2022 State Election Season Information
As we enter the 2022 State Election season, the Secretary of State’s Office would like to ensure that voters throughout the state receive accurate information on voting in the State Primary and General Elections.
The statutes, executive orders and guidance in place for the 2020 elections specific to COVID 19 and obtaining an absentee ballot have expired. The following information should be referred to regarding election activity until further notice.
New Hampshire’s Constitution limits absentee voting to: “qualified voters who [. . .] are absent from the city or town of which they are inhabitants, or who by reason of physical disability are unable to vote in person . . . .” Part 1, Article 11. RSA 657:1 carries out Part 1 Article 11 by authoring absentee voting for:
“Any person who will be absent on the day of any state election from the city, town, or unincorporated place in which he or she is registered to vote or who cannot appear in public on any election day because of his or her observance of a religious commitment or who is unable to vote there in person by reason of physical disability may vote at such elections as provided in this chapter. A person who is unable to appear at any time during polling hours at his or her polling place because of an employment obligation shall be considered absent for purposes of this chapter. For the purposes of this section, the term "employment" shall include the care of children and infirm adults, with or without compensation.”
“Disability” for election law purposes has the same meaning today as it had pre-pandemic. The nature of the voter’s disability must leave them “unable to vote in person” according to the Constitution and the absentee voting statute.
PUBLIC HEALTH CONSIDERATIONS AND ABSENTEE VOTING
A person can register and vote by absentee if, based on their own health circumstances, medical authorities advise them to avoid going out in public. This applies to:
1) voters with symptoms of a communicable disease or illness;
2) voters who, due to their own health circumstances, limit public exposure in their day-to-day life as a preventative measure.
These two types of voters can reasonably conclude that a “physical disability” exists within the meaning of RSA 654:16 and 654:17, absentee registration and RSA 657:1, absentee voting.
A person must meet the following to register and vote in New Hampshire:
• 18 years of age or older on election day;
• A United States citizen; and
• Domiciled in the town or ward where the person seeks to vote.
“Registering to Vote in New Hampshire” provides further details on these requirements.
Registering to Vote in New Hampshire
URL to page containing the PDF link:
https://www.sos.nh.gov/elections/voters/register-vote/registering-vote-new-hampshire
URL to the PDF document:
Published documents are updated whenever the legislature or the courts change the law. If you use the link directly to the document on the state website, it should automatically take you to the most current version.
The “Registering to Vote in New Hampshire” document states an applicant can use an affidavit to prove their identity, age, citizenship, or domicile. Please include this information on your website if you provide a list of proof documents needed to register to vote.
The last day for people to register to vote for the September 13, 2022 Primary Election is August 24, 2022 in the Town Clerk's Office.
The Supervisors of the Checklist will meet on Thursday September 1, 2022 at 7PM in the Town Office Conference Room, for additions and corrections to the voter checklist.
In all cases, if you want to register to vote please bring your photo ID.
The November General Election will be held November 8, 2022. Please watch the calendar for dates to register to vote and Supervisor of the Checklist meetings.
All elections are held at the Lyme School Community Gymnasium.
*You can also find this information on the 'Town Clerk' page on the left hand side. A green box should be labeled '2022 Election Information'.