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About Election Week Cookie Sales
Election Week Cookie Sales (EWCS, October 30 – November 8, 2026) is a limited fall cookie sale that is part of our council’s Girl Scout Cookie Program®. EWCS offers customers a chance to stock up on their favorite Girl Scout Cookies and is an opportunity for Girl Scouts to help build their troop treasuries so they can participate in programs and events they help choose, all while learning important skills like goal setting, decision making, money management, people skills, and business ethics.
Important Dates
- October 4, 2026 – Deadline to reserve Girl Scout Cookies
- October 26, 2026 – October 30, 2026 – Cookie pick up dates (dates vary by cookie cupboard location)
- October 30, 2026 – November 8, 2026 – Election Week Cookie Sales take place
- October 30, 2026 – ACH form submission deadline for new troops and those whose bank account information has changed.
- November 2, 2026 - EWCS patch order form available
- November 13, 2026 – Deadline to return cookies and patch order form due
- December 4, 2026 – ACH payment initiated
How to Participate 
Prior to the start of the program
Learn about the program, including how to stay safe while participating.
- Read Safety Activity Checkpoints for cookie and product programs.
- Review EWCS Cookie Booth Essentials.
- Watch the EWCS Overview Video.
*Important Note: Troops that did not participate in the 2026 cookie program and wish to participate in EWCS must connect with our Product Sales Team by emailing customercare@gsofct.org.
Secure a Booth location/make a plan on how to sell
- Decide how your troop or family will be participating in Election Week Booth Sales.
- Check with the Service Unit Cookie Manager to see how cookie booth locations are managed (if interested in having a booth).
Reserve Cookies – Reserve cookies using this Jotform. Deadline to reserve cookies is October 4, 2026. If you missed the deadline and would like to participate, please contact Customer Care at customercare@gsofct.org.
Once a booth location is secured, fill out this booth details form.
Pick up the reserved cookies at a cookie cupboard
- Cupboard managers will reach out to volunteers to let them know when the cookies can be picked up.
- Troops will be assigned a designated pickup location.
During Sale
- Follow safety guidelines. (see below)
- Keep track of money collected and cookies sold (including Cookies for Heroes packages), and follow the Cookie Booth Essentials guidance.
- If needed, use this form to update your booth information so that council can update the booth locator on our website.
- If additional cookies are needed during the sale, reach out to the cupboard manager or customercare@gsofct.org
After the Sale
- Deposit all funds collected into the troop account.
- Return any unsold cookies to a cookie cupboard by November 13. Check with the cookie cupboard manager for the return schedule.
- If EWCS patch requirements were met, complete the patch order form, available starting November 2, 2026.
Types of Sales
Booth Sales
Cookie booths are a great place for Girl Scouts to leverage and grow their entrepreneurial skills all while reaching new customers to help achieve their goals.
Booth Sale Guidelines
- Youth Girl Scouts must always be present at cookie booths, with the appropriate adult supervision.
- EWCS in-person booth sales can be held in front of polling places, local businesses, or at community events. Look for venues with high foot traffic. Booth sales can also be held in a Girl Scout’s neighborhood (think lemonade stand at the end of the driveway/in front of the home) or at the workplace of a parent/caregiver or other adult.
- The troop/Girl Scout/family MUST follow the service unit’s guidelines for holding a booth sale, including following procedures for identifying and confirming the booth site location and adhering to any time frame/limit for the booth sale. Contact the service unit manager or service unit cookie manager for information. Note: The council does NOT secure or approve booth sale sites.
- Booth sales are generally held within the service unit’s boundaries. If a troop/Girl Scout/family wishes to have a booth sale in a different service unit, they must contact the service unit volunteer managing booth sales in their home service unit for assistance. Your service unit cookie manager will need to obtain approval for a booth sale in a different service unit.
- DO NOT partner with businesses, organizations, or events that a Girl Scout cannot legally patronize, including bars, breweries, tobacco stores, liquor stores, marijuana dispensaries, etc.
- Only cookies may be sold at cookies booths.
