1 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

CHAIRPERSONS: Senator Mae Flexer, Representative Daniel Fox

SENATORS: Haskell, McCrory, Sampson, Slap

REPRESENTATIVES: Blumenthal, Carpino, Fishbein, France, Haddad, Labriola, Mastrofrancesco, McCarthy Vahey, Morrin Bello, Palm, Rosario, Santiago, Thomas

REP. FOX (148TH): I'd like to go ahead and call to order today's Government Administration & Elections Public Hearing Agenda for Monday February 22, 2021. Before beginning, any remarks or comments from the Chairs? Senator Flexer, any comments or remarks?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): No. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Senator Sampson or Representative Mastrofrancesco, any opening remarks?

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Good morning, Mr. Chairman and good morning to the rest of the Members and members of the public that are here to testify, and everyone watching. I'll just make the same caveat I've made at the beginning of all of our meetings and hearings, which is I'd like to register my objection to the entire Zoom process for hearings and Committee meetings. I do believe that while it is affording some additional access for some folks, it is also limiting access for others in the sense that there are some folks that just don't have the technology to access their state government through Zoom. They either don't understand the technology or they do not possess it or they don't have access to the internet where they are in the state, and I just want to make sure that was on the record.

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And it's not lost on me today the irony, considering we are talking about expanding access for eligibility in voting, while we are somehow limiting access for folks to petition their government. With that, Mr. Chairman, thank you for your indulgence and I look forward to a good hearing today.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator Flexer. Representative Mastrofrancesco, any comments?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Yes, thank you, Mr. Chairman and Senator Flexer. Nice to see everyone and just welcome everybody here today. I think it's really important, whether you agree with an issue or don't agree with an issue that people come out and testify. It's very important for our process and the legislative process.

And I would ask that, today, Mr. Chairman, when you're calling the names, would you mind calling them, put the number of order that they are in so it'd be easier for people that are trying to track when they are coming up, to know?

REP. FOX (148TH): Of course.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): That would be very helpful. I'm looking forward today listening to everybody's testimony on such an important issue. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Representative. We'll go ahead and do that. For beginners, seeing that it's our first virtual public hearing, a few announcements we want to make in terms of process, so just bear with me.

The first that this is a new process for many of us, and there could be some technical difficulties during the hearing. We're asking that everyone be patient and tolerant as we work through the challenges.

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Number two, please be reminded that public hearings are livestreamed and recorded according to CGA requirements, so this is being recorded.

Number three, Committee Members, must raise their virtual hand and wait to be recognized by the Chair when they wish to speak. All microphones must remain on the mute until invited to speak.

Number four, if you're joining the hearing from a mobile device, press *6 to mute or unmute, *9 to raise your virtual hand.

Number five, Committee staff will indicate when a registrant has reached the three-minutes allotted time for remarks or testimony by playing a school bell sound. Staff will now play this sound so you may recognize it when you're testifying.

VALENTINA MEHMETI: Did you hear that?

REP. FOX (148TH): Not really. A little better. But regardless, we will notify you when the three- minute mark is over and ask that you wrap up your testimony at that point in time.

Number six, registrants will be removed from the hearing platform upon the completion of their testimony or the completion of questions and answers by the Committee. Registrants can continue watching the hearing live on YouTube or CTN.

Disruptive or inappropriate behavior will not be tolerated and may result in removal from the hearing. Finally, if your connection drops or you close out of the public hearing by accident, please return to it using the link provided by the Committee.

With those notices made, we're going to begin our testimony. First up on our list is Representative Jonathan Steinberg, followed by Denis Merrill, Secretary of the State, followed by Kimberly 4 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Fiorello, Representative from Greenwich. Representative Steinberg.

REP. STEINBERG (136TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good morning, Chairs, Ranking Members, and all Members of the GA Committee. I am proud to be the first to testify in favor of Joint Resolutions 58, allowing no-excuse absentee voting, and 59, to allow for early voting. Of all the legislation we are considering this year, and there are many important pieces of legislation directly related to the COVID crisis, I view this as perhaps some of the most important legislation we can be considering this year, and I want to commend the Secretary of the State Denise Merrill for her perseverance and commitment to making sure that everyone who is eligible to vote has access to doing so.

You know, a year ago we were on the cusp of debating a Bill such of this nature, and then the world changed around us. And if there were concerns about our ability to manage early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, I think we had some of those questions answered. There was, under the most trying of circumstances, no evidence of widespread fraud. Nobody, to my knowledge, caught COVID from any of the ballot depository boxes, or none of them were set on fire. We basically were able to conduct a vote in which we had, in many communities, record turnout. And again, without any of the problems that those who intended to undermine this process suggested would occur. And I would argue that if we could do those things under the most trying of circumstances, we now have confidence we can do this on a regular basis.

I would submit that the idea of a single Election Day is a bit of an anachronism in this day and age. With our abilities and technology and ability to verify the suitability of someone to vote, we should be making it possible for everybody who is eligible to vote to make that possible, and not limit it to one week day a year, people may or may not have the 5 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE day off, and make it possible for them to register their vote in a more straightforward, convenient fashion. Because voting is a privilege and a right and we should make it possible for people to do so.

All I'm here to say today is, this is incredibly important legislation. Connecticut lags behind many other states, and we are challenged by having some of these laws enshrined in Constitution, making it much more challenging to do so. I'm eager to see this Legislature vote by significant majority, super majorities, in favor of these two pieces of legislation, so that we can put it to the voters and move forward, giving them the access that they deserve. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Pardon me, Mr. Chairman. You are muted so nobody's hearing you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Might be a good thing. Any questions or comments for Representative Steinberg? Representative, if I may ask you a quick question. Early in your testimony you stated how this, in your opinion, is one of the most important issues that the GA may face this Session. Seeing as you are Chair of a Committee which I understand and appreciate has some significant issues before us as well, could you expand on that a little?

REP. STEINBERG (136TH): Thank you, yes. Yes, I would certainly concur with you. The Public Health Committee has a few Bills on its side that may be pretty controversial and important as well. But this speaks to the heart of the franchise for voting in this country. This is an opportunity for every citizen to take that responsibility of participating in government seriously, because this is the means by which we elect the people who are in charge of making decisions, in many ways, for us. It's critically important that everybody, not only have access, but begin to take responsibility for their votes. We want to increase the turnout in every 6 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE election; again, with appropriate safeguards to make sure that people are eligible.

But it's critically important, more important than almost anything else we do, and given the challenges we've faced as a democracy and a republic in the past year or two, to my mind, there's no more important way to get people participating and feeling invested in government than voting on a regular basis. Not just in a presidential year, but every year. People care about their local races, the people who represent them in their local issues.

And I'll say, you know, when I was campaigning last year, I was very interested in what people had to say, I didn't do as many doors, obviously, as I did previously. I did what I would call almost like a trick-or-treat kind of ring the doorbell and leave a note. But in the people that I spoke to, they were eager to vote and many of the people I spoke with after the election indicated they were very grateful that Connecticut made it possible for them to vote, even under the most trying circumstances. That this was something that they were worried about initially and their experience, with all the safeguards we put in place, all the ways in which we protected people against the virus, they were pleasantly surprised and very appreciative of all the protections we put in place so that their vote could be counted. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much Representative. I appreciate your thoughts and insight as always. Any further questions or comments for Representative Steinberg? Seeing none, I thank you for your time today, sir. I appreciate you being here.

