Legislators considering early voting laws

Bills would allow early voting, no-excuse absentee ballots

As lawmakers in other states move to make it more difficult to vote, Connecticut legislators are considering several bills that would loosen the state’s voting laws, which are among the most restrictive in the nation.

As lawmakers in other states move to make it more difficult to vote, Connecticut legislators are considering several bills that would loosen the state’s voting laws, which are among the most restrictive in the nation.

At a lengthy hearing Monday, a legislative committee that oversees election law heard testimony from dozens of people about several bills that supporters say would improve access to the ballot in Connecticut. Hundreds more submitted written testimony, most of it in favor of the measures.

What bills are under consideration this year?:

House Joint Resolution 58 would allow for “no-excuse” absentee ballots. Under current law, people seeking mail-in ballots must provide a reason why they cannot be at the polls on Election Day. Valid excuses include military deployment, travelling out of state for business and illness.

House Joint Resolution 59 would allow for early voting. Connecticut is one of just seven states that does not allow citizens to vote in-person before Election Day. (One of those states, Delaware, announced it will begin offering that option in 2022.)

If the bills pass the legislature and are signed by the governor, when would the new rules take effect?: It’s complicated. The two bills actually would not establish early voting or no-excuse absentee voting, but they would amend the state constitution to allow for such changes.

Amending the constitution is by design a multistep process. If the bill allowing for no-excuse absentee ballots passed both chambers of the General Assembly by a three-fourths vote, it would be placed on the November 2022 statewide ballot for consideration by Connecticut voters. If it passed by a lesser margin, it would need to be voted on again by the legislature in 2022 or 2023, and would come before voters in November 2024.

The measure allowing for early voting has already cleared both chambers, although not by a three-fourths vote. So it needs to be approved by a simple majority this year to earn a spot on the November 2022 ballot.

Even after the constitution is amended, lawmakers will have to work out the specifics of both proposals. States vary in the number of days they permit early voting, from four days to 45, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Who supports these proposals andwhois opposed to them?: Secretary of the State Denise Merrill has championed no-excuse absentee ballots and early voting since she took office as the state’s chief election official in 2011.

“Connecticut voters deserve the opportunity to vote by the method of their choice — in-person in a polling place, in-person before Election Day or by absentee ballot without needing an excuse — just like the voters in 43 other states,” Merrill said. “In 2020, through the hard work of local election officials of both parties, Connecticut proved that we can allow our voters to choose to vote conveniently. It is time to remove the remaining obstacle from the constitution to make this a reality for future elections.”

Some Republicans expressed skepticism about the proposals, and said they are concerned about voter fraud and the integrity of Connecticut’s elections.

“The issue is sometimes the devil’s in the details,” said Sen. Rob Sampson of Wolcott, the ranking Senate Republican on the legislature’s government administration and elections Committee. “We are all in favor of allowing people to vote and expanding access to voting. I can’t say it enough times.”

But, Sampson added, “the fact of the matter is, we have an obligation to protect the integrity of that vote ... if you undermine the integrity of the election, then every other lawful voter’s vote is diminished.”

What other election-related bills is the committee considering?: At the start of the pandemic, Democratic Gov. Ned Lamont signed several election-related orders, including one that would allow the use of absentee ballots for COVID-19.

House Bill 6464 would extend the coronavirus-related election provisions through May 31 and Senate Bill 901 would extend them through June 30.

The committee is expected to vote in March on whether to move the legislation forward.