Note - Family-friendly restaurants with bars or breweries that house a kitchen are permissible. The booth must be set up away from the bar, and Girl Scout adults supervising the booth sale may not consume alcohol during the booth. Members should never in any way promote the purchase of alcohol, such as a cookie/beer pairing or a coupon offer with the purchase of cookies.
Types of Booth Sales
Troop Booth Sales
- All booths must be approved by the service unit.
- If the troop booth sale is held on private, non-commercial property, the homeowner/renter must complete the Private Residence Authorization Form.
- Adult supervision is required for all cookie booths. Booths where any Girl Scout is not accompanied by their own parent/caregiver require two registered, background-checked Girl Scout volunteers.
Family Booth Sales
- Organized by a family with one or more Girl Scouts in the same family.
- Families who hold a booth sale at a public location should work with the service unit to secure a site for the booth. All locations must be approved by the service unit.
- If the family booth sale is held at the family's home, the homeowner/renter must complete the Private Residence (Family Booth Sale) Consent Form.
- Cookie booths that have all members under the direct supervision of their own parent/caregiver do not require adults to be registered, background-checked Girl Scout volunteers. Best practice would be to still have two adults present in case of accidents or necessary breaks. Parents/caregivers are still encouraged to register as volunteers to help support the full experience.
- Families can work together to hold a booth when the troop volunteers are not present; however, each Girl Scout would need to have a parent with them for supervision.
Drive-Thru Booth Sales
- This type of booth sale can be organized by a service unit, troop, or family. Girl Scout participation depends on whether it is a troop or family booth sale.
- Possible locations could include a parking lot at a mall, place of worship, or a business. Identify the landlord/owner of the parking lot to ask permission and inquire if a certificate of insurance from GSOFCT is required.
- Girl Scouts should not enter customer vehicles. Use traffic cones or other barriers to keep vehicles at a safe distance from Girl Scouts.
What to bring for booth sales
Suggested materials: first aid kit, tables and table coverings, signage with cookie pictures and prices, booth decorations, cookie costumes, a Cookies for Heroes flyer and box wrap, signage with payment options, and a cash box with starter funds and credit card reader (if available).
Family, Friends, Business and Community Member Sales
- Girls can record their in-person sales on the cookie order card. Connect with your troop volunteer about filling your customers' orders.
- Connect with family and friends in person, by phone, text, email, or set up a Zoom call and invite everyone to listen to the Girl Scout’s sales pitch!
- Connect with local businesses and community members that may want to support Girl Scouts. Suggest ways that businesses can use cookies that they purchase- like for staff or customer appreciation gifts.
Walkabouts
- A walkabout is a great way to reach customers who might not be aware of EWCS and are eager to stock up on their favorite Girl Scout Cookies ahead of the holiday season. Girl Scouts can walk their neighborhood selling cookies door-to-door, offering customers the option to purchase and receive cookies right away.
- Use your planning skills and map streets in familiar neighborhoods for your walkabout, then check them off as Girl Scouts walk through them.
- Distribute door hangers (if permitted) ahead of the walkabout, announcing when Girl Scouts will walk through the neighborhood with a cookie order card or cookies in hand. Girl Scouts should consider bringing door hangers with them on the day of the walkabout so they can leave them at houses where no one is home. Door hangers should include the contact information for a troop adult/parent/caregiver in case customers have questions or want to purchase cookies.
- An adult must accompany Daisy, Brownie, and Junior Girl Scouts on a walkabout. Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors can use the buddy system, but an adult must be readily accessible and know where they are at all times.
- Decorate a cart or wagon to create excitement in the neighborhood as you do your walkabout.
- Ensure that safety guidelines including volunteer -to-youth ratios are followed.
How to Advertise and Market
- Use social media accounts to advertise when/where the booth sale is scheduled. Volunteers and Girl Scouts 13 years old and older can use their social media accounts. Girls 12 and younger can use their parent, caregiver, or trusted adult’s social media accounts. Girl Scouts and families MUST review and follow the guidance within Digital Marketing Tips for Cookie Entrepreneurs and Supplemental Safety Tips for Online Marketing before marketing their booth sale online.