REP. STEINBERG (136TH): You're letting me off easy. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, Secretary of the State Denise Merrill, followed by Kimberly Fiorello, 7 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE followed by Luther Weeks. Secretary Merrill, good to see you.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Good to see you. Good morning, Chairmans Fox and Flexer, Vice Chairs Haskell and Thomas, Ranking Members Sampson and Mastrofrancesco, and Members of the Committee. Nice to be here. My name is Denise Merrill, I'm Secretary of the State of Connecticut. And so, let me just start right in. I will first address House Joint 58 and 59, both Constitutional amendments that Representative Jonathan Steinberg just talked about. And those two, if they pass, will bring us in line with the vast majority of states, giving more flexibility to voters as to when they could cast a ballot. One provides for wider access to absentee ballots, and the additional, the second would allow for additional days of in-person voting.

So just to start out, to put this in context, 43 states currently allow their voters to vote in person prior to Election Day, and/or vote by absentee ballot without an excuse. Connecticut is in a small and shrinking group of states, along with Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi, New Hampshire and South Carolina that require all voters to vote in person in a polling place on Election Day, unless they present a specific reason why they cannot appear.

This phenomenon is not partisan, and I want to make sure people understand that. Utah, Colorado and Oregon conduct all-mail elections. Louisiana, Georgia and Massachusetts have early voting. Idaho, Ohio and Vermont have in-person absentee ballots without excuse. Red states, Purple states and Blue states, almost all allow their voters to conveniently vote prior to Election Day.

Early voting and expanded access to absentee ballots without an excuse are commonsense, voter-centric reforms that have wide support across the country among members of all demographic groups and 8 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE political parties. We have recent polling in Connecticut that argues that it's true here as well. Despite a highly polarized electorate, 79% of Connecticut voters support early voting; 73% of Connecticut voters support expanding access to absentee ballots to all voters without requiring an excuse. These results run counter to our current partisan schism; 69% of Republicans, 79% of unaffiliated voters, 86% of Democrats don't agree on very much, but they all agree that they should have the option to vote in person before Election Day.

Likewise, 48% of Republicans, 75% of unaffiliated voters and 89% of Democrats may not agree on tax policy, but they do agree we should allow people to choose to vote by absentee ballot, while leaving polling places open on Election Day as well.

2020, we faced a challenging election, no question about it, and a lot has been said about the global pandemic transmitted through respiratory droplets that affected in-person contact. I never had as many calls to my office as I did during that period earlier in 2020, when people were saying, "How am I supposed to vote? The Governor is telling me I need to stay away from crowds." They saw pictures on TV from Wisconsin and Kentucky and other states where they had not planned ahead and people turned out to vote and did contract the virus in large numbers while they stood in line to vote.

So we worked. We went to work with the Governor, with the Legislature, with my staff, local election officials in each of the 169 towns to create a system of election administration which every voter would be able to safely cast their ballot without endangering their health. You have to remember, that's why we did all this.

What happened was it exposed the fundamental inflexibility of our election system and that is my primary argument for making these things possible. It is simply inflexible when it comes to a situation 9 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE like we confronted in 2020. We weren't able to allow everyone to vote unless we made some changes in the way we were doing particularly absentee ballots.

We also had significant federal funding came our way, fortunately, so that we could help the towns deal with this crisis. We used significant federal funding to give towns the resources they needed, and with the help of the Legislature and the Governor, created a system where every voter was able to cast a ballot.

The result was a success. I would say that the 2020 election was the best election in certainly in my 10 years of being Secretary. We had fewer problems, we had a large turnout, the largest in the history of the state. More than 1.8 million voters turned out. A record number cast a ballot in November, and more than 650,000 chose to vote by absentee ballot; 35% of the total votes cast.

And normally in Connecticut, we only have about 4% or 5% of people who vote by absentee ballot, so you can see the challenge for all of us was enormous. But because we all worked together -- we had some tense moments, but we made it happen and I would credit the dedication of local election officials across the state under impossibly difficult circumstances and the election went relatively smoothly. No voter was forced to choose between their health and their vote.

And now, Connecticut voters are wondering, why can't we do this every election? And those are the questions I'm getting now. And my question is, why not, indeed?

HJ 59 would allow the Legislature to create a system of in-person early voting. HJ 58 would remove the restrictions preventing voters from voting by absentee ballot. I support these resolutions. They are needed in order for us to move ahead in statute, 10 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE rather than in the State Constitution, where we can have more flexibility and the Legislature can decide on methodologies and how we're going to make this work.

But that can't happen until we get these amendments passed. A vote yes for the resolution is a vote to simply remove the restrictions against early voting and expanded access to absentee ballots from the Constitution. Bear in mind that the rules still remain in statute, so nothing really changes.

And the other thing that has to happen, if and when -- and I very much hope both of these amendments go forward with a significant super majority that they need to place them on the ballot, where every citizen in the state will be able to vote on whether or not they want to have these opportunities, if they want to change the State Constitution. So I say, let the voters decide. This is only, and of course this vote today is the first step in a long process. People should be aware that this vote alone will not change anything, it will simply make it possible to go forward with changes.

The other two Bills on the Agenda, I'd like to mention House Bill 6464 and Senate Bill 901 would extend temporary changes to the absentee ballot changes made by the Legislature last year in Special Session. These would cover the upcoming special elections and potentially the May municipal elections. There are towns that have municipal elections in May, I think there are five towns left that still do that, and so this would extend those opportunities to the voters in those areas so that they can still operate within the emergency restrictions that we're still under from COVID. They have separate, different end dates and that's I think the only difference between the two Bills.

So I will stop there, but I will say again what I said continually for the last year. It's been just about a year since all this unfolded and I just can 11 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE continue to say, this is about the voters. This is not about the particular kind of administration we do or anything else like that. It is about voters never being having to choose again between their health and their vote and any other emergency that might come up. You know, in my tenure we've already had two or three years where we had polling places underwater, or we had storms that prevented people from even getting to their polling place. Some of the polling places were closed. We're going to continue to have situations like that. Who knows what they will be next? We need to be able to shift the way we administer elections, if needed, under these circumstances, so I urge you all to support these amendments and I'm thankful to the outpouring of support I've had across the state for these measures and the many, many -- I think we're up to 80 advocacy groups that are advocating on behalf of these amendments, because the voters deserve the choice. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Secretary Merrill. I appreciate you being here as always. Any questions? Senator Sampson, you have your hand raised. Senator Sampson.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for being here today, Madam Secretary. I appreciate when you come to visit our Committee each year. Just for a point of clarification, there will be no votes today. I know you were just saying or suggesting that we are discussing the future votes on these Bills, but there will be no votes today. This is merely a public hearing.

We have a very long schedule today. We have quite a few speakers lined up. I think everyone from experience will know that I could keep you on this witness stand for quite some time asking a lot of questions and details about these items, but I'm going to try and move it along as quickly as I can today, just because we have so many people. 12 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I appreciate your opening remarks, suggesting that this is not a partisan issue and that there are great many people, when they hear the term early voting or increasing access, it's wildly popular. And, of course it is. No one wants to restrict anyone's ability from voting, and that should be abundantly clear as a point for anyone that's discussing this issue, regardless of their political party.

