Connecticut to decide on constitution change to make mail-in voting easier
Connecticut voters will decide Tuesday whether to eliminate rules that prevent the state from joining the 36 others that allow people to cast ballots by mail or through drop boxes without needing an excuse not to to go to a polling station in person.
An amendment to the state constitution would put an end to it long-standing limitations which only allow people to vote absentee if they are out of town, sick or disabled, or unable to get to a polling place due to religious restrictions.
“We can finally free our state from the shackles of a long history of overly restrictive voting laws and ensure that every eligible voter can cast their ballot easily and safely,” said state Rep. Matt Blumenthal, a Democrat who co-chairs the elections . Committee on Government Management and Elections of the General Assembly.
If voters ultimately agree by a simple majority to vote “no excuse,” it will be up to state lawmakers to implement the new system.
“This just allows them to do it,” Secretary of State Stephanie Thomas said.
Thomas, a Democrat, said if the amendment passes, her recommendation would be for lawmakers to take a year to research and design a “holistic” system that also includes early voting and in-person voting.
Connecticut voters recently agreed to amend the state’s constitution to allow early in-person voting for the first time during the March primaries. There were 14 days of early voting before the general election. In addition to being sent by mail, absentee ballots can also be placed in drop boxes in every city and town, or submitted to local election offices.
According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, 28 states let voters request an absentee ballot without the need for an excuse. Eight other states, plus Washington DC, are going a step further and automatically sending a ballot to all registered voters without them having to ask for it.
Critics of Connecticut’s proposed change, mostly Republicans, have questioned the safeguards surrounding the state’s current absentee voting system.
In the state’s largest city, Bridgeport, there were allegations of absentee ballot misuse Democratic mayoral elections in 2019 and 2023. Last year, a judge ordered a rerun of Bridgeport’s mayoral election after campaign volunteers were caught on camera putting stacks of other people’s ballots into collection boxes.
“It is clear that the current absentee voting system is broken,” Sen. Rob Sampson and Rep. Gale Mastrofrancesco, the top Republicans on the Government Administration and Elections Committee, said in a statement.
“In Bridgeport, research has shown that people are illegally cheating the system, but this voting measure would expand the use of absentee ballots and open the door to even more fraud and abuse,” they said.
Both said they would also oppose any change that would result in ballots being automatically sent to qualified voters.
Thomas had noted that states with universal access have implemented systems with greater voting security and voter protections. Requiring things like basic personal information, the last four digits of a Social Security number or a driver’s license number could be considered by Connecticut lawmakers if the amendment passes.
Patricia Rossi, co-chair of the League of Women Voters of Connecticut, said current absentee voting rules exclude people who may not be able to get to the polls on Election Day for other good reasons, such as having to work or being a caregiver for someone, or because he or she does not have access to transportation.
Coralys Santana, policy and advocacy strategist for the Connecticut Project Action Fund, a group promoting the ballot measure, argues that relaxing voting rules would benefit people of all political ideologies.
“There can be a partisan divide if people choose to,” Santata said. “But I think for the most part this measure is nonpartisan and about equal opportunity and access to the ballot box.”