APPLETON — Given the current pandemic, Appleton will forego its traditional open floor town meeting, and relegate all municipal warrant articles and budget, as well as school budget business, to the ballot box on July 14.

Preceding that, the town will host a July 7 public hearing on the proposed warrant articles via Zoom.

Appleton has chosen this approach, like many other municipalities around the state in 2020, to accommodate to social distancing requirements and safety precautions for residents and town staff.

This in-person or absentee paper voting replaces the annual town meeting and has already resulted in an increase of absentee ballot requests from residents wishing to vote on school and town budgets, as well as the election of  municipal officials, state articles and primaries.

For those who wish to vote in person from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. July 14, there are as many as five ballots and the polls are staffed, as usual, by the clerks and election clerks.

Absentee ballots can be requested at the town office by July 9.  There are four to five ballots this year, your ballots must be requested by July 9 and returned to the Town Clerk by 8 p.m. on July 14, when the polls close.

The town has strongly recommend requesting an absentee ballot this year. To request an absentee ballot, call the Town Office at 785-4722.

Appleton has 27 articles on its 2020 Town Meeting Warrant (see attached PDF)

For more information, visit https://appleton.maine.gov