MONMOUTH – Most of the more than 100 residents at Wednesday night’s budget hearing want to have the annual town meeting restored, saying they were misled when they voted last year to change to voting by secret ballot at the polls.
The new balloting method will take effect for the first time June 14.
Those supporting the polling process maintain that too few people have attended some recent town meetings.
Selectman Steve Kolenda said a secret ballot referendum would attract more people than a town meeting.
“I make a prediction that more people will turn out than in the 200-year history of this town,” Kolenda said.
“This has been a trend in Maine that more towns are moving toward. In Vermont, it’s quite common,” he added.
Several people said some voters last year didn’t understand what they were voting for when they cast ballots eliminating the town meeting.
The vote was 1,356 to 860.
“I resent that you are making assumptions of why I vote,” said Florel Steuerwalt. “People did not know what they were voting on. People were not made aware of this.”
“You keep saying it’s a town meeting. It’s not a town meeting,” said Nancy Ludwig. “You are in a very small minority when you say that town meeting is voting in a booth.”
She called for reinstatement of the annual meeting.
“It was a purposely misled question,” Mike Tardif said. “People didn’t understand what they were voting on.”
Town Manager Tim Simcock said if articles that fund essential services fail at the polls, it would take months and thousands of dollars to stage a new referendum to approve funding.
At a meeting, measures that fail can be amended immediately and approved.
Kolenda said two articles in this year’s warrant provide for such a situation by allowing the town to operate until another referendum is held.
Absentee ballots will be available a month before the June 14 referendum.
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