The looming Nor’Easter on town meeting day means that for the third time in recent years, moderators have to decide whether to delay Tuesday’s voting or annual meeting.

As of Monday afternoon, more than two dozen towns in New Hampshire have postponed Tuesday gatherings – which is still a small fraction of the total number of municipalities expected to hold Town Meeting events this week. A full list on the Secretary of State’s website at https://www.sos.nh.gov/.

In the Concord area, Boscawen’s Town Meeting has been postponed to Saturday, March 25, but ballot voting for town officers and zoning amendments will still take place Tuesday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Boscawen Public Library, 116 North Main St.

Salisbury, Deerfield, Andover and Nottingham have all delayed their annual meeting and voting by two weeks until Tuesday, March 28. Bow and Warner both had meetings scheduled for Wednesday but took different approaches – both postponed voting until March 28 but Bow will still hold its meeting this week, while Warner moved its meeting to March 29.

The list of postponements is still in flux, as moderators have until early Tuesday morning to make a decision. Voters should check their town’s website before heading out.

As of Monday morning, the National Weather Service had declared a winter storm warning for western and central New Hampshire, including all of Merrimack County. Under state law (RSA 40:4), this gives moderators the option of postponing either Tuesday’s ballot voting or any Tuesday night town meetings, or both. They must make that decision at least two hours before the polls open.

State officials said the storm could deliver between 10 and 18 inches in Merrimack County with wind gusts up to 40 mph.

That law was passed by the Legislature following widespread confusion on town meeting day in 2017 when a huge storm led some moderators to postpone voting or meetings, only to be told that the move was illegal because no state law allowed it.

Then came 2020 and the COVID-19 shutdown just as town meeting was about to happen. Gov. Sununu’s emergency declaration gave moderators latitude on how to respond and much scrambling ensured. Some towns held meetings outdoors, some held it as a drive-through, some set up online versions. 

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