How Maine towns are implementing safe voting procedures

Municipal clerks are required to adhere to the Secretary of State’s Office guidelines at the polls in connection to COVID-19 restrictions.

The state is supplying protective and sanitizing equipment for each voting place to protect election workers and voters. These materials include face coverings and gloves for election workers, antibacterial wipes; hand sanitizer, tabletop protective shields, screen cleaners for the vote tabulators, and ballot marking pens.

The layout of the polling places will look different this year due to social distancing measures. Municipalities must comply with the current 50-person gathering limit in the polling place and must maintain the 6-foot physical distance between persons.

Depending on the size of the voting area, and how many check-in tables, voting booths and tabulators will fit within the layout, the maximum capacity may be significantly less than 50 people, according to the Secretary of State’s Office.

BETHEL — Booths will be six feet apart. Plexiglass will be at each check-in table and town employees will we be wearing masks, shields, or both. Disinfectant will be provided at all the booths.

CHESTERVILLE — Voting guidelines from the Maine Secretary of State will be followed. Only three people will be allowed to vote at any given time. The booths will be spaced apart and cleaned after every voter.

DIXFIELD — Workers are going to be wearing masks or face shields. Voting booths will be 6 feet apart, with markers on the floor to have people standing 6 feet apart. Workers will be sanitizing the equipment periodically throughout the day.

FARMINGTON — Guidelines on voting provided by the state will be followed. There will be eight voting booths and eight additional people waiting to vote can be inside. There will be people outside directing traffic flow, people at the door counting and others inside to direct traffic.

GREENWOOD — The Secretary of State’s Office has supplied us with hand sanitizer, Lysol wipes & spray, gloves, face shields, face masks, and plastic barriers/sneeze guards.

Election clerks will be working 6 feet apart and they are asking that voter’s practice social distancing as well.

INDUSTRY — There will be markers on the floor to ensure people are spaced out by 6 feet. There will be separate doors designated as an entrance and an exit, and all workers will be wearing face masks.

JAY — The town plans to comply with the Maine Secretary of State guidelines for voting . The voting polls have been moved to the Spruce Mountain Elmentary School to allow for the required social distancing. The Town Office will be closed July 14.

LIVERMORE — Voting has been moved from the Town Office/Fire Station Complex to Spruce Mountain Primary School. More space is available at the school, so all voting booths will be used. Social distancing, plexiglass at tables and all other state guidelines will be followed. Signs will also help with traffic flow. The Town Office will be closed July 14.

LIVERMORE FALLS — The town clerk is complying with all of the state’s guidelines for voting including social distancing. The Town Office will be closed to regular business on July 14 while voting is going on there.

MEXICO — The town is closing off every other booth so that voters are spaced apart. The state has provided cleaning products for sanitization, hand sanitizers and disposable pens for each voter. People will be asked to enter through one door and exit through the other to keep the flow.

MINOT — The front counter at the town office will be closed for transactions to keep the flow of traffic going. All staff and volunteers will be using PPE and plexiglass barriers provided by the state, and proper social distancing will be clearly marked. Additional staff will be helping with sanitation measures and to help direct traffic.

MONMOUTH — We will space out our election workers — we have masks for everyone — and will ask voters to stand 6 feet apart and hope they will wear masks.

NEWRY — We have placed markers on the floor to ensure social distancing. We have the state issued PPE, Masks, and gloves

NEW GLOUCESTER — (Information not provided.)

NEW SHARON — All state mandated restrictions will be followed. Workers will be wearing masks, and voters are strongly encouraged to wear masks.

NEW VINEYARD — We will follow the the strict restrictions that the governor issued. We have seven pages that we need to follow.

POLAND — The Town Office will space people 6 feet apart and offer hand sanitizer stations. Poll workers will be provided with PPE.

PERU — The town has lessened the number of booths, etc. and spaced everything out to meet the state requirements. Stickers are on the floors and numerous signs guide voters along. The offices are closed for the day for business to maintain proper traffic flow, etc. Entrance is on one end of building and the exit is on the other. No cross traffic in hallway allowed. All restricted areas will be well marked.

RUMFORD — With voting taking place in the gymnasium at Mountain Valley High School, people will line up in the hall way entering the gym.
The hall will be monitored, with people encouraged to stand 6 feet apart, 25 people at a time, encouraged to wear face masks, will be admitted into the gym. They will be registered at two desks, 6 feet apart, one for A-J, the other K-Z. Workers will be using masks, shields, gloves and working behind a barrier. There will be 25 areas in the gym where people vote. When they complete the ballots, they will be placed into machines that are 6 feet apart. Hand sanitizer will be available in the hallway upon entering and at the exit door in the gym when they leave.

SABATTUS — The Town Office will have one way flow of traffic with one person posted at the door to limit the number of people who can come in. People will have to leave out the back door. The maintenance will be cleaning every hour, and hand sanitizer will be available.

STARKS — All state guidelines will be followed. Workers will be wearing masks and voters are strongly encouraged to wear face coverings as well.

TURNER — Turner will follow similar protocols to other towns, keeping voters 6 feet apart and providing poll workers with masks and shields. Hand sanitizer will be available for use.

TEMPLE — Floors will be marked to keep voters spaced 6 feet apart. Poll workers will be wearing face shields, and there will be a limit of 15 people allowed in the building at a time.

VIENNA — There will be posted signs and taped boundaries to remind voters to be spaced 6 feet apart. All state guidelines will be followed to ensure worker and voter safety.

WALES — We will be following all state guidelines to keep voters safe.

WELD — There will be hand sanitizer available to voters, 6-foot distancing markers, and all poll workers will have face coverings.

WILTON – We will have the election clerks and our social distancing attendants, which would be the rest of us working in the Town Office, to make sure everyone is spaced out, to assist with parking, assist with outside.

WOODSTOCK — We are following the CDC & Secretary of State guideline as best we can. We have reconfigured the entrance and exit and will have six foot distancing marks on the floor.