Know the Ways to Vote in Connecticut’s 2024 Elections
Residents across Connecticut are considering whom to vote for in the upcoming general election on November 5. And the candidates are doing everything they can to try to earn those votes. One fact should be top of mind: voters 50 plus decide elections, and candidates who ignore this powerful segment of the electorate do so at their own peril.
Voters 50 plus are the majority in every election. In fact, in 2020, 57 percent of the electorate in Connecticut was 50 plus. They will decide who controls Congress and the White House. They have the power, and they will make their voices heard on the issues that matter to them. Voters want to see politicians address their day-to-day challenges, such as caring for loved ones to keep them out of costly, taxpayer-funded nursing homes, and protecting their hard-earned Social Security.
Your vote gives you the power to decide what our future looks like. But you have to be in the know to vote. That’s why AARP is working to make sure all voters have the information they need to vote in the 2024 elections.
Voters can find trusted, up-to-date information on how, where, and when to vote in Connecticut, including about the changes that may affect how you can cast your ballot, by visiting our online election guide at www.aarp.org/ctvotes. For example, Connecticut now offers early in-person voting. Voters get 14 days for early voting for the general election.
Previously, Connecticut was one of only four states in the country without early in-person voting. Alabama, Mississippi, and New Hampshire still do not offer that option. But in 2023, the Connecticut General Assembly
passed a bill establishing early voting. That came after voters in 2022 had approved a state constitutional amendment allowing the change. Every municipality in the state is required to have at least one early voting location but may offer more.
In addition, voters in November will decide on a constitutional amendment to allow no-excuse absentee balloting. To vote absentee currently, Connecticut residents must have an acceptable excuse, such as being out of town or unable to get to the polls because of sickness or a physical disability. However, voters caring for an ill spouse or other family member are also now eligible to request an absentee ballot if the person they take care of is sick or has a condition that could be aggravated by exposure to a disease such as COVID-19.
However, a state constitutional amendment on the November ballot may also expand who can vote absentee. Voters will be given the option to vote “yes” or “no” to the question “Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to allow each voter to vote by absentee ballot?” If approved by voters, the amendment would give the legislature the ability to institute no-excuse absentee balloting. That would allow any voter to request a mail-in ballot.
Visit www.aarp.org/CTvotes to get the latest on how to register, the new law on early in-person voting, absentee voting, and all the key deadlines.