In this fourth segment of a 4-part interview, municipal lawyers Michael Collins and Richard Roberts provide some recommendations to CT voters, such as using your town’s ballot drop-box if voting by absentee ballot. For additional resources on voting, visit iwillvote.com, or the Connecticut Secretary of State’s website. The full text from the interview is below.
What needs to happen to ensure a smooth election process this November, and would you have any recommendations for CT voters?
Mike: One of the things, to deviate from the question just a little bit, before we started, we had been talking, and I think it’s important that people understand, that mail-in voting in Connecticut, anyway, has always been the absentee ballot process and continues to be the absentee ballot process. The only difference in this election from previous elections is that one of the rationales by which you’re able to get an absentee ballot includes concern about COVID-19. So you have to fill out the ballot application to get the ballot. One of things I think for anyone who’s going to be using that process, the earlier you can get your vote in, the better. To the extent that you’re able to go to Town Halls which have the drop-in ballot boxes, that way you avoid the concern that somehow they get delayed through the postal process. So I think those would be two concerns that I would have. One, do it as early as you can. And two, if you’re able to, get it to the Town Hall directly.
Rich: Those are exactly the things that I would recommend for people who are concerned about the process. The applications can be submitted almost anytime, the ballots can be completed and returned anytime after October 2nd, so not waiting until November 2nd to ask for the ballot or put it in the mail is important. So you have a month, basically, to obtain and return your ballot. And if you’re concerned about the mail, the drop boxes are a convenient and handy alternative. And otherwise if you’re unable to use the mail, you basically have a month. So don’t wait until the last minute and then complain that you’re unsure whether it got there in time.
On a more personal note, what method do you each plan on using to vote this November?
Rich: Not because I fear absentee balloting, but I plan to go there in person just because that’s how I’ve always done it. I did that for the primary. It was a little disconcerting and lonely to be the only person there. It just struck me that I was able to do it, they were able to accommodate it. I didn’t get a sticker, but I was confident that the ballot got into the machine, you know, chatted with the folks there, thanked them for their efforts. So, I plan to go there.
Mike: I do as well. I also voted in person at the polling place for the most recent primary. I’ve never had occasion to take advantage of the absentee ballot process. When I was in college, I went to college in the same town where I lived, when I was in law school, it was the same. I was never away during an election, so there was never any cause for me to access the absentee ballot process. And my experience when I went to the polling place was similar to what Rich just described. There were more poll workers than there were electors. I don’t envision there being occasion where you’re going to be overly concerned that there are so many people there that it might not be safe.