Sadly, unfortunately, it always appears that anyone that opposes these measures or the language in any of these Bills is somehow characterized as someone who is against expanding access to voting, and that couldn't be farther from the truth, I think you know as well as I do that the issue is that sometimes the devil is in the details. And for me, personally, I was looking forward to supporting some sort of early voting measure, as long as it was limited and maintained the integrity of elections. But I ultimately voted no on this resolution which we have before us, which is House Resolution 59, I think it is, which is the early voting one. And that is because it makes a Constitutional change, simply to say that there will be early voting allowed.

So I guess my first question for you, Madam Secretary, really is, is there a reason why we want to modify the Constitution to simply allow for early voting without specifying a time limit? You know, I made the point during the Senate debate that when you say early voting that could be one day, three days seven days 30 days, and in fact the way the Bill is written, it could mean early voting could begin the day after the previous election ends and that's a concern of mine. I would much rather see something that was a little tighter, especially since it's in our Constitution. So, looking for your reaction to that.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Sure, thank you, Senator Sampson. Nice to be here, and you and 13 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I have discussed this at length, many times. But I would simply say that the very specific rules about exactly how we administer elections are in statutes now and should be devised by the Legislature, which is the body that makes all laws.

State Constitutions are really broad statements of policy in many cases, and shouldn't be the place where we put the specific rules in because just like we're finding right now, it's very difficult to change them. So let's say we put in the State Constitution a specific number of days of early voting. Well what if somehow that became unworkable, for whatever reason? There could be a lot of reasons that suddenly three days wasn't the right number of days, or you know, who knows?

And so that's what we're looking for here, is for the Legislature to set those rules as they set every other rule. As it is now, unless there was action, nothing would change. In fact, there wouldn't be days of early voting until first of all, voters vote for it on the ballot. And second of all, the statutes that are in place would remain there until someone changed them. So it's potentially possible with this particular version of the amendment that we wouldn't have any days of early voting. It makes it permissive for the Legislature to decide, as they should. That is the proper place to make these decisions.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Respectfully, I would say that the Constitution already does specify that elections happen on one day, so that is specified in the Constitution. And I would also say that it also requires that voting, unless very, very specific other circumstances occur, it must be done in person. I think those are two very important regulations that are contained within the Constitution itself.

But, I guess, so I get your point, which is that you feel like it should be open to the entire 14 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Legislature by statute. I disagree. I think that the Constitution is there as our saving grace. You know, the thing that when we have one-party rule for 40 years or we have major disagreement across the state on things, the Constitution saves us, because we can always go back and say, at least we have this concrete foundation to stand on.

So assuming this did pass, what would you advocate for the General Assembly for a time limit? Would it be three days? Would it be seven days? Would you accommodate weekend days? Would we want to skip weekends? Just what would your vision be, Madam Secretary?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: You know, I think we can't even get to that conversation until we have this language out of the State Constitution. I've made several suggestions in the past and we have lots of states to look at as examples Texas, for example, has 30 days of early voting. Some states, Iowa has 29 days. You know, it's all over the place in the country, but there's lots of experience to look at as to how they do it. Florida, for example, they have 10 days early voting, but they don't open all their polling places. They open like town hall, and sometimes the libraries, places that are already open. So you have to take into consideration things like cost and whether we're still going to be doing elections in every town. We are the only state now that does elections by town, rather than by county. And technology may come to bear on some of this.

So I think all of that is exactly what needs to be debated by this Legislature, and we have to get to that point where we'll be at least able to have those conversations, and I look forward to it.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much for that. I mean, I don't disagree and you brought up quite a few additional areas of concern, costs not the least of which. If you have three days of early 15 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting, now you have to have you know some mechanism to be able to collect those votes. If it's 30 days, it's going to be even more substantial and it just - - we do have towns handling our elections, currently, so it is a factor that we've definitely got to delve into.

But I'd say even more important than the cost is how are we collecting these votes? Because the first thing that comes to comes to mind, for me, Madam Secretary, is when we're collecting votes right now we don't count the votes until 8: 00 p.m. occurs and the election is officially over, and then you have, you know, the tabulators run their tapes and everybody gets the results. How do you envision multi-day voting occurring? Would we be getting the results on a daily basis, or would the tabulator machines just be left open during this period of time?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Again, by passing this amendment nothing changes from the way we're doing things currently. It just allows for change, should the Legislature decide that. So again, those are the debates that are going to have to occur if you want to change anything at all. Maybe not. I don't know. But that's something, we can't even get to the question until we have the ability to have the flexibility to even make a change like that.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Respectfully, Madam Secretary, all I would say is we're being asked to make a very, very significant change. We're changing the Constitution of the State of Connecticut that has existed in the same way on this subject since its beginning and the thing is, we have no details.

And you know, the thing about the Constitution is that it requires a significant effort to make a change. We've got to have a three-quarters majority or we've got to have two consecutive Legislatures 16 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE agree, and then we have to have the people vote by a ballot measure.

What's happening with this Constitutional amendment is essentially we're transferring all of that power, authority and sacred nature of our Constitutional language to the Legislature to change anytime they want, based on a simple majority.

So respectfully I just like -- you know, I don't want to say well let's get rid of the concrete hard and fast thing for a bunch of unknowns. I feel like it's important, and I think that as you mentioned in your opening remarks, you said, you know, 79% of people are in favor of early voting. Well, if I said, you know, are you in favor of three days of early voting? I'm going to get a different result than are you in favor of 364 days' worth of early voting? And that's just a fact and it's worth noting. And when we start to talk about the no- excuse ballot initiative, I want to bring up the ballot question, because, you know, that that goes straight to the heart of that.

The tabulator issue is important because you either have two choices. You're either going to shut down your machines every day, in which case someone is going to know the results of the election on a day- to-day basis, and that cannot be good. Because that information is going to make it into the public, and it will impact the results. Or, you're going to have tabulating machines being left open for 24 hours a day. And as we witnessed in the presidential election, you know there's great concern among some people, I don't know that you have this concern, but there are definitely people out there that are concerned about the integrity of our election process when it comes to making sure that the elections themselves are monitored, that the machines are, you know, monitored properly and that there's no funny business going on.

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We also have a process for absentee ballots when someone cast a vote and then something changes, they can actually pull their ballot back, up to a certain point. I just wonder if that is something that you envision existing in the early voting process? Through Mr. Chairman, to the Madam Secretary.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes. All I can say is nothing changes under the amendments until the Legislature changes it. So our current process, which has all kinds of checks and balances, as you know, to protect the integrity of our elections, we have not really had any widespread problems with any of this. And it's very unfortunate that people feel that there is some problem with the integrity of our elections in Connecticut. Nothing could be further from the truth.

And you know, none of us have envisioned any changes in the process, thus far. We changed very little about our process even during this very difficult situation where people were not able to come to the polling places due to the threat of COVID. It's a very reasonable threat, it was a very reasonable reaction by the voters that they needed to have an ability to get an absentee ballot and they couldn't because of the restrictions that are very limited in our State Constitution. We have arguably the most restrictions on voting for voters in the country. Almost every other state allows this. And, by the way, we've had absentee balloting in Connecticut for over 100 years. And we are just going to have more of them now, as people need that availability when it comes to a situation like we had in 2020.

