More than 60 percent of Connecticut voters plan to back a proposed state constitutional amendment to allow no-excuse absentee voting, according to a new poll released this week.
The poll, commissioned by the Connecticut Project Action Fund, is the first public survey of voters’ attitudes about expanding absentee voting since the question was placed on the ballot by state lawmakers last year.
The numbers suggest the amendment is in a solid position to surpass the majority threshold needed to pass in November. Just 37 percent of respondents said they were likely to vote no on the amendment, while 3 percent were undecided.
“What we’re seeing is that Connecticut voters recognize that there is a need to make voting more accessible and more equal, especially for seniors, people with disabilities, chronic health conditions, working people,” said Meghan Holden, a spokeswoman for the Connecticut Project.
“We’re also seeing that Connecticut voters recognize this is safe, people do this in other states and have for many years,” she added.
The Connecticut Project is a nonprofit, nonpartisan policy organization that supports no-excuse absentee voting, Holden said. The survey itself was conducted by Benenson Strategy Group in July, drawing a total of 858 responses from likely voters online and over the phone.
Under existing law, Connecticut only allows voters to request and cast absentee ballots if they show a reason why they cannot vote in person on Election Day, including work, travel, sickness, physical disability, military service or religious observances.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, state election officials interpreted those rules to allow anyone to vote via absentee ballot in order to avoid catching the virus.
Absentee voting has also drawn scrutiny in Connecticut, particularly surrounding recent elections in Bridgeport that have been mired in allegations of fraud, leading to lawsuits and even arrests.
The controversy surrounding those cases does not appear to be weighing on voters’ feeling about an expansion of absentee voting, said Holden, who added that support for the amendment has increased by 3 percentage points since a previous, unpublicized poll was conducted in December.
“Connecticut voters are smart, and recognize that we can do both,” she said. “Connecticut doesn’t have to choose between making elections safe and expanding voting access for more people.”
Opponents of the measure, however, say that persistent allegations of ballot harvesting in Bridgeport are likely to have an impact on the election, even if the amendment is approved.
“The outcome of the Bridgeport elections is the biggest campaign against it,” said House Minority Leader Vincent Candelora, R-North Branford, who said he plans to vote against the measure after having previously supported the concept of no-excuse absentee voting.
“There has to be a conversation; if we’re going to expand absentee voting we have to reform the harvesting,” Candelora said.
Among the respondents to the Connecticut Project poll, 45 percent said they supported the 2022 amendment that opened the door for in-person early voting, while 29 percent voted against the measure. That measure passed with slightly over 60 percent of the vote, allowing early voting to begin this year.
Nationally, there are 28 states that offer no-excuse absentee voting, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. That list includes both traditionally red states such as Wyoming and Oklahoma, as well as blue states like New York and New Jersey.
Another eight states run all-mail elections, where registered voters are automatically mailed a ballot from local elections officials. Those states are mostly concentrated in the West, though Vermont began holding all-mail elections in 2022.
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