Chapter 670: Village District Elections

The election of village district officers shall be conducted at the annual meeting of the village district which shall be held between January 1 and May 1 of each year. In the case of a district formed for the purpose of impoundment of water, such annual meeting may be held at another time if so voted at a previous meeting.

In the case of a village district that includes voters from 2 or more towns and holds its elections in conjunction with town elections, in the event of a weather or other emergency as described in RSA 669:1, V, the town moderators in each town shall, as described in RSA 669:1, coordinate to reschedule the town and village district elections as provided in that section.

The voters of each village district shall, at each annual village district election, elect a moderator, a clerk, 3 commissioners, a treasurer, and such other officers as may be directed by law or as the voters thereof may judge necessary for managing the district's affairs. Any village district voting to do so may elect one commissioner to serve for one year, one to serve for 2 years and one to serve for 3 years and, at every annual meeting thereafter, elect one commissioner to serve for 3 years. A village district officer shall assume office upon his election and qualification for office, and shall serve until the election and qualification of his successor.

I. Notwithstanding the provisions of RSA 670:2, any village district may at any annual meeting under an article in the warrant for the meeting elect 5 rather than 3 commissioners by a majority vote of the legal voters present and voting at the annual meeting in the manner provided in paragraph II.

II. Upon written petition of 25 voters qualified to vote in a village district election and whose names are on the village district checklist, or 2 percent of such voters, whichever number is fewer, addressed and delivered to the commissioners not later than 35 days before any annual meeting, the following question shall be submitted to the voters at the meeting: "Are you in favor of increasing the number of commissioners from 3 to 5?" In districts having an official ballot, the question shall appear upon the ballot pursuant to RSA 670:7. In districts where no official ballot is used, the vote on this question shall be by special ballot. After the question, squares with the words "yes" and "no" shall be printed on the ballot in which the voter may mark his choice pursuant to RSA 670:7.

III. A village district which votes to increase the number of commissioners as provided in paragraph II may rescind its action in the same manner, except that the question shall read: "Are you in favor of decreasing the number of commissioners from 5 to 3 members?"

IV. If a district votes to increase or to decrease the number of commissioners, the change shall not take effect in either case until the first annual meeting following the meeting at which the question was acted upon.

(a) If the village district votes to increase the number of commissioners to 5, and its commissioners serve 3-year terms, at the first annual meeting following the vote the village district shall elect 2 commissioners for 3-year terms, and one commissioner for a one-year term. At the next annual meeting, the village district shall elect 2 commissioners for 3-year terms.

(b) If the village district votes to increase the number of commissioners to 5 and its commissioners serve one-year terms, at the first annual meeting following the vote, the village district shall elect 5 commissioners for one-year terms.

(c) At succeeding annual elections the village district shall fill commissioner vacancies as they regularly occur.

(d) If a village district votes to decrease its commissioners to 3, at the annual meeting following the vote, the terms of office of all the commissioners shall end and the village district shall elect 3 commissioners, as provided in RSA 670:2.

Any person having his or her domicile within the village district and qualified to vote as provided in RSA 654:1 through 654:6 and whose name is on the village district checklist shall be entitled to vote in any village district election. An updated checklist shall be used at all village district elections and meetings for the same purposes as checklists are used by towns as provided in RSA 669:5. Such checklist or checklists, if the district is located in more than one town, shall be used in the election of district officers.

To become a candidate for any village district office, a person must have a domicile in the village district. In any village district which has voted to elect district officers by non-partisan official ballot as provided in RSA 669:13, all candidates shall file a declaration of candidacy with the village district clerk, in the same manner as with the town clerk in town elections as provided in RSA 669:19-669:22.

No person shall file as a candidate for a village district office for more than one seat on the same village district or school district board, commission, committee, or council.

Village district elections shall be warned by the commissioners in the same manner as town elections are warned by the selectmen as provided in RSA 669:2 and RSA 39. The commissioners shall give the supervisors of the checklist 60 days notice of any village district election.

A village district which has voted to elect officers by non-partisan official ballot as provided in RSA 670:7 shall provide for absentee voting in the same manner as in town elections as provided in RSA 669:26-669:29 except that all duties performed therein by the town clerk shall be performed by the village district clerk.

A village district may vote to adopt the non-partisan official ballot system for the election of district officers in the same manner as towns, as provided in RSA 669:13 in which case it shall be subject to the provisions of RSA 669:13 and 669:19-669:24. A village district which has not adopted the non-partisan ballot system but which votes to elect district officers by ballot shall be subject to the provisions of RSA 669:54-669:60 for the unofficial ballot system in towns. No village district may vote to adopt a partisan ballot system.

A village district may vote to elect district officers by ballot or other means at the village district election or meeting in the same manner as towns as provided in RSA 669:17.

After the village district election, the clerk of a village district shall forthwith report the names and post office addresses of all village district officers to the commissioner of revenue administration. If any village district officer has not been elected or appointed at the time of the election, the village district clerk shall inform the commissioner of revenue administration of the name and mailing address of the person chosen to fill the position.

If the 2 candidates having the highest number of votes for a village district office shall have an equal number, the successful candidate shall be chosen in the same manner as is provided for resolving tie votes under RSA 669:36 or 60.

Recounts of village district elections shall be conducted in the same manner as in town elections as provided in RSA 669:30-669:35 except that the board of recount shall be composed of the village district clerk, moderator and commissioners, each of whom shall perform the duties of the corresponding officer in the town.

The commissioners shall make appointments to fill vacancies in the offices of village district clerk, moderator, and treasurer, and their own board. In the case of a vacancy in the office of commissioner with a 2- or 3-year term, the remaining commissioners shall make an appointment to fill said vacancy until the next annual meeting of the district, at which time a commissioner shall be elected to fill the unexpired term.