Vermont S 298: An act relating to voter protections

Bill Text

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2026

VT LEG #390170 v.1
No. 126. An act relating to voter protections.
(S.298)
It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
* * * Voter Protections Act * * *
Sec. 1. SHORT TITLE
This act may be cited as the “Voter Protections Act of 2026.”
Sec. 2. 17 V.S.A. chapter 35 is amended to read:
CHAPTER 35. OFFENSES AGAINST THE PURITY OF ELECTIONS
* * *
Subchapter 2. Penalties Upon Voters
* * *
§ 1972. SHOWING BALLOT; INTERFERENCE WITH VOTER
(a) A voter who, except in cases of assistance as provided in this title,
allows his or her the voter’s ballot to be seen by another person with an
apparent intention of letting it be known how he or she the voter is about to
vote or makes a false statement to the presiding officer at an election as to his
or her the voter’s inability to mark his or her the voter’s ballot or places a
distinguishing mark on his or her the voter’s ballot or a person who interferes
with a voter when inside the guard rail or who, within the building in which the
voting is proceeding, endeavors to induce a voter to vote for a particular
candidate, shall be fined $1,000.00.

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VT LEG #390170 v.1
(b) It shall be the duty of the election officers to see that the offender is
duly prosecuted for a violation of this section.
* * *
§ 1975. INTERFERENCE WITH VOTERS AND ELECTION OFFICIALS
(a) No person shall intentionally or recklessly intimidate, threaten, or
coerce, or attempt to intimidate, threaten, or coerce:
(1) any other person for the purpose of:
(A) obstructing the right of the other person to vote or to vote as the
other person may choose; or
(B) causing the other person to vote for, or not to vote for, any
candidate for public office or public question at any election; or
(2) a public servant, an election official, or a public employee for the
purpose of obstructing the administration of an election.
(b) A person who violates subsection (a) of this section shall be imprisoned
not more than two years or fined not more than $2,000.00, or both.
§ 1976. IMPAIRMENT OF VOTING RIGHTS OF REGISTERED VOTERS
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to deny, impair, or otherwise
adversely affect the right to vote of any registered voter.
* * *
Subchapter 4. Use of Synthetic Media in Elections
* * *
Subchapter 5. Enforcement and Investigation

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* * *
Subchapter 6. Voter Protections
§ 2045. VOTE DENIAL OR DILUTION
(a) No voting qualification or prerequisite to voting or standard, practice, or
procedure shall be imposed or applied by the State or any municipality in a
manner that results in a denial or abridgement of the right of any citizen of the
United States to vote based on race or color, membership in a language
minority group, or having a disability as defined in 9 V.S.A. § 4501.
(b) A violation of subsection (a) of this section is established if, on the
basis of the totality of circumstances, it is shown that the political processes
leading to nomination or election in the State or a municipality are not equally
open to participation by members of a protected class in that its members have
less opportunity than other members of the electorate to participate in the
political processes or to elect representatives of their choice. The extent to
which members of a protected class have been elected to office in the State or
municipality is one circumstance that may be considered.
(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to establish a right to have
members of a protected class elected in numbers equal to their proportion in
the population.
(d) As used in this section:
(1) “Municipality” means a town, city, village, school district, or other
political subdivision that holds public elections.

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(2) “Protected class” means a group of citizens protected from
discrimination based on race or color, membership in a language minority
group, or having a disability as defined in 9 V.S.A. § 4501.
§ 2046. CIVIL ACTIONS BY ATTORNEY GENERAL
(a) Whenever the Attorney General has reasonable cause to believe that a
violation of this subchapter has occurred and that the rights of any voter or
group of voters have been affected by such violation, the Attorney General
may initiate a civil action in the Civil Division of the Superior Court in the
county in which the alleged violation has occurred for appropriate relief.
(b) In such civil action, the court may:
(1) award such preventive relief, including a permanent or temporary
injunction, restraining order, or other order against the person responsible for a
violation of this title, as is necessary to ensure the full enjoyment of the rights
granted by this title;
(2) assess a civil penalty against the respondent of not more than
$5,000.00 for a first violation and of not more than $25,000.00 for any
subsequent violation; and
(3) issue an order requiring reimbursement to the State of Vermont for
the reasonable value