Survey Questions and Candidate Responses

Tens of thousands of voters used absentee ballots in the recent primary and many voters say they strongly prefer this convenience. In an effort to increase voter participation, do you support continuing the use of any or all of the following: no-excuse absentee ballots, early voting, and/or making Election Day a holiday?

Dominic Rapini | Participating Election

1) Early Voting - When considering Early Voting the citizens of Connecticut must understand the lack of infrastructure for this program as opposed to Early Voting states, the unfunded nature of this mandate, and the historical lack of success Early Voting has showed in actually turning out more voters compared to Connecticut which has one of the highest levels of voter turnout in the United States. Early voting is not right for Connecticut and is a solution looking for a problem. 2) Almost every Election Day problem in Connecticut involves mail in voting. Missing ballots, voter fraud and forgery, and overtaxed town clerk offices ill equipped to manage 8x increases in mail in voting. Again, CT lacks the infrastructure to manage expanded AB voting and we remind voters that CT has one of the highest voter turn out rates in the Country without Early Voting and no-excuse mail in voting. Our strength is in the decentralized voting system that has worked for over 200 years. While I encourage CT businesses to give leave to employees for voting, an Election Day holiday would essentially be a mandate and carry an undue costs to our business community. Our citizens can find time to vote in a 14 hour day, if not, we have prescribed reasons to vote AB in our Constitution

Stephanie Thomas | Participating Election

I support all of the above and as Vice Chair of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, was pleased to co-sponsor and play a role in moving these initiatives through the chamber. With the early voting amendment on the ballot this November and no-excuse absentee voting expected to appear on the 2024 ballot, an Election Day holiday would be less of a priority to ensure ballot convenience.