The Town of Plympton Residents will be accommodated by the Town of Plympton Town Clerk, Tara J. Shaw, to “Early Vote” in the November 8th Election based on the terms provided in M.G.L. c. 50, § 1 (950 CMR 47.00: EARLY VOTING PROCEDURES).
Qualified voters may vote early in person at the Town of Plympton Town House or by mail and only in the town in which he or she is registered to vote. The deadline for the last day to register to vote for the November 8, 2016 Election is Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 5:00 p.m. The designated polling location is the same as all other Town of Plympton Elections located at the Plympton Town House, Community Meeting Room, 5 Palmer Road, Plympton, MA 02367. The mandated early voting period is Monday, October 24, 2016 and Friday, November 4, 2016. (Guideline specifics are as follows: The voting period for early voting shall run from the eleventh business day preceding the general election until the close of business on the business day preceding the business day before the election; provided, however, that if the eleventh business day before the election falls on a legal holiday the early voting period shall begin on the first business day prior to the legal holiday.) To help clarify this law, and in the case of the Town of Plympton, Early Voting hours will be limited to the normal business hours of the Plympton Town Clerk which are Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Monday evenings 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. The specific dates are October 24-27 and October 31 – November 4.
“Generally, keeping polls open under normal circumstances is expensive, and that is true for early voting as well. This is the reason we are conducting early voting using the Town Clerk’s Office regular business hours within the time period mandated by the state. Back in January when meeting with the Finance Committee for the FY17 Budget, the specific guidelines for Early Voting had not been ironed out by the state, therefore, I did my best to predict costs for at least one additional Election Worker in addition to myself and my Assistant Town Clerk to accommodate Early Voting. In an effort to not put a strain on the already tight budget needed to perform all of the tasks in my office mandated by the state, and in a lot of cases, unfunded mandated costs, I am prepared to put in additional time if needed to help streamline the process and to keep the residents of Plympton informed. More informative material will follow by way of Town of Plympton website News and Announcements and Plympton-Halifax Express updates. Thank you for your patience as we launch ourselves into a new era that includes Early Voting!”
~ Town Clerk Tara Shaw.