2023 Municipal Election

Your guide to the 2023 Municipal Election

The next City of Dover municipal election is Tuesday, Nov. 7. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. that day in all of Dover six wards.

At the election, voters from all wards will elect the Mayor, two at-large City Councilors, and one at-large School Board member. In addition, voters in each of the six Dover wards will elect a City Councilor and School Board member and election officers, including a Supervisor of the Checklist, a Moderator, three Selectpersons, and a Ward Clerk. All elected positions are two-year terms.

Candidate filing period closed

The filing period for the 2023 municipal election closed on Friday, Sept. 22, 2023.

A list of all candidates who filed for office can be viewed below.

Candidates who have filed for elected office:

Elected office compensation

City Councilors and School Board members receive a $1,000 annual salary as part of their compensation. The Mayor and Chair of the School Board receive an additional $200 per year, and the Deputy Mayor receives an additional $50 per year. Supervisors of the Checklist are compensated $222 per day, Moderators $185 per day, Selectpersons $139 per day and Ward Clerks $131 per day.

Powers and duties of offices

The Mayor and City Council is the governing body of the City of Dover and set policies for the city government. As it states in the charter, the Mayor and Council "shall bear full responsibility for the implementation of said policies through the hiring and supervision of the City Manager." Duties include adopting ordinances, authorizing City of Dover expenditures of $25,000 or greater, adopting an annual budget, and appointing members to committees, boards and commissions

The School Board is the governing body of the City of Dover's School Department, which is School Administrative Unit 11. Per state law, the duty of the School Board is "to provide, at district expense, elementary and secondary education to all pupils who reside in the district until such time as the pupil has acquired a high school diploma or has reached age 21." It is responsible for establishing school policies and programs and determining the budgetary requirements of the schools. The School Board hires and supervises the Superintendent, tasked with managing the school district.

Election officers manage the election and have different responsibilities.

Supervisors of the Checklist are responsible for maintaining up-to-date voter checklist information for the ward to which they were elected following all applicable laws.
Moderators are responsible for overseeing the election process at the polling place of the ward to which they were elected. Moderators also ensure all applicable laws and procedures are carried out and followed by all participants at the polling place.
Ward Clerks perform whatever duties deemed necessary by the moderator, including verifying and recording ballot count information.
Selectpersons are responsible for the "in" and "out" checklists at the polling place, including verifying voter information, handing out ballots, directing voters to booths, and any other duties deemed necessary by the moderator.

For more information, contact Acting City Clerk Colleen Bessette at 603-516-6018 or c.bessette@dover.nh.gov.

ABSENTEE BALLOT APPLICATIONS NOW AVAILABLE

Absentee ballot applications for the City of Dover Nov. 7, 2023, Municipal Election are now available online and at the City Clerk's Office.

Any registered voter unable to vote on Election Day or who cannot make it to the polls because of a disability, religious observance, or employment obligations may request an absentee ballot from the City Clerk's Office in person or by mail.

Absentee ballots will not be available until after the candidate filing period, and the municipal election ballots are printed, anticipated to be late September or early October.

The City Clerk's Office is located in the Customer Service Center at City Hall. Its regular business hours are Monday through Thursday, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The mailing address is 288 Central Avenue, Dover, NH 03820. The online absentee ballot application is available at https://www.dover.nh.gov/Assets/government/open-government/election-information/absentee-ballots/2021_AbsenteeBallotRequest.pdf.

For more information, call the City Clerk's Office at 603-516-6018.