Sample Ballots For August 9, 2016 Primaries

[Henry]

Vote for one party only or your Ballot will be void:

[Barbara]

Today is the last day to register to vote in the primary. The Vermont Secretary of State's website has the information. I am not on the ballots because I am Independent but appreciate voters writing me in for State Representative. The bi-partisan endorsement is very important to me.

[Henry]

It is also important on your write-ins that you also fill in the oval circle for your write in to count I believe.

[Barbara]

Thank you,Henry for identifying some confusion over the rules for a write-in candidate.  I have copied them from the Secretary of State's office and pasted them here.

III.   What Constitutes a Vote for a write-in candidate:
A.   On a paper ballot or machine ballot, the act of writing in the name of candidate, or pasting a label or sticker containing a candidate’s name on the write-in line for a race on the ballot, shall constitute a vote for that candidate even if the box or oval opposite the write-in line has not been marked.
B.   In a machine ballot town, the presiding officer shall direct not less than two election officials to fan the ballots from the large ballot bin to look for ballots where a write-in candidate’s name has been written in or a label affixed, but where no mark was made in the oval.  The ballots found with a write-in name but no mark in the oval shall be combined with the write-in ballots in the “write-in bin” of the machine.  All ballots containing write-ins shall be counted by teams of two election officials using the same rules as paper ballots and the tally for each write-in candidates shall be added to the summary sheet and to the official return of votes.
C.   On each tally sheet, the counters shall add together the names of candidates that are clearly the same person, even though a nickname or last name only is used.
D.   Names of fictitious persons shall not be counted or listed as write-in candidates.