- Consider distributing door hangers within the neighborhood, if permitted, to advertise the upcoming sale.
- Don’t forget phone calls, email, and text! Think about the best way to reach out to individuals. Some customers will respond more quickly to email, while others would prefer a text. You can include the link to the cookie order card so customers can see the cookie varieties.
- Wear your uniform, a membership pin, or informal Girl Scout clothing, and think about what you will say to customers about how the troop will use the cookie proceeds.
Safety Guidelines
- Troop volunteers must review and follow the Safety Activity Checkpoints for Cookie and Product Sales.
- All Girl Scouts participating in EWCS must be registered for the 2026-2027 membership year and have an Annual Consent form on file with the troop.
- Be aware: Adults must provide supervision and guidance for all program levels, and must accompany Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors when they are selling, taking orders, and delivering cookies.
- Adults must oversee Cadettes, Seniors, and Ambassadors, and must be aware of how, when, and where Girl Scouts are selling cookies. In addition, an adult must be readily accessible to girls when they are participating in product sales.
- This can be accomplished by an adult being present with the Girl Scouts or by having the adult and Girl Scouts exchange telephone numbers. Girl Scouts should never deliver cookies alone.
- Adults need to be present at booth activities with Girl Scouts at any program level.
- A first aid kit should always be available.
- Girl Scouts should never provide their last name, address, phone number, or personal email address. Instead, provide contact information for a troop adult.
- For cookie booths where any Girl Scout is not accompanied by their own parent/caregiver there must be a least two registered, background-checked Girl Scout volunteers.
- Youth Girl Scouts must be present at all times. Adults may assist but cannot sell Girl Scout Cookies.
- If accepting credit cards/electronic payments, troops must bring the troop’s credit card reader or mobile device.
- Note: The Digital Cookie mobile app is not available for EWCS.
- Ensure the table does not block pedestrians, bikes, or cars around your booth.
- Ensure your booth setup does not block a business entrance.
- Girl Scouts and families must review the Digital Marketing Tips for Cookie Entrepreneurs and Families and Supplemental Safety Tips for Online Marketing documents before using social media to market their EWCS.
- Adults may use their social media accounts to promote the EWCS for Girl Scouts 12 and younger. Girl Scouts 13 and older may use their social media accounts.
- Only conduct a walkabout during daylight hours and in familiar neighborhoods.
- Do not enter the home or vehicle of a stranger.
- Do not accept food or drinks when selling.
- Stay alert while on the road, especially in busy intersections and along the roadway.
Cookie Inventory Management
Reserving cookies
The deadline to reserve cookies is October 4, 2026. If you missed the deadline and would like to participate, please contact Customer Care at customercare@gsofct.org.
Use this Jotform to reserve cookies.
Note: Only cookies picked up on or after October 26, 2026 may be sold. Cookies from previous programs, including the 2025-2026 cookie program, may not be sold.
Picking up cookies
Cookies will be delivered to cookie cupboards throughout the council the week of October 26, 2026.
An email to the troop volunteer who submitted the cookie order will include details about the pickup process.
If your troop runs out of cookies and additional inventory is needed, contact customercare@gsofct.org to see if more cookies are available.
Note: Most cookie cupboards are managed by volunteers. Please respect their schedule and time when making arrangements to pick up the troop’s EWCS cookie order. The cookie cupboard from which you pick up the cookie order may not be in your service unit/town. Please keep travel time in mind when arranging to pick up the cookie order.
Distributing cookies to Girl Scout families
If your troop is distributing cookies to Girl Scout families, please use the family receipt. The family receipt documents the number of packages distributed to girls/families and the number of packages returned back to the troop, as well as recording payments from families to the troop. This step is important to help with inventory management and balancing finances.
Returning unsold cookies
• All cookies not sold by the last day of EWCS (November 8, 2026) should be returned to the cookie cupboard where the cookies were picked up.
• A troop volunteer must reach out to the cookie cupboard manager to find out when the cupboard will be open to accept returns.
