City suspends early voting for ballot error

Burlington has suspended early voting for the Nov. 4 election because of a ballot error and will print new ballots at a cost of about $10,000, the city announced Monday.

Five of the 15 Republican nominees for justice of the peace had been left off the ballot.

"I am disappointed that, for the second time in two years, the City finds itself in the position of having to correct a ballot," Mayor Miro Weinberger said in a statement. "These avoidable and costly errors must end."

In a statement, the city Clerk/Treasurer's Office apologized for the error, which it said was inadvertent.

Sample ballots available on the city website Monday included 10 Republican nominees, 15 Democratic nominees and two Libertarian nominees. Voters may select up to 15 people to serve as justices of the peace.

Burlington found out about the missing candidates from the Burlington Vermont Republican City Committee.

"The City Clerk's office is extremely professional and dedicated to all citizens of Burlington and we have full faith that the remedy will be both fair and quick," the political party said in a news release.

Burlington said 422 early and absentee voters had already been given ballots. They will receive replacement ballots, and the city's vote-counting machines will reject the old ballots.

The city had two options upon discovering the error: Reprint the whole ballot, or print a separate supplemental ballot with only justice of the peace candidates, Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos said in a statement. Condos recommended re-printing the ballots "so as not to create voter confusion," he said.

City officials expect to have the new ballots by early next week.

The mayor said Chief Administrative Officer Bob Rusten will submit a plan within 30 days of the election for ensuring accurate ballots in the future.

Contact April Burbank at (802) 660-1863 or aburbank@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/AprilBurbank