Voting is our clearest civic duty. Yet in the United States, often fewer than 50% of those eligible vote in general elections. Here in Vermont, participation rates are usually higher, but the fact remains: thousands of eligible Vermont voters let someone else decide who will govern them. Your opinion is important, and your participation is needed.

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To be eligible to vote in Vermont, you must be at least 18 years old and a resident of Vermont. Voting occurs in the town of your primary residence, so if you live in Middlesex, you’ll vote here. It’s easy to register by stopping in at Town Hall during regular business hours, or you can fill out a voter registration form online. For more information on voter registration, see the Vermont Secretary of State’s Voter Registration page.

Middlesex voters vote on Town Meeting Day (first Tuesday in March) and on Election Day (first Tuesday after the first Monday in November). They also vote in party primaries (second Tuesday in September), the Presidential Preference Primary (every four years on Town Meeting Day), and in special elections to decide a particular question.

If you need accommodation to assist you with voting, contact  the Town Clerk’s office. For more information on voting accessibility, see the Vermont Secretary of State’s accessibility page.

The polls are usually open from 7 am until 7 pm, on Election Day in November (10 am until 7 pm on Town Meeting Day in March). On Town Meeting Day, Middlesex voters vote at the polls for town officers, school budgets, and other items via Australian (printed paper) ballot. In addition, they can attend the annual Town Meeting to discuss and vote on other warned articles. See “Town Meeting” page.

When you enter the polling place to vote, you will be asked to give your name to a poll worker and will be given paper ballots for state and local races. You then step into a voting booth and vote in private. After you mark your ballots and exit the booth, you will be asked for your name one more time before you deposit the ballots in the ballot box or vote tabulator. Even though the poll workers may know you, they are required to ask for your name and to make certain it is on the voter checklist.

The ballots are overseen by the Town Clerk with support from deputized staff and the Board of Civil Authority. The results of the election are usually available within two to three hours. Maintaining a group of volunteer poll workers is essential to the integrity of elections. If you are interested in volunteering to help with the tasks that keep democracy strong in Middlesex, contact the Town Clerk.

Early voting is available to any voter who requests a ballot prior to voting day. You do not need to be out of town or ill to vote early. Contact the Town Clerk’s office if you are interested in voting early. You can either vote early at the Town Clerk’s office or have the ballot mailed to you.

Every two years, Middlesex and East Montpelier voters elect one State Representative for the Washington-7 legislative district, and join with the other towns in Washington County to elect three State Senators. These are your representatives in Vermont’s legislature, also known as the General Assembly.

The General Assembly meets at the State House in Montpelier, usually from early January through mid-May (sometimes later). It enacts and amends State laws and, each year, must appropriate funds for the operations of State programs. Vermont’s legislative session is biennial, which means that it extends over two years; the first half takes place during an odd-numbered year, and the second half takes place the following year. A budget must be passed every year.

Unlike many states in which being a legislator is a full-time job, Vermont still has a “citizen legislature,” people who have other occupations during the rest of the year. In addition to dealing with legislative issues, legislators can sometimes help you in dealing with State agencies. All legislators do “case work” for their constituents, and can be powerful allies in problem solving.

The Vermont Legislative Home Page is at: www.leg.state.vt.us  Information you’ll find at this site: scheduled committee meetings; bills, calendars, and journals; the legislative bill tracking system; text of bills and other legislative documents; minutes of selected committee meetings.  Go to Contact Us for more information. 


Vermont has two U.S. Senators and one Representative to Congress. These leaders want to hear your views, and also can offer valuable help in problem solving.  Go to Contact Us for more information. 

Middlesex needs you. In communities all across Vermont, citizens take on the tasks of the planning commission, selectboard, listers, justices of the peace, among others. How about you?

Getting elected or appointed to an office isn’t hard. First, look into which office is a good match with your skills and interests. Positions are listed in the town’s Annual Report, and many are described on this website. You are invited to join with your friends and neighbors in getting involved in local government.

To run for local office, you have to be on the Middlesex voter checklist, and you’ll need 1% of the town’s legally qualified voters’ signatures on a petition for office. Signed petitions are due by the 6th Monday before Town Meeting Day (in late January). Contact the Town Clerk’s office for more information, or see the Vermont Secretary of State’s website.