Connecticut voters will have 14 days to cast their general election ballots early and in person under a bill the state Senate was debating late Tuesday.
Tuesday's anticipated Senate vote comes six months after voters approved a state constitutional amendment that essentially gave the Democratic-controlled General Assembly the go-ahead to create a new, in-person early voting system. The legislation, which affects general elections, primaries and special elections held on or after Jan. 1, 2024, already cleared the House of Representatives earlier this month.
"Connecticut is finally catching up with 46 other states that currently have early voting," said state Sen. Mae Flexer, the Democratic co-chair of the Government Administration and Elections Committee. She said the average number of early voting days in those other states is currently 22.
Connecticut's bill also allows seven early voting days for most primaries and four for presidential primaries and special elections.
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Earlier Tuesday, the Senate passed a separate elections matter, in the form of a resolution, that places a question on the November 2024 ballot about whether the state constitution should be further changed to allow for no-excuses absentee voting.
Absentee ballots are currently limited to specific excuses in Connecticut, such as being out of town on Election Day, active military service or sickness, a provision added during the pandemic.
State Sen. Rob Sampson, the top Senate Republican on the elections committee, opposes both bills. He criticized the early voting proposal for being crafted without Republican input.
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“The glaring issue is this is not a bipartisan product,” said Sampson, who questioned whether 14 days of early voting is really what voters wanted when they agreed to amend the constitution six months ago.
He criticized the original ballot question for being too broad.
Connecticut’s constitution for years has dictated the time, place and manner of elections, essentially requiring voters to cast ballots at their local polling place on Election Day unless they qualified for absentee ballots.
Advocates for early voting say busy people want options for when they can cast ballots. But some critics have questioned whether the state's 169 cities and towns can find enough staff to offer 14 days of early voting.
