New London readies town meeting and election, highlights accessible voting machine and check‑in plan

Selectmen and town staff told the board March 3 they have finalized volunteer schedules and equipment for the March 10 election and the March 18 town meeting at the Hogan Center.

A new accessible voting machine received from the Secretary of State will be kept in the closet at Whipple Hall and staff planned training and testing. Officials said they tested the ballot machine and that absentee ballots processing on election day will begin at 10 a.m., as required by law. To improve access at town meeting, the town has added two circular standing polling stations to test as replacements for traditional booths, upgraded the PA system to help those with hearing impairments and will provide six microphones (four fixed at the table and two roaming).

For check-in at town meeting, the town will use five pole-pad electronic check-in devices (enabled by recent local legislation) that print small tickets; manual books will be kept as a fallback in case of device failure. Officials described a plan to run three‑hour volunteer shifts, stage setup on March 6, and cleanup on March 11. Doors will open at 5 p.m. with the meeting starting at 6 p.m.

Board members debated whether time limits on public speaking should be proposed; the chair said it is ultimately the voters’ meeting and voters can set limits if they choose. The board said it will confirm before town meeting whether members of the selectboard are required to follow any time limits they may adopt.