- In some Vermont towns, residents hold annual meetings to discuss local issues and vote.
- Town meetings are a Vermont tradition that dates back more than 250 years to before the founding of the Republic.
- Last year, residents of neighboring Morristown voted to switch to a secret ballot system, ending the tradition of town meetings.
Julie would like to increase donations to the food pantry. Kip is busy knitting a sweater. Shorty is going to ask. Why does a truck cost so much? It’s stocked with coffee, fresh bread, and donuts. Eighty-seven voters packed Elmore City Hall.
Town meeting begins. Host John Galemore stands up.
“Good morning, everyone. Welcome to democracy,” he says. “This is real and we should all be proud to be doing this.”
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People across America are disgusted with politics. Many feel powerless and alienated from their representatives at all levels, especially those in Washington. The tone has long since become unpleasant, and many feel forced to choose a side and view those on the other side as the enemy.
Town Clerk Sandra Lacasse places a sign outside town hall as the town holds its annual town meeting on March 5, 2024 in Elmore, Vermont. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
But in our corner of New England, democracy works a little differently. People can still attend in person. For one day each year, townspeople gather to discuss local issues. They talk, listen, debate, and vote. And in places like Elmore, when it’s all over, we have a potluck lunch together.
Town meetings are a Vermont tradition that dates back more than 250 years to before the founding of the Republic. But it is under threat. Many people feel that they no longer have the time or ability to attend such meetings. Last year, residents of neighboring Morristown voted to switch to a secret ballot system, ending the tradition of town meetings.
Not so in Elmore, population 886. Residents are used to keeping traditions firmly in place. They have fought to keep the post office, store and school, the last one-room schoolhouse in the state, open. Last fall, Elmore residents voted 2-1 to keep town meeting.
Elmore calls itself Vermont’s Beautiful Place. The town borders the lake, which is dotted with ice fishing in early March. A mountain rises ahead. At night, steam rises from sugar warehouses where maple sap is boiled down to make syrup.
The center of town is the store. “I’ve always said this is a living, living, breathing creature. I don’t own her, she owns me,” he said over the years. said Kathy Miller, 63, the former owner who still helps out at the store. People came not only to buy milk and get mail, Miller recalled, but also to use fax machines, find plumbers, or just exchange gossip.
After joining the State Grocers Association in the 1980s, Mr. Miller testified before Congress about the impact of credit card fees. At that time, she believed that even small people could have a say in national politics. But lately, she says, Washington has moved away from the basics. It’s too big, she says. It’s too messed up. It has tilted off its axis.
Miller describes himself as a Republican who never drank the Kool-Aid. But political differences don’t matter at town meetings, she said.
“There’s no animosity,” she says. “People can talk about all kinds of things. I shake hands with her neighbors when I leave.”
She successfully lobbied at Town Meeting to increase the town’s library grant from $1,000 to $3,000 per year.
Gailmore, 75, is a singer-songwriter who describes herself as an independent voter. When he first moved to Elmore in 1980, he says he found the Town Meeting tradition to be nothing short of miraculous. It wasn’t some politician saying it, it was real people participating. He was so inspired that he even wrote a song about it.
“Say hello to the people of Old Town, listen to their gossip and jokes, and dip a donut in your cup of strong Joe,” Galemore sings. “Find your favorite chair and stick your butt in it. We’re going to get down to business, okay?”
At town meetings, people not only vote on local issues, but may also decide to take a position on national issues of the day. Mr. Galemore has a photo in his home of his late wife, Kathy Murphy, who spoke out against nuclear weapons at Elmore Town Meetings in the 1980s.
This year, Elmore decided to take a stand on another broader issue by adopting a declaration of inclusion. The town says it welcomes all people regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.
Frank Bryan, a retired University of Vermont professor who wrote a book on town meetings, argues that people who deal with disagreements face-to-face are forced to recognize each other’s common humanity through larger-scale political means. I coined the term “forced civility” to describe the lack of benefits. No interaction allowed.
However, just getting voters to come and vote for hours on a weekday morning is difficult. Morristown is one of the many towns in Vermont that have put an end to the tradition of town meetings. Richard Watts, director of UVM’s Vermont Research Center, said people in big cities tend to feel less connected.
There are significant drawbacks if a town moves to secret voting (also known as Australian voting, as the state was the first to adopt such a system in the mid-19th century). It is usually a direct yes or no vote. That is, people cannot reconcile or discuss issues. And for some, open collegial debate is the genius of the entire system.
Elmore’s town meeting has been going on for nearly four hours. What is unfolding here is a cross-section of democracy, where people choose for themselves how to live, work, and govern themselves.
An impassioned speech by Julie Bomengen secured an additional $500 for food distribution in the Lamoille community, increasing Elmore’s annual donation to $750.
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Several people have criticized the town’s spending habits. Some argue that replacing equipment such as road maintenance trucks only ends up costing more money when cans are kicked onto the road. “We just spent $2.5 million on this new garage, and now we’re spending $300,000 on a new truck. I think that’s a little excessive,” Shorty Town told the crowd.
After thorough discussion, Elmore’s annual city budget of $1.1 million was approved by voice vote. I have no objections.
Mr Galemore praised the townspeople for organizing a lively and well-attended meeting. Kip Bovey, who has been actively participating in meetings, is making good progress in knitting a sweater. Mr. Town gave his opinion on the track. Democracy has been developed on a small canvas. And what about America’s oft-discussed political polarization? I can’t see it anywhere.
It’s time to adjourn.
“Lunch is cold,” Galemore said. “But it will take place in a church.”
