News Clips

"Several Democrats and an independent running for the open seat of Secretary of the State are divided on how far Connecticut should expand access to voting. During an online forum organized by the liberal advocacy group Common Cause, the candidates were asked if they would support ballot access for people behind bars..."

"All the candidates supported the Voting Rights Act bill that moved out of committee this week. The bill aims to remove barriers to voting that impact people of color and other social-equity impediments. 'Voter suppression is not just a problem in Georgia, Alabama and Texas,' said Lesser, who wrote the bill. 'Some municipalities have problems, they run out of ballots, there are inadequate instructions on voter requirements, and redistricting. This bill will change a lot and provide a real opportunity.'"

The state Senate gave final passage Wednesday to a bill expanding the conditions under which Connecticut voters can qualify for an absentee ballot, making mail-in voting easier for commuters and residents worried about illnesses. The Senate sent the bill to the governor’s desk on a 30 to 4 vote Wednesday afternoon. The House approved the legislation on a bipartisan basis last week. Although Connecticut’s constitution contains language explicitly outlining a handful of excuses a voter must use in order to obtain an absentee ballot, the bill eases the restrictions previously written into state law. It removes a requirement that commuters be out of town for all hours in which polls are open. It deletes language requiring a voter to be personally ill in order to qualify for a ballot based on sickness.

“We do have a right to vote that’s constitutionally guaranteed, but the state constitution prevents early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, reducing the ability of a lot of eligible voters to vote,” said Cheri Quickmire, executive director of the Connecticut chapter of Common Cause, a nonprofit watchdog group that works to promote equal access to government and the vote. “This is really an opportunity for the state to extend that opportunity for more people to actually be able to vote—it is really about securing our democracy.”

“This is another example of why we need no-excuse absentee voting,” said Cheri Quickmire, executive director of Common Cause in Connecticut, the voter-advocacy and elections watchdog organization. Quickmire said Wednesday that last year, the state had a chance to put a constitutional amendment supporting universal mail-in balloting on the 2022 ballot, but it did not get enough Republican support to reach the 75-percent super majority.

With an open seat for the first time in 12 years, at least nine candidates are running to become Connecticut’s next Secretary of the State. When three-term incumbent Denise Merrill announced that she was not seeking reelection, the scramble began on both sides of the political aisle because openings for statewide constitutional offices are relatively rare. A total of seven Democrats and two Republicans are interested in running for the job.