ATHENS, Vt. — Voters in the tiny town of Athens have decided to keep their traditional Town Meeting with voting and discussion on the floor but have opted to elect town officers by secret ballot.
A special town meeting was held Wednesday.
Voters said they preferred to have the town budget and other money articles remain open to a public discussion, revision and vote on the floor, the Brattleboro Reformer reported.
The vote was 71-13 to keep the floor meeting and 50-34 to switch to what’s known as the Australian ballot for town officers.
In March, nearly 200 residents cast ballots during Town Meeting and townspeople said they wanted to keep the high voter turnout.
The town will decide later whether the Town Meeting will still be a day meeting on the traditional first Tuesday in March.
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