] Your absentee ballot must be received by the close of polls on Election Day.[27] Neither your application nor your ballot must be witnessed. First-time voters who registered by mail should send the town clerk a copy of their identification in order to vote absentee.[28]

Voting at Home

ID Requirements

First-time voters who register by mail must either vote in person or mail in a copy of required identification with their registration form. Those who register through registration drives are considered to have registered in person and are not subject to the requirement. If you did not provide proper identification with your registration, you must show one of the following forms of identification at the polls on Election Day: a valid photo ID, a copy of a current utility bill, a copy of a current bank statement or a copy of any government document that shows the current name and address of the voter. Student IDs, cellular telephone bills, student housing bills, and online printouts of bills will all be accepted. If you cannot show ID, you will be allowed to vote after completing an affirmation at the polls.

Registration Requirements

In Vermont, registering to vote is known as having your name placed on the "checklist." Your application to have your name placed on the checklist must be received by the town clerk by 5 p.m. on the Wednesday before the election. A mail application is considered received if it is postmarked by the deadline. If you are not eligible to register before the voter registration deadline (if, for example, you would turn 18 between the deadline and the election), you may file a written notice of intention to apply before the registration deadline. Then, once you become eligible, you can file your application before the polls close on Election Day and the town clerk must accept it.

The Secretary of State's website notes that it is important for students to include their dorm or building name and room number on their registration application (not just a post office box number), because some college campuses are split into more than one district.

Residency Requirements

The Vermont state constitution provides that "all voters, having a sufficient, evident, common interest with, and attachment to the community" have a right to vote. Vermont statutes require voters to be residents of the state , and "residence" is defined as domicile. Vermont law also includes a gain or loss provision stating that students shall not "gain or lose a residence solely" because of presence in or absence from the state while a student. While Vermont's election code requires that voters have an intent to remain "indefinitely," a court decision in Vermont held explicitly that a student who intends to "possibly leave" his college town after graduation "if he has no definite plans to leave the town and move elsewhere" still has indefinite intent to remain.

The court stated that students "should be permitted to vote in their school communities" if they are genuine residents of those communities and "are more closely tied to these communities than they are to the communities in which their parents live." The secretary of state's office acknowledges that people may have two residences, and says that because the law creates a subjective standard for determining residency, a voter "must decide which [residence] is his or her ‘principal' dwelling place." The Secretary of State's office strongly encourages all students to vote where they wish.

Students who lived in Vermont before moving elsewhere to attend school, and who wish to establish or keep their Vermont voting residency (i.e., at their parents' Vermont address), should have no problem doing so unless they've already registered to vote in another state. Like all states, Vermont allows students to keep their voting residency even if they move out of the district to attend school, and the only way you might lose this residency is by establishing residency in a new state. While registering to vote in another state is not automatically considered an abandonment of your Vermont residency, some judges or officials might view it as such.

Challenges to Residency

If the town clerk questions your eligibility to vote when you first apply, they will refer your application to the local elections board. The board reviews your application and can examine you under oath. If they find that you are ineligible to vote in Vermont, the board must notify you and state their reason in writing. The court in the case above noted that in determining your residency, that the board must "bear in mind that election laws are to be liberally construed and that a very heavy burden of proof must be met if persons are to be disenfranchised." If the board denies your application, you can appeal to a superior or district judge in your county through an informal process (which means that no filing fee or lawyer is required). The appeal must be completed with sufficient speed in order resolve issues and allow you to vote in the upcoming election. At the hearing, both the applicant and anyone else may present evidence. Once you are on the checklist for a particular election, your eligibility to vote cannot be challenged at the polls.

Absentee Requirement

In Vermont, any voter—including first-time voters—can vote absentee. A mail-in application to vote absentee is available on the Secretary of State's web site. Your application must be received by the town clerk by the day before the election. Your absentee ballot must be received by the close of polls on Election Day. Neither your application nor your ballot must be witnessed. First-time voters who registered by mail should send the town clerk a copy of their identification in order to vote absentee.

[1] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17 § 2563 (2010).

[2]

[3] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17, § 2563.

[4] Interview with Kathy DeWolf, Director of Elections and Campaign Finance, Vermont Secretary of State’s Office (July 11, 2008).

[5] Interview with Kathy DeWolf, Director of Elections and Campaign Finance, Vermont Secretary of State’s Office (July 11, 2008).

[6] Id. at § 17, § 2144(a) (2010).

[7] Id.

[8] Id. at § 2144(b).

[9] Id.

[10] Vt. Const. ch. 1, art. 8.

[11] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17, § 2121 (2010).

[12] See Id. at §2103(30).

[13] Id. at 17, § 2122.

[14] Id. at 17, § 2103(30) (2010).

[15] Shivelhood v. Davis, 336 F. Supp. 1111, 1114 (D. Vt. 1971).

[16] Id. at 1116.

[17] Vermont Secretary of State, Register to Vote: Frequently Asked Questions, http://vermont-elections.org/elections1/register_faq.html (last visited on April 26, 2010).

[18] Interview with Kathy DeWolf, Director of Elections and Campaign Finance, Vermont Secretary of State’s Office (July 11, 2008).

[19] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17, § 2144b(c) (2010).

[20] Id. at 17, § 2146(b).

[21] Shivelhood, 363 F. Supp. at 1114.

[22] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17, § 2148(a) (2010).

[23] Id.at § 2148(b).

[24] Id. at § 2148(c).

[25]

[26] Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17, § 2531(a) (2010).

[27] Id. at § 2543.

[28]