Hopkinton Residents Cast School Budget Drive-Up Votes: Watch

HOPKINTON, NH — A $21.4 million school budget or a $19.5 million budget? A collective bargaining agreement for educators which proposed raises of more than $932,000 across three years? Teamsters, the union representing custodians, receiving 3.5 to 4 percent raises annually instead of 2.5 to 3 percent raises annually during the next four years?

These types of questions and proposals are standard boilerplate warrants for consideration at any town meeting in New Hampshire.

But by car?

That is exactly what happened in Hopkinton Saturday as voters lined up both sides of Route 103 for about four hours in order to vote on line items in the Hopkinton school budget for 2020-2021.

Most years, town meeting, especially hot ones, addressing bond issues and large school budget increases, can draw close to 600 people. On Saturday, 1,389 people cast ballots — and failed to approve a school budget.

Five different motions on various school budget amounts failed to be approved.

So another vote will be held at 8:30 a.m. on May 30, at the Hopkinton Middle School.

Town voters also rejected a proposal to move to an SB2 voting process form of government — secret ballots on budget items instead of a town meeting form of government. The article needed 60 percent to pass but only received 53 percent.

The new teacher contract also failed by 19 votes, 688 to 707. Voters approved a new, special meeting to address the teacher contract by 320 votes to be held on another date.

The custodians' contract was approved by 226 votes.

View all the ballot questions here and the results here.

Voters in Bow also held drive-thru voting — which led to an increase in voter turnout from 116 ballots to 679 ballots, according to press reports.

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