A tiny community near the Canadian border will kick off New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation Republican primary voting on Jan. 23 as the clock strikes midnight.
Dixville Notch has been in the spotlight since 1960, when the owner of the Balsams resort, Neil Tillotson, arranged for residents to vote at midnight, with the polls closing and results announced within minutes. The resort closed in 2011, but voting has continued in various locations. This year, voting will take place in Tillotson’s former home, in a living room decorated with photos and memorabilia from previous primary voters.
The latest report from the secretary of state’s office shows five registered voters in Dixville Notch: three Republicans and two undeclared voters.
In 2020, former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg, who was not even on the ballot, won the midnight vote with three write-in votes, one from a Republican and two from Democrats.
No midnight voting in Hart's Location
In previous years, Hart's Location, a town of about 70 residents in the White Mountains, also conducted midnight voting during presidential elections. But for this year's primary, the town has decided to break from tradition and will be conducting regular polling hours from 11 a.m.-7 p.m.
Numerous reasons were cited for the change, including the increasingly complex ballot reporting documentation and the likelihood that the reporting process would last until 2 a.m. or later, the probability of numerous write-in votes due to President Joe Biden's absence on the Democratic ballot, the lateness of the hour and the fact that the twon is short one supervisor of the checklist to assist in ballot counting.
Town Moderator Les Schoof, however, has said that Hart's Location could still resume the tradition of midnight voting for upcoming presidential elections, including November's general election.
Millsfield also discontinues midnight voting
Millsfield, the other location in New Hampshire where midnight voting is legal, has also decided to forgo midnight voting for at least Tuesday's presidential primary because many residents wanted to be able to vote before or after work rather than having to wake up in the middle of the night.
About 25 residents live in Millsfield, which is also located in northern New Hampshire.
