If early voting comes to Connecticut, it will be late — following at 37 other states and the District of Columbia. A sharply divided House of Representatives took a small step Tuesday toward putting the issue to a referendum vote, though not before 2020. The House voted 78 to 70, with two Republicans joining 76 Democrats, for a resolution authorizing a referendum on a constitutional amendment allowing early voting. Connecticut is a rarity: The terms for casting ballots early or by absentee ballot is dictated by the constitution. If passed by the Senate, the road to change still is long and uncertain. The General Assembly elected in 2018 would have to vote in 2019 for the same resolution if voters get to have their say in 2020. Even if approved at referendum, the constitutional amendment only would allow legislators to consider a bill permitting early voting in the 2021 session.
So, if all goes well, the Land of Steady Habits could join the majority of U.S. states in allowing more than a single day of voting in time for the gubernatorial election of 2022 or the presidential election of 2024.
“Life is chaotic, kind of like this chamber is at times,” said House Majority Leader Matt Ritter, D-Hartford. “And we make it as hard any state in the country to vote to exercise your constitutional right. That is the bottom line.”
A quicker route to a referendum would have required approval by 75 percent of the House and Senate. That would have allowed a referendum next year.
Full Article: House takes step on long road to early voting in Connecticut | CT Mirror.