So, you know, I can only say again that those discussions will have to be held when we get the availability of being able to even have -- we can't even get to the discussions until we have the possibility of having this flexibility. So there's really no point in arguing how you're going to manage early voting or whatever it is, without 18 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE having the possibility of having it. Like I say, there are plenty of states that are doing it now; 40, I believe. And so obviously there's ways around whatever problem you can present with if it works this way or that way, if there were three days or 40 days or whatever because everybody's already doing it. And so it's not difficult to imagine how we would be able to make it work, even within our current system. We just have to have a way to make sure that the clerks and the registrars have the tools they need to be able to continue to make the integrity of the election work, and that's what all the many checks and balances, we have in place now.

Including monitoring the tabulators. We open the tabulators publicly. We send the computer chip that's in the tabulator to the UConn voting center to make sure the programming is correct. I mean, we have multiple steps along the way that are very well regulated.

And I am very confident of Connecticut's elections, quite frankly, and it's largely because we have instituted so many processes and to be honest, it makes it somewhat cumbersome. But it's probably worth it, to ensure that everything is going the way it should. And so I don't think anything changes under these amendments. We will still probably do elections the way we're doing them today, because it will still be in statute. And by the way, I still think that all the voters of the state ought to be the ones to decide if they want this flexibility or not. That's all we're doing here, is allowing them to decide.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Madam Secretary, thank you very much for that answer. You can tell you were in the Legislature at one time, since your filibustering skills are quite good. I mean that respectfully. You just covered a lot of ground there that I was not asking about and I'm trying to stay on track. I mean I was talking about early 19 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting and you've segue it into no excuse which I'm happy to talk about also.

It seems like on the early voting issue, I'm not going to get a lot of concrete information, other than you believe that we should have early voting and the Legislature should make up the rules. I just, you know, end that discussion by saying that I think that, you know, the Constitution does have very specific requirements. The fact that it's in- person on one day voting, and before we change that, I think that the public deserves to know what we're changing it into. I think that it's just unfair to approach it with, do you like the idea of early voting? Yes or no? Because that's not the end game.

The end game is it's going to be some very, very complex set of circumstances by which early voting will be implemented and the public will not have that information when they get to vote. And that's unfair. They should know whether they're voting on three days of early voting or 30 days or early voting, or whether it's in person or whether or not the tabulator machines will be left open. Whether or not there will be drop boxes. They should know what the parameters are.

I respect the fact that you believe that our elections are perfect. I disagree. I'm sorry, respectfully, I do. There are a great many people that are concerned about the way our elections have gone over the last decade, you know? It seems like almost every day after Election Day there is a report of something. We've had mass swearing-in ceremonies happening after the fact. We've had, you know, found bags of ballots, lots of things.

I had folks send me information for today's hearing showing ballot boxes stuffed with so many ballots that they're hanging out of the box. Now, I mean, that cannot maintain the chain of custody or the integrity of the vote in a way that matters. During 20 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the debate in the Senate over the summer, I brought hundreds of examples -- hundreds of examples -- of people that received mailed absentee ballot applications that they did not ask for, that were duplicates, that were for people that moved away, people that passed on. It was extremely problematic. You can't say that it was a perfect election in that respect.

I'm not suggesting that our elections are fraught with fraud or that the anyone's results were compromised. But we also don't know exactly what happened with all those mass mailing of absentee ballot applications. It is the kind of thing where I think even you would admit that in-person voting is always going to have a higher degree of accuracy, then absentee voting for a combination of reasons.

Number one, you can verify the person who's in front of you when they're voting in person. Even Senator Looney has said on the floor of the Senate that we actually never really know who's filling out an absentee ballot. That's a quote from the Senate Majority Leader.

And the other thing about that is that a lot of people end up disenfranchised because their absentee ballots are sent back and they are not counted because they're filled out in error or something like that. Which leads me to my next question which is if we're going to talk about expanding the Constitution to include no-excuse absentee voting, I guess the very first question I would have is, why are we changing the question?

You know, in 2014 the Legislature passed a similar amendment and it went on the ballot and the question at the time read, "Shall the Constitution of the state be amended to remove restrictions concerning absentee ballots and to permit a person to vote without appearing at a polling place on the day of the election?" And that failed. People of the state of Connecticut voted it down. They said no, and I 21 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE think it's because they said no, we really want people to appear at the polls.

And yet this time around, we're going to try and do the same thing, but we're going to change the question. And this is very curious to me. Why are we changing the question? The question now reads, shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to allow any voter, for any reason, to vote by absentee ballot? I mean, these are two very different questions. The first one is much more specific. It raises a concern.

So, Madam Secretary, I don't know if you had any direct involvement in choosing the wording for the question, but do you have any concerns about it? Do you think that we should go back to the first question?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, I actually believe that the first question was very confusingly worded for the public, but I also think times have changed. I think the 2020 election revealed that people could vote by absentee ballot safely and securely, and I think they enjoyed it and they saw that the rest of the country was already doing it, and I think it made a difference in the way people thought about it. They saw it in action, so to speak. So, you know, we may be in a different place now. I guess we'll find out, but the two different questions are in response, I think -- and I am not, my office is not in charge of the wording of the question, by the way. That would be done by LCO ultimately. But it would be in whatever Bill passes, whatever the wording is. But it was widely believed that the question, people didn't understand the question at all, and it wasn't such an issue as it is today.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you for that. I disagree completely. I think they understood exactly what it meant, which is that we would be allowing people to vote without appearing in person 22 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE at a polling place, and I believe that raises concerns for a great number of people, and I think taking it out of the question is dishonest. And I will continue to make that argument along the way, even though I'm not even against the idea of expanding absentee voting.

But the thing is, I am in favor of maintaining the integrity of elections, and I am in the favor of being completely honest with the voters about what's happening. You know, during the recent election, you expanded absentee voting exponentially and we went from 4% or 5%, I think as you mentioned is typical, to like 35%, 600,000 people something like that voted by absentee.

True or false, does the State of Connecticut even have any sort of verification system for signatures on absentee ballots?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, we don't use a signature verification process. The only time that's used is in states where they actually mail the ballots to people, and there are quite a few where they simply mail the ballot to someone, then they do have a signature verification process. We don't have that here. We have other ways to check to make sure that that person is on the list.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): But what is the way that we verify that the actual person that that ballot belongs to is the person that completed that ballot? Through you, Mr. Chairman.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, we do have, you know, people sign it. There's a signature under penalty of perjury. I mean you would have to be forging someone else's signature and that's a very serious offense.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): My understanding is that, with no signature verification, no one has to forge anything. I've been told by the registrars that 23 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE they were instructed if there was a mark made where the signature belongs that they count it. It doesn't even have to be a signature, it doesn't have to match anything.

