Town Meeting in Lexington - When and Where
When and Where
Action on the Warrant starts with Article 1, the election of Town officials by all of the Town's eligible voters. Lexington's General By-laws call for the election to be held annually on the first Monday in March. By State law, in years when there is a Presidential primary, the election may be held on the same day as the National election. The polls open at 7:00 a.m. and close at 8:00 p.m. The date of the second session (the first deliberative session) is determined by the Selectmen and is specified in the Warrant. It is customarily held on a Monday or Wednesday two or three weeks after the election. Subsequent sessions are usually held on the following Wednesdays and Mondays, except for school vacation week and religious holidays, until a final vote has been taken on each article on the Warrant. Special Town Meetings may be held at other times by order of the Selectmen or upon petition of 200 registered voters. The General By-laws also define the Moderator's role and the rules for conducting the meeting.
Town Meeting deliberative sessions may be held any place in Lexington or simultaneously in more than one place as long as communication between the sites is available.
Sessions begin promptly at the time designated in the Warrant. Town Meeting Members are expected to check in with attendance takers from the Town Clerk's office to establish that a quorum of 100 members is present. It is recommended that members arrive early enough to check in and obtain informational material pertinent to the session. This material is left on the Town Meeting Members Association tables in the lobby. It is also available to visitors.
Since 1973 Town Meeting Members have sat by precinct. The floor of the hall is divided into nine blocks of seats. Precinct blocks rotate from back to front at successive sessions. This arrangement makes it easy for observers to identify their precinct representatives.