North Andover Town Meeting experiments with digital participation

On May 20, North Andover allowed voters who were watching the annual town meeting live on the Internet or television to submit questions by email to the assembly.

The idea was proposed by Town Moderator Mark DiSalvo, who said his town is the first in the country to do so. He said it was “a generational and inevitable move toward the future,” as the town was already providing live broadcasting and streaming of town meeting. It also gives a chance for those who cannot physically attend the meeting to be civically engaged, he said.

“Town meeting has two constituencies,” DiSalvo said, “the people in the room and the people outside of the room who are governed by what is decided at town meeting.”

Questions could be submitted by accessing the town’s website and were independently vetted by the League of Women Voters and a representative from the town clerk’s office, he said. Requirements included that each question must be from a registered voter, include a phone number for confirmation, and be about a specific article that is being discussed live, showing that the voter is engaged in the meeting.

During the two-hour meeting, just one question, about food truck zoning, was sent by email and met the requirements to be presented at town meeting, DiSalvo said. He added, however, that he is committed to continuing this initiative and open to expanding the ways people can submit questions, possibly by including questions sent by text message or Twitter.