Secretary of State David M. Scanlan speaks to reporters on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024. (Claire Sullivan | New Hampshire Bulletin)
After months of anticipation, advertisements, and anxiety, it’s time to vote. In New Hampshire, thousands of volunteers, roughly 2,500 locally elected election officials, and numerous state officials keep it all running.
Tuesday will be especially busy in New Hampshire. Granite Staters vote at higher rates than residents of most other states. It’s one of only three states without early in-person voting, and voters must have certain excuses to vote absentee. In an election featuring a close contest for the presidency and what has been considered the most competitive governor’s race in the country, Secretary of State David Scanlan has predicted record voter turnout.
Talking to reporters in his office a week before Election Day, Scanlan warned voters to watch out for misinformation in the lead-up to the election, answered questions about the process, and emphasized his appreciation for the officials who work to keep the state’s elections secure.
“I just want to reinforce the fact that these people are doing a civic duty,” Scanlan said. “A lot of them – most of them, all of them – work in a nonpartisan way at the polling place to make sure that we have a very solid, fair, secure election.”
He also stressed the measures in place to make the election process transparent. Political parties have a presence and can sit “official challengers” near the check-in table, allowing them to see and hear who’s coming to vote. Anyone can observe the polling places, and Scanlan said some would even be visited by international observers.
“The process on Election Day is a start-to-finish process,” Scanlan said. “It’s continuous, and it’s observable.”
Here’s a rundown of some common questions as voters get ready to hit the polls.
What will be on my ballot?
Before you head to the polls, you can see a sample ballot here.
There’s a close race for governor between Republican Kelly Ayotte and Democrat Joyce Craig. In the 1st Congressional District, Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Chris Pappas is trying to hold onto his seat against Republican challenger Russell Prescott, a former state senator and executive councilor. In District 2, Democrat Maggie Goodlander, a former Biden administration official, is battling Republican Lily Tang Williams, a rental property manager, for the spot.
Voters will also choose executive councilors, state senators, state representatives, and candidates for local offices.
There’s also a ballot question that asks voters if they want to amend the state constitution to raise the mandatory judicial retirement age from 70 to 75. A “no” vote means you want to keep it at 70; a “yes” vote means you want to raise it by five years. It needs a two-thirds vote in favor to pass.
Can I still register to vote? Where do I go to vote?
Yes, you can still register to vote. New Hampshire allows same-day voter registration at the polls. You’ll need to bring proof of citizenship, identity, age, and your residence in the state. A list of acceptable documents can be found here.
Though in other states voter registration can happen remotely, in New Hampshire, “a voter has to appear before a local election official” – except in some “isolated instances” where registration can occur by absentee, like if a voter is out of town or has a disability that prevents them from registering in person, Scalan said.
You can check to see if you’re registered to vote here. This is the first presidential election since a 2021 checklist verification resulted in the removal of more than 100,000 names. For this reason, Scanlan said he expected a high number of same-day registrations.
You can find your polling place here. Not sure what ward you’re in? Citizens Count has an online tool to find it.
What about when I get to the polls?
If you’re on the voter checklist, you’ll just need to present an acceptable form of ID, such as a driver’s license, a passport, or an accepted student ID, Scanlan said. (A full list of usable IDs can be found here.) Your identity can also be verified by certain election officials.
If you’re registering to vote, make sure to bring the additional documents needed to prove citizenship, age, identity, and residency.
This is the last election with affidavit ballots, which gives voters who don’t have the photo identification they need at the polls to vote through an affidavit and send the secretary of state proof of their identity within a week. (These ballots will still be used in this election, Scanlan said, despite some confusion caused by the effective date of a new law that rolled back their use, NHPR reported.)
Scanlan said he expected high voter turnout to lead to lines – not long ones that span hours, though. At some locations, such as college towns, there will be more people registering to vote on Election Day, he said.
“I think that wait times – while they might be a little longer than past elections – are going to move fairly smoothly,” Scanlan said.
If you are wearing something in favor of a candidate or ballot question, you may be asked to remove it under the state law that prohibits electioneering inside polling places.
What times are the polls open? What if I’m still in line at closing time?
Exact polling hours depend on where you live, closing no later than 8 p.m. You can check your polling location and hours here.
Voters who are in line will still be allowed to vote even if the closing time has passed. The moderator will send someone out when it’s time to close to determine the end of the line, which may include car traffic coming into the polling place, Scanlan said.
What about security?
Safety plans are in place, but Scanlan said he was expecting a “smooth election.”
Scanlan said his office, the Attorney’s General Office, and the Department of Safety have taken safety concerns “very, very seriously.” He said they reached out to the Association of Chiefs of Police and local election officials to suggest that they have a police officer present – “in a nonconspicuous way” – in case any issues arise.
Safety of poll workers and voters is “at the top of our mind,” he said. “We are making plans and taking steps as a matter of prudence, not because we are aware of something they need to be concerned about.”
“We do have plans in place to deal with instances that come up,” Scanlan said. “And I’m not going to get into detail about that, because I don’t want to be alarmist, but I expect that this is going to be a smooth election. We don’t have any indication that anything is afoot in terms of polling place security and things like that.”
The office of the secretary of state is “responsible for administering the elections,” Scanlan explained. His office trains election officials, prepares ballots and election material, maintains the voter registration database, compiles election results, and conducts recounts.
Meanwhile, the office of the attorney general enforces election laws. “If there is an election official that is not performing their job, or they are doing it in an inappropriate way, then the Attorney General’s Office will address those issues,” Scanlan said. “The Attorney General’s Office will also address any inappropriate activity that is taking place in and around the polling place to make sure that everything is running smoothly.”
The AG’s Office will have a hotline running from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day, Attorney General John Formella announced last week. Voters and election officials who have concerns can call 1-866-868-3703 (1-866-VOTER03). Emergency calls should go to 911.
When will we know the results?
Results will start coming in after the polls close. The state will announce the official results by 5 p.m. Friday, but organizations like the Associated Press project the winners of races as results roll in, often calling contests on Election Night or soon after.
Recounts may cause delays in some races. Candidates can request a recount in a general election “if the difference between winning and losing is no greater than 20 percent,” Scanlan said. The state had “a record number of recounts” two years ago but only one after the primary in September, “which was highly unusual,” Scanlan said.
Asked what he would do if a candidate claims victory even when the results show otherwise, Scanlan said he’ll let the votes do the talking.
“The results are going to speak for themselves,” Scanlan said, “and I’m not going to say something different than what is obvious to everybody that participated in the election.”