Forget Election Day; now it’s Election Season
This is an election year unlike any other. The Connecticut Town Clerks Association estimates as many as 70 percent of the state’s voters will vote by absentee ballot. Voters can be assured that town clerks are ready and prepared to handle the r ush of mail-in votes professionally and securely. Here’s what voters can do to make sure their vote counts.
In response to the COVID-19 crisis, under the leadership of Gov. Ned Lamont and the General Assembly, changes to our laws for this November’s election will allow all Connecticut voters to vote by absentee ballot to help ensure the protection of the public’s health. With these changes, we are moving from the concept of an Election Day to an Election Season. The season has begun.
The secretary of the state has gotten us off to a good start by sending absentee ballot applications out to every registered voter. All registered voters should have received an application by now, and by Oct. 2, ballots will begin to be mailed out.
There is plenty of time for anyone who wants to vote absentee to get their application in to their local town hall, receive a ballot in the mail, and return the ballot to their town clerk’s office no later than 8 p.m. on Election Day (Nov. 3).
In order to vote by absentee ballot, voters need to complete and mail in the application without delay, and it is important to remember that this is only the first part of the process. In completing the application, voters must remember to sign the form and check a reason for requesting a ballot. This year, voters can check off the first box that states they wish to vote absentee to avoid possible exposure to COVID-19.
Also new this election season, all Connecticut cities and towns now have ballot drop boxes. Absentee ballot applications and ballots may be dropped in the box located in their town, typically at the town hall.
Any voter who did not receive an absentee ballot application in the mail can download one online from the secretary of the state’s website, portal.ct.gov/SOTS.
If you are not a registered voter, you must register to vote by Oct. 27 at your town hall or register to vote online at https://voterregistration.ct.gov. Once you are registered to vote, you can complete an application to vote by absentee ballot.
Since the start of the year, we have all learned how unpredictable life can be. For this reason, even if planning to vote in person at the polls on Election Day, voters may want to consider completing an absentee ballot application, and when in receipt of the absentee ballot, just hold on to it in case personal circumstances change before Election Day. If a voter gets sick, or is quarantined as a precaution, they will be able to mail in or place the absentee ballot in the secure drop box as a backup plan.
The law says town clerks cannot mail out absentee ballots until Oct. 2, but on that date, ballots will go out and actual voting can begin. Votes won’t be counted until Election Day.
With unprecedented numbers of people expected to vote by absentee ballot, it’s critically important for everyone to be prepared for this 2020 Election Season to start earlier. Connecticut’s town clerks are confident our system is prepared for the challenges of managing an election in the middle of a pandemic. Whether you vote in person or by absentee ballot, voters can be assured their vote will be counted.