I mean, I think, Madam Secretary, the whole issue with absentee ballots is that historically they've been extremely limited because there is a lot less ability to verify their authenticity than an in- person vote, and that's by design. And that's why the people that drafted our Constitution put in very specific excuses. When you get rid of those excuses, you must absolutely as a requirement, as an obligation to the other voters in the state whose votes must count, do something to verify that those absentee votes are legitimate and I don't believe that's being done.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, if I could just respond by telling you what our process is. First of all, we have a whole application process. You need to apply for an absentee ballot. You need to sign that application with your name and verify, then it is sent to the town clerks. They verify that that person is on the list, at that address. They then mail the ballot to the person, and the person has to receive it at that address. So if someone were going to send in a ballot for someone else, which is what you're suggesting, they would have to forge that person's name on the application. They would have to trust the fact that that person didn't, by the way, sign up for that application themselves somewhere else, because then they would be caught. They would then have to receive the ballot itself back at their address, where it was sent. And then they would have to sign a second time, forge that person's name, send the ballot back and then that ballot would be recorded, right? As having that person has now voted by absentee ballot.

And if that happened, and that person actually showed up at the polls, then the person, whoever 24 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE signed that, would be committing a felony and I think there would be few people willing to take all that risk to sign one false absentee ballot. So there are a lot of ways that we check on these things. Signature verification, frankly, is not a very good way of verifying authenticity. There are, you know, states that use it and the states I've talked to are not particularly happy with it. People's signatures change over time. It's just like all these methods of verification, and I think frankly over time technology is going to take over all of this, because there are more and more ways you can check people's identity in different ways than signatures or whatever, thumbprints, or whatever other ways.

You just have to remember that every time you put something in place that's going to disenfranchise someone like making sure their signatures check, that adds a burden not only to the people administering the election, but you're also placing a barrier every time you put in place another process by which somebody can be rejected, and that's what you're talking about. Then, potentially, someone is not going to be able to vote. So be very, very careful before we disallow any voter, whether it's absentee or in person.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Madam Secretary, two points based on your remarks. First off, it absolutely did happen. I saw several examples in my own election where voters contacted me and said that they were at the polls, they were attempting to vote, and they were not allowed to vote because their vote had already been cast.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Did they report that to the Election Enforcement Commission?

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I don't know that the proper mechanism -- my RTC Chairman and the Registrar of Voters are both very aware of what happened, and we basically had to go back and go 25 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE through a process of finding the absentee ballot that had replaced this person who tried to vote in person at the polls.

And, you know, that's the thing you left out of your commentary, which is that if someone votes by absentee because they receive a ballot application in the mail, complete it and get a ballot and complete it, no one will ever know who that person is. And then when the actual person shows up at the polls, it will indicate that they've already voted. I'm telling you, I can confirm that happened in several cases that I am personally aware.

It is neither here nor there. The larger point that you made, which is you're concerned about disenfranchised voters, but so am I. And Madam Chairman, the issue is that when you use absentee ballots, there is a percentage of voters that are disenfranchised when you use absentee ballots. That doesn't happen when people vote in person. When people vote in person, their votes count. But you know as well as I do that even in this election, where we did almost no verification, no signature verification, the registrars were more or less informed to count every ballot that they could, there was still 6,000-some-odd people whose votes were not counted because they didn't complete the envelope, or they put two ballots in an envelope or something like that. That doesn't happen in in- person voting.

And that's a concern of mine. I don't want to see 6,000 people or more, and as the number of absentee ballots goes up, that number will increase. There's no doubt about that. What are we doing to make sure that if we expand our Constitution to say there's no-excuse absentee voting and the number of absentee votes goes up dramatically, what are we going to do to prevent those people from being disenfranchised?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, again, should these measures pass and should it pass on the 26 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE ballot, then the Legislature could potentially put more protections in place if they thought it was necessary. They could do that now, for that matter. So I don't know if the number of absentee ballots makes the difference between the way we're doing it now and the way you might potentially do it just because there's more of them. And we've been doing this for, you know, 100 years, as I said. And, by the way, the rest of the country is already doing this. Many, many states have much more expanded absentee balloting than we do. So I don't know how we can remain such outliers in this when there are plenty of places you can look to see, if you want more checks and balances than we have already.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I believe you and I are in agreement, Madam Secretary. The difference is you want to change the Constitution right away and I want to put those checks and balances in place. I have proposed as a Ranking Member of this Committee, year after year, audits of Election Day registration, audits of absentee ballots, signature verification, photo identification, things that would restore the integrity of our elections and we're not doing any of those things.

I hope that when we have the Public Hearing for those audits that you come and testify in favor of my Bills. I mean, I'd like to see that. Are these people told, by the way, you know, if I send in my absentee ballot, like I know a lot of elderly people sometimes they're being frugal and they'll take -- the husband and wife will put the two ballots in one envelope and they send it back, and that's a very common way that those ballots are not counted because they're not filled out properly, because they're only in one envelope. Are those people ever informed that their votes did not count?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: We did have special rules this year for that, but I would point out that we had a lower return rate of what do you call it? Defective ballots than ever before. It 27 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE was half the rate it usually is, and I think it probably is because of some of the changes we made temporarily in the Bill that the Legislature passed in Special Session that helped us deal with these situations. But I guess it's not surprising, considering the incredible increase in the number of people that were using absentee ballots, which is why we had to do so much public information about how they were supposed to work.

And one of the reasons we have that, and we have made proposals, by the way, and I am supporting some proposals this year to increase the number of, you know, for example, to increase the audit process. I would like to go to a risk-limiting audit type of situation. I think it's very needed and probably more effective. But I'm sure my friend Luther Weeks can tell me more about that. But I do think we ought to do everything we can to do post-election audits that also increase people's faith in the integrity of things.

So there's things, you know, there are more things that we can do about that. But I have -- go ahead.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I'm sorry. I hope we can find some agreement. Again, I started this conversation with you by saying that I'm not opposed to either one of these Constitutional amendments in theory. It is in practice and it is that I believe when you expand voting, you have an obligation to maintain integrity. Not one or the other, both are absolutely required simultaneously, and I'm glad you're in agreement. I just, I hope we can actually fulfill that promise by passing the necessary requirements to improve integrity along the way.

I know I've gone a long time with you and people are getting impatient, but I have to follow up on just the last two Bills with you, which is the COVID-19 extension Bills. I've got to tell you, Madam Secretary, this whole thing has been quite a bone of contention with me since the beginning, because I 28 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE think a lot of people in the state were misled about this legislation when it passed during the summer. I think it's ironic that we actually have a conversation right now and this proposed Bill changing our Constitution to allow for no-excuse absentee voting when, in effect, we just had an election with no-excuse absentee voting. Which kind of leads one to believe, was that election constitutional? Which is the question that I have. I want to understand exactly what the proposal was initially to change our law to add COVID-19 as an acceptable excuse under our current constitutional law for no-excuse voting. How does that work? This is what I'm confused about. Maybe you can clarify it for me. The Constitution already says illness. Wouldn't COVID-19 have already been covered? Through you, Mr. Chairman.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah, I think the question was whether or not people could get an absentee ballot under that provision if they were not actually ill. If fear of illness or potential, you know, in a pandemic situation you had a very, very special situation where people, if they had gone to the polling place, could have contracted the virus, particularly people with underlying health conditions and the elderly. So that was why we put that qualification, I guess, I'd call it, in the statute.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I understand that, Madam Secretary. I guess the question I have is why didn't we say fear of COVID? I suspect because if we had said fear of COVID as an acceptable reason, it would not have complied with our Constitution.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Sorry, someone's talking to me in background. Yeah, actually well it's legislative language and so it was devised by the Legislature, not by me. But I think that the rationale was under an emergency situation, given the fear of COVID, a rational fear and the concern for voters not being able to vote, 29 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and they just put that language in that expressed the opinion. In a sense, I guess the legislative intent must have been to have it come under the sickness provision, unable to get to the polls due to sickness.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well, thank you for that answer, Madam Secretary. I guess, so I remain bamboozled and I think so does a lot of the public. You know, I would have been glad to support a constitutional amendment to include fear of the COVID pandemic, but we didn't do that. What we did was we passed a law that said not that COVID-19 was an illness under the constitutional parameter that illness is an acceptable excuse, we just made a whole brand-new excuse and we named it COVID-19 without specifying whether it was actually being sick with COVID-19, or the fear of COVID-19.

