Vermont
Ballot Security
What Politicians Say
After experimenting with vote-by-mail during the coronavirus pandemic, Vermont became one of eight states that conduct elections entirely by mail.
Under a law passed in 2021, all active voters in Vermont will be sent a ballot in the weeks before a general election which they can return by mail or drop off at an elections office. Some areas also offer drive-thru ballot drop off.
When signing the legislation, Republican Governor Phil Scott asked lawmakers to expand all-mail elections to local elections and party primaries, but they have so far not done so.
Vermont broke a turnout record set in 2008 in the 2020 election.
Ease of Voting
The 2021 law also set rules for ballot drop boxes, including requirements that they be on land owned by local governments, are permanently attached to the ground or an “immovable object” and are under 24-hour video surveillance.
The number of required drop boxes varies by the size of the town, from one to five.
Lawmakers also created a process for voters to fix mail ballots that were rejected for reasons such as a lack of signature.
Ballot Security
The vote-by-mail law also added a requirement that the secretary of state check the voter rolls with information from other state agencies and prepare a public report by 2023 on how vote-by-mail is working.
How Politicians Responded to the 2020 Election
Scott, the only Republican elected to a statewide office in Vermont and the only GOP governor to publicly say he voted for Biden, condemned Trump’s baseless claims of fraud, calling them “absolutely shameful.”