Don’t Forget The Absentee Ballot Question

A ballot question asks electors to decide if they want to do away with Connecticut’s restrictive excuse-only absentee voting. Connecticut is among just a handful of states that requires a reason to vote absentee such as:

“An absence from your town on Election Day prevents you from appearing at your polling place, or you are prevented from appearing at your assigned polling place on Election Day because of sickness or physical disability (not necessarily your sickness or disability), active service in the Military, religious tenets forbid secular activity on the day of the election, duties as an election official at a polling place other than your own during all of the hours of voting.”

More info from Connecticut Secretary of the State website:

Overview
At the November 5, 2024, general election, voters will consider a proposed amendment to the Connecticut Constitution dealing with no-excuse absentee voting. If a majority of those voting on a proposed amendment approve it, the amendment becomes part of the state constitution. The ballot question and text of the proposed amendment appear below, together with a link to the explanatory text in both English and Spanish.

Ballot Question
Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to allow each voter to vote by absentee ballot?

Explanatory Text

Explanatory Text in English

Explanatory Text in Español

Text of the Proposed Constitutional Amendment
Section 1. That the following be proposed as an amendment to the Constitution of the State, which, when approved and adopted in the manner provided by the Constitution, shall, to all intents and purposes, become a part thereof:

Section 7 of article sixth of the Constitution is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 7. The general assembly may provide by law for voting in the choice of any officer to be elected or upon any question to be voted on at an election by qualified voters of the state who [are unable to] will not appear at the polling place on the day of election. [because of absence from the city or town of which they are inhabitants or because of sickness or physical disability or because the tenets of their religion forbid secular activity.]