And then you took it upon yourself as our Secretary of State to send out absentee ballot applications to every person on the voter rolls in the state, which I really wanted to get into that conversation about our voter rolls, but I'm going to save it because I know that we've already gone long enough. But when you said on this form, all voters are able to check this box, I think you were taking it upon yourself to suggest that it was fear of COVID. I don't think that the Legislature passed anything that said that.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Oh no, I disagree. The reason we sent the applications out was to inform voters of their rights under that Emergency Order and under the Executive Order and eventually, under the Legislative Decree. I think it was my obligation to let people know about the change, and it did create -- you know, there was a lot of confusion at the time and the way, when I sent those applications out, it was specifically for voter information, and they needed that. People were totally confused and scared about whether they would have their opportunity to vote.

30 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

And so that's under that -- and by the way, applications for absentee ballots are widely available to anyone who goes on my website or any town site website. There's nothing special about getting an application for absentee ballots. As a matter of fact, routinely candidates mail applications to their constituencies when they're running for office. It's done all the time. And so this is, you know, everyone's making much of this mailing of the applications. It was absolutely necessary to let the voters know what their rights were.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well, Madam Secretary, I agree with you that it's no big deal to go and apply for an application online. They're readily available and, in my opinion, that's what you should have done was inform the public, use the federal money to do a PSA or something to tell people that they have the ability to obtain one. But mass mailing basically created problems because the voter rolls are so inaccurate. I know that we're going to have some folks from Fight Voter Fraud up on our agenda today. I'm sure they're going to be able to tell us a lot more about just how incorrect our voter rolls are.

You know, those examples I made during the Special Session of all those people that receive those ballots, or those ballot applications are examples. I don't want to get off track on this, Madam Secretary, and I don't want to litigate a constitutional matter, but I do want to suggest to you that when I was in the Special Session, voting on COVID-19 being acceptable reason, I was not thinking that that was going to enable every person to check a box that you indicated in bold print that they can vote because of fear of COVID. That's not what I was led to believe. I was led to believe that the illness of COVID-19 falls under our constitutional parameters. The fear of COVID is not a constitutional provisions. I would have gladly voted for that because I agree with you that we 31 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE should have made every accommodation to voters, but we didn't. We went around the Constitution and in fact, this mass mailing of the ballot applications with the bold print invited people to go around the Constitution, because illness is a required -- is an acceptable reason but COVID-19 as an illness counts, but fear of COVID is not something that would fit into our current constitutional roles.

And I just -- I think that it's a shame that it all worked out the way it did. I don't think it was done honestly with the voters, respectfully. I've just got to say that I, even as Ranking Member of this Committee, someone who you would think is as informed about these election laws as anyone, I was completely baffled when that happened because that's not the way I envisioned the law that was passed.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, I believe it was an absolutely legal interpretation of exactly what was passed. And, moreover, I feel it was one of the most important things we did. Because people needed to know that that process was available to them so they wouldn't have to stand in line or worse, not vote at all. And that was the choice people were facing. So to go back and try to put yourself in the place where we were last summer is difficult at this point because things have worked -- we're in a different place than we were even then. But it was it was terribly important that we let people know what was going on and that was --

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): You and I are in agreement on a lot. We are in agreement on almost everything. I find that very interesting and yet we have different ways to approach it. I believe everyone should have been able to vote based on the fear of COVID, but we never passed a law to allow that. And it is unconstitutional without changing the Constitution, and that's just the way it is. And maybe someday we'll get to litigate that.

32 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Actually, if you'll indulge me for just a moment, I believe my Election Attorney Manager is on the line. Ted, are you there? Ted Bromley.

This was litigated, quite frankly, and I'm forgetting now how many -- because we were sued a number of times over these kinds of issues at the time, as people tried to say, oh no its constitutional, it isn't constitutional, and I believe this issue was litigated. Ted?

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well there was a case but the issue was never litigated.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: There was a case that was --

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): It was dismissed because of the Special Session vote.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah, that's right.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I understand that, but that doesn't -- that didn't change anything. And again, we're taking up time from this Committee on a side issue and I apologize to the Committee for bringing it up, although I think it's important because the Bills that we have before us that extend those provisions are also misleading in that they will -- are implying that someone can vote by absentee for fear of COVID and that would not be constitutionally correct. It's just that simple. The Constitution has parameters. You're in the military, you're going to be out of town, or illness. If it doesn't fall under those parameters then it's not Constitutional. And fear of an illness is not the same thing as your personal sickness, which is what our Constitution states.

And when we passed the Special Session law and said COVID-19 is a special example, any person who 33 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE understands our Constitution nearly thought we were being duplicative in specifying a particular illness in COVID-19, not expanding that to mean something beyond the illness itself.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: I'd just respond that I don't think we can litigate that right here, but we were on firm legal ground with all the things that we told people and that's all I can say. And we can have a conversation about voter lists at another time, but I will just say that our voter lists are much more accurate than almost any in the country. We actually got recognition for that fact. Yes, of course, there's tremendous mobility. The list is not a static list. It changes all the time. It is kept up by every one of the two registrars in every one of the 169 towns, one Republican, one Democrat. They do their best to keep these lists up, and we have lots of tools including we discussed about the ERIC system and so forth. So I think to say that the lists are inaccurate is probably not true.

You know, of course, anecdotally you hear all these stories about people getting absentee ballots or applications for dead people and people that are no longer there. Of course that's true. That's always going to be true. People move a lot and they don't keep up their addresses as they should. But we still have as accurate as they need to be and the registrars, I would defend the registrars in saying they do the best they can to keep these lists up. We do an annual canvas. We do many things to make sure that they are as accurate as possible.

Could we do more? I don't know. I'm open to suggestion, but it's all done at the local level. So if you have questions about that, we need to look at the whole system.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): All right, thank you very much, Madam Secretary. We will have to disagree on the accuracy of the voter rolls. I think that it's 34 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE more than just anecdotal information. I had numerous -- literally hundreds -- of people contact me from my own district. I cited dozens of these examples during the floor debate. I'll be happy to do that again when this comes around again. I would much rather that we had a better solution, though, which is you and I put the things that we agree on about voter integrity, audits, signature verification and so on into law before we go changing our Constitution. And I will leave it at that. Thank you very much, Madam Secretary. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for your indulgence this morning.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator Sampson. Appreciate your commentary and questions as always. Up next, Representative Palm.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Madam Secretary it's always so good to see you. Thank you for everything that you and your staff did in 2020. I know that as a constitutional officer you take very seriously your responsibility and I believe that all the work that you and your crew did in the general election was done with integrity, efficiency and dispatch. So, thank you again very much for that.

