State tells officials to ignore letter claiming election procedures are illegal

Some elected officials have received letters claiming that they were violating the New Hampshire Constitution by following the state’s procedure for elections, prompting the Secretary of State to tell officials to ignore the letter and proceed as directed.

“Election officials are advised to follow New Hampshire election procedure laws, as explained in the New Hampshire Election Procedure Manual.  You should not deviate from these procedures unless and until you receive a court order instructing you to do so,” says the email from Secretary of State Dave Scanlan that was sent Monday afternoon to a number of clerks, moderators and select boards who apparently received the letter.

“Please disregard this letter in its entirety,” he wrote.

IndepthNH reports that the letter was signed by a Jeffrey Berlin of Durham and claims the state has no authority over election procedures and that “certain laws outlined in the New Hampshire election manual are incorrectly applied and conflict with both the New Hampshire constitution and federal law.”

It includes the vague threat that “town bond coverage does not shield officials from liability for wrongful acts.”