• Deadline: Returns must be made no later than Friday, November 13, 2026. For EWCS only, individual packages (opened cases) are eligible to be returned.
• Note: When returning cookies, remember to tell the cupboard manager if any cookies were sold for Cookies for Heroes so those packages can be included in the total amount sold.
Reporting a sell-out
If a troop has sold out of all its cookies, be sure to let the cupboard manager know that the troop has no cookies to return, along with the number of packages sold by the troop for Cookies for Heroes. The cupboard manager will add the Cookies for Heroes packages to the total number of physical packages sold. These packages will be included in calculating the amount due to the council.
Cookies for Heroes
Cookies for Heroes
Cookies for Heroes is the council’s Gift of Caring program. Customers can purchase cookies which are then donated to women and men serving in the military, veterans, and local heroes.
Girl Scouts should ask all customers if they would like to support Cookies for Heroes.
Cookies sold for Cookies for Heroes are $6 per package.
A package of Thin Mints wrapped in the Cookies for Heroes Box Wrap and the Cookies for Heroes Flyer should be prominently displayed displayed at in-person booth sales and included as part of a virtual booth presentation.
Packages sold for the Cookies for Heroes Program do not come from a troop/Girl Scout's cookie inventory. The troop/Girl Scout and family collect money due for these packages from the customer, and GSOFCT works with partner organizations to deliver Cookies for Heroes packages to recipients.
Keep a tally sheet or record of how many packages are sold for the program.
Payment due for Cookies for Heroes packages should be collected from the customer and included in the amount deposited into the troop bank account.
Be sure to report the total number of packages sold for Cookies for Heroes when you return cookies or report a sell-out.
Selling at least one package of cookies for the Cookies for Heroes Program is a requirement for Girl Scouts to earn the EWCS patch.
EWCS Finances
Troops Earn $1.00 per package in troop proceeds for all packages sold, including packages sold for Cookies for Heroes. Troops also receive a $20.00 bonus for every 240 packages (20 cases) sold.
Payment to council from troops
Payment will be initiated on or after Friday, December 4, 2026 via ACH.
ACH Authorization Form is due on October 30, 2026, for new troops and those whose bank account information has changed.
Customer payment by Credit cards, Cheddar Up, cash, and checks payable to GSOFCT are accepted payments. Digital Cookie is not available for EWCS. Be prepared with a cash box and starter cash. If your troop has a credit card reader, be sure to have it at your cookie booth.
Note: Troops/Girl Scouts/families should carefully consider if they will take checks from customers not known to Girl Scouts and families.
• We recommend troops use a counterfeit detector pen to verify bills accepted as payment.
• To accept credit card payments a troop must have a credit card reader. All fees related to accepting credit cards are the responsibility of the troop.
• Credit card fees cannot be passed on to the customer.
Girl Scout/family payment to the troop
Cash and check payments must be turned over to the troop no later than November 15.
Troop payment to the council
Troop payment to the council is via an ACH payment from the troop’s bank account.
Troop Deadline: A volunteer who is also a signer on the troop’s bank account MUST complete ACH authorization form no later than Friday, October 30, 2026.
Council will initiate this payment on or after Friday, December 4, 2026.
Best practices
- Keep a tally sheet or record of how many packages are sold for the program.
- Payment due for Cookies for Heroes packages is collected from the customer and included in the amount deposited into the troop bank account.
- When returning unsold cookies to the cupboard OR when communicating with the cupboard manager that the troop has no cookies to return, let the cupboard manager know how many packages were sold for Cookies for Heroes. The cupboard manager will add the Cookies for Heroes packages to the total number of physical packages sold. These packages will be included in calculating the amount due to the council.
Election Week Cookie Sales Patch:
Girl Scouts are eligible to earn an Election Week Cookie patch if the troop meets the following requirements:
The troop has an ACH on file by October 30, 2026 (if the troop is new or the banking information has changed).
The troop sold at least one package for Cookies For Heroes or a picture is submitted (through the patch jotform) of the troop displaying a Cookies For Heroes flyer.
Patch Jotform filled out by November 13, 2026. This will be will be available starting November 2, 2026.
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