You have long been an advocate for these kinds of reforms. Do you feel as though any part of the pandemic might have had -- well I'm going to ill- advisedly say a silver lining in the sense that it has exposed some of the inherent weaknesses? Do you feel this is an opportunity for us to rectify some of the things that you have been advocating for?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes. I think, in general, the system held up pretty well, but of course it was kind of groaning under the weight of the number of absentee ballots we had. We really changed very little about what we usually do with absentee ballots. So that isn't the question so much as the need to change -- if we were to do this again in large numbers, there would probably 35 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE have to be enhancements at the local level and probably some more technology. For example, we shouldn't have to mail applications around. We should have a way to get people their application by email and that's been proposed for several years. That's relatively easy to do. So that's the kind of thing we need. I think we just need a lot more technology. Everything is still very paper based, very cumbersome, if you will. Very bureaucratic, in a way. And so, yes, I think some of that came out. We need a lot more streamlining of some of this and using more technology and less paper in general.

As far as -- and the only other thing I'd add is, you know, the silver lining to the list situation was that all those unreturned things that came back not deliverable the first time around for the primary came to our office, and we were able to then send them to the local towns and get those folks off the list. Our problem is we're very, very, very careful before we take anyone off the list. So that means, you know, there's federal law, there's state law involved, and it means that someone has to literally not vote in several elections, not answer the postcard. So this way, we were able to find out in one fell swoop, you know, which ones were undeliverable. So that was helpful, actually, and I think it has helped us clean up our lists.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you for that. I do think if we go forward with this we have to make sure, as you have pointed out, that we do give the support to our clerks and registrars that they need. And I know that you will probably look to other states for the protocols there. I'm sure that there are ways that other people in other states can support and prevent these folks from feeling overwhelmed. I am curious about whether or not your colleagues in the NASS, the National Association of Secretaries of State, how do they perceive Connecticut? I mean, do you find yourself in a position of having to defend or be an apologist? What do your colleagues across 36 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the country think of a so-called progressive Connecticut in how regressive we are in this way?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: So glad you asked. Yes, we are definitely not out front. And yes, I apologize a lot for the fact that Connecticut is the only state where we still have these provisions in our State Constitution. Vermont actually just voted them down unanimously, I believe, in both Houses and got those provisions out on their State Constitution, and today I believe they're voting on a vote-by-mail provision. And again, widely supported across the aisle.

So we're in a really kind of odd place in much of this. We are very much outliers. We are the ones that don't have county systems and everyone is really quite amazed when I tell them that in our tiny little state, we have 169 towns all administering elections with very part-time people, in many cases. So it's a challenge, but then other states have other kinds of challenges, so I'm not necessarily envious of all of their situations, but we are definitely outliers.

REP. PALM (36TH): And I do think one of the great challenges for your offices is educating folks, and it's our responsibility too as legislators, about why this is so complicated uniquely in Connecticut, the dichotomy between the Constitution and the Statute. It's really in the weeds and it doesn't translate always to the voting public, but the effect of what we do will dramatically increase their safety.

So again, thank you very much for everything you do and I look forward to working with your office on new language and new ways that we can make this even more efficient.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Thank you.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you. That's it, Mr. Chair. 37 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Palm. Appreciate your insights. Next, Representative Mastrofrancesco.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And Madam Secretary, it is very nice to see you again. Thank you for your time today. I just wanted to follow up on a couple of things. There's no doubt, obviously we want people to go vote. It's very, very important, it's very sacred and it's really important for our democracy. It is the power of the vote that holds elected officials accountable, so it's very important that we maintain that integrity.

I believe today, probably more so in past elections because of the 2020 election, that there's more people that feel the election process is somewhat flawed and they don't trust it. So I think it's really important for us as a Legislature to gain back the confidence and trust in the people, and I would like to see things cleaned up prior to expanding any legislation for voting. I think when we do that, it just gives the people more pause. And they just, they won't trust the system, so it will be even harder for us to get them back to that.

When you were talking with Senator Sampson, you were talking about -- and this is a perfect example when it comes to changing the Constitution, right? So right now in our Constitution, the legislation that you have there would pretty much strip the language out of the Constitution, and it would allow the Legislature to make changes as they see appropriate, correct?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, so that piece right there is a problem because it strips the input from the public out of the process. When it has, when you're making a constitutional amendment it has 38 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE to go on the ballot, so people are involved in that process and it's the public making the decision. I think I heard you say that it's very important for you to have the public make that decision. That's why you want it on the ballot.

In this particular language, it doesn't have to go on the ballot. The Legislature can, as they see fit, make a change, correct?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No. This would [inaudible] to make any of these changes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Correct, but once this is done, the Legislature during that -- they could change something, like you had mentioned before, it would be up to the Legislature to decide, let's say early voting, for example. How long they want it to be. Do they want it to be 30 days, five days, three days, right? That would be up to the Legislature.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, of course.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Correct, right? Where right now it's not. It's embedded in our Constitution, it's done on Election Day and so forth. Correct?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, right now the General Constitution says you can only vote on that Tuesday.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, and if we want to change the Constitution, we have the people involved, we have two-thirds vote and then it would go on to the -- then it would pass the majority, and then it would go on the ballot so the people are engaged in it, and they are making the decision.

What's concerning -- and let me just point this out that unfortunately, this does become a partisan issue. When the Legislature is making the decision, 39 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE it's a partisan issue. It doesn't matter what side you're on and we all know that it always becomes that way. So it strips the public out of the decision making. Would you agree with that?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, no. You have to make our laws. Yes, you are representing the public and we're in a representative democracy, so called, and so you as the representative are representing your constituents whenever you change any law. So this would be just like every other law you pass.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Correct, but as we've seen in the Legislature, there's issues that come up that are very contentious, right? And they do become partisan. And when there's so much mistrust in the election process on that, this could also become very partisan.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Of course it could. Probably, you know, I'm sure you all have different opinions on exactly how any elections work in many different ways. But that's how laws are passed. I mean, right now, the statutes are in place. Those statutes would still govern elections, it's just that this would make it possible for there to be more flexibility in the statute rather than in the Constitution.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, and that's the problem because it's the Legislature that's in charge of it. It will -- it will -- it just, it becomes partisan. That's just the bottom line. It does. Just as we've seen the Legislature can shut the public out, just like we've seen with Public Hearing testimonies limited at 24 hours, not letting the public stay involved in it. When it's embedded in our Constitution, there is no choice but to let the public make those decisions. So they must be involved. You cannot shut them out when it's on a ballot. That is a big concern of mine when we talk 40 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE about changing the language in the Constitution. It's there for a reason.

You had mentioned earlier, and correct me if I'm wrong, did you say there were 650,000 people who voted by absentee ballot?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): In the last election?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And you mentioned that there was a lower percentage of the ballots that were rejected. Do you know what that percentage was?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: I think it was half of 1% and usually it's about 1%.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So it's usually about -- okay, I thought it was higher than that. I thought I saw somewhere that it was about 3%. So you're telling me in a normal election with not as many absentee ballots it's about a 1%. But with a higher amount, it's less?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Right. And that's probably because we had even more processes in place, that were put in place with the special legislation that enabled the clerks, for example, to rectify some of the ballots at least, yes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay. Would you be able to tell me how many people who voted by absentee ballot checked off that box for COVID as an excuse? Do you have that number?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah I don't think we tracked that, no.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): You don't? 41 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And you never track them in any election of how many people, for whatever their illnesses are --

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No. Again that's all done at the local level so there's no system for, you know, tracking it. No. We don't have a category on our voter registry that says why you're getting an absentee ballot.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So in the summertime when we voted on the Bill to allow COVID-19 as an illness, obviously today we're in a much different place than we were in the summertime. Certainly we want everybody to go vote and it was certainly a bigger issue then than I think it is today.

So I'm just curious when I was voting on that, my intent was -- and I'm going to just maybe kind of piggyback on what Senator Sampson said -- that it was an illness that we were voting on, but yet as the applications went out it just said COVID-19. I'm curious why it didn't just say COVID-19 illness or fear? Because what happens is it's misleading the public. They're thinking that it's illness and really they were checking that based out of fear. Why couldn't we just put that in the language on the ballot, on the application? Just to clear it up for people so they know exactly what they're signing?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah, I'm trying to remember what exactly we did say. I think we said due to COVID. I don't remember the exact language. Ted, are you on the line? Ted Bromley.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Well the application I'm looking at, because I have a sample one, it just says, COVID-19, all voters are able to check this box pursuant to Public Act 20-3.

42 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Right.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And 20-3 talks about illness.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: That then that's what that indicates, right. What we were trying to communicate to people is what that Special Act meant was that anyone would be able to use the COVID-19 as a reason for not being able to go to the polls.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): But in the application, it's referring to Public Act 20-3 which specifically says illness, not fear. So my concern is that we're having people sign an application for an absentee ballot that is incorrect. That what their signature, they're verifying and it's based on the Public Act 20-3 it's supposed to be for an illness and we have people signing it due to fear. So my question is, why didn't we just put fear on there? Because we're basically telling people to lie. They're putting false information down without knowing it, so we're not being transparent with them.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, that is not -- we are just telling them that due to the Special Act, they are able to check the box saying that they are -- that they are -- I forget the wording. I don't have the wording in front of me, I apologize. That's why I'm asking Ted Bromley if he could remind me what the legal reasoning was for why we put that particular wording on the application. Ted, are you there? No?

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: Yes, I am, Madam Secretary.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Could you respond to this more specifically than I can? Because I don't have the language of either of these things in front of me. 43 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: Sure. So my name is Ted Bromley. I'm the Director of Elections for the State of Connecticut. Very nice to be here. The reason that we put that on there is because the Public Act actually says, they added a seventh reason, the Legislature added a seventh reason and it says, quote, "For the state election in 2020, the sickness of COVID." So it doesn't say somebody's personal sickness, it says the sickness of COVID. So thus the application says COVID as a reason.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So would anybody reading that say the sickness of COVID be their sickness?

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: No, I don't think --

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): How would anybody in their right mind --

REP. FOX (148TH): One speaker at a time, please. Only one speaker at a time. Representative Mastrofrancesco, the floor is yours.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you. How would anybody reading that interpret that to be somebody else's sickness? Because you just -- can you read that again for me?

REP. FOX (148TH): That is to Mr. Bromley, or?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Oh yes, I'm sorry.

REP. FOX (148TH): Mr. Bromley, are you still there?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): He's on mute. Maybe he's speaking. I can't see his face but he's -- there you go.

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: No, Mr. Chairman, I'm still here. My apologies, my 44 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE apologies. So it says, "For the election of 2020, for the sickness of COVID."

REP. FOX (148TH): Representative, you're on mute still.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Now I'm doing it Thank you Mr. Chairman. For the sickness, okay. So let me just review that again. For the sickness of COVID. How would anybody logically reading that think that the sickness of COVID is referring to somebody else being sick of COVID? Through you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Who is the question to, Representative?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Mr. Bromley.

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: I don't think that it is referring to someone else being sick of COVID, I think it's referring to the pandemic of COVID in general, because it goes on in the legislation that the Legislature passed to define that, which is the sickness or the pandemic as defined by the World Health Organization. So it's defined right in the legislation that the Legislature passed.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, thank you. Madam Secretary -- and thank you, Mr. Bromley, I appreciate you clarifying that. I, personally, I've got to be honest with you, I disagree. I think putting -- I would have rather seen, honestly, just put fear on here. If that's the way it is and it can be done, it should have been done there. I think we're misleading people. They're signing off on a document that is very, very misleading and people -- it's not straightforward for people to understand. So I would have much rather seen fear, but I guess we cannot do that because it's embedded in our Constitution otherwise, so that is absolutely my concern on that particular one. 45 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

And I believe we're in a different place today than we were back in the summertime. Have you -- you had mentioned in your testimony that there were, during election time and maybe it happened in another state, that people were -- did get sick of COVID due to voting. I think you had mentioned that in your testimony. Have you heard anything about that in Connecticut? That I went out and voted in person on Election Day and I contracted COVID?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, I have not heard that, but it could have happened. I'm not sure.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right. So it seems to me that on Election Day, I had seen many places, there were a lot of lines. The towns and the registrars did a great job keeping people six feet apart. It was very, very clean. There was no issue with COVID. Nobody put any complaints in or reports that they contracted COVID because they were voting, correct?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Not that I know of. That would be anecdotal in any event, but no, I have not heard of that happening.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right and then part of it --

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: We did take many, many precautions to make sure that didn't happen.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And I believe those precautions obviously should still be taken and that we let people know that it's very, very safe to go out and vote, which goes to my point that extending this again until the end of June really isn't necessary. There has been no evidence of any problems during the November election, which is even colder. The voter turnout was extremely high, a lot 46 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE more people waiting in line. When you're talking about a municipal election, obviously the turnout is lower. So this piece of legislation really, in my mind extending it, the Resolution is really not necessary.

There has been no problems. As you said, everything went smoothly. Why do we need to do this again?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: I would only comment that one of the reasons that it went so smoothly is because people who were very vulnerable, who perhaps had underlying health conditions or other situations, or were elderly, did not go vote in person. They voted by absentee ballots.

And also, we are still under Emergency Orders. The Governor is still asking people to stay away from crowded situations and to obey all these strictures. So, you know, it seems logical to me that you would extend it at least through the period of the Emergency Order.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So if somebody had underlying health conditions, isn't that an illness?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: It depends. It would only be an illness if they're unable to get to the polls due to illness, so that would be -- the voter themselves would have to decide that and I think people have a lot of concerns about that. So, I think they needed reassurance that they were able to get an absentee ballot under the Emergency Order and under the situation of the pandemic, and that's why the Legislature passed that Bill.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Correct, but if somebody has an underlying condition, it's an illness. They can simply just call the registrar of voters, call their town hall, I'm sorry call the town hall, request an application for an absentee ballot and vote by absentee ballot and check off illness, correct? 47 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, no, only if they're unable to get to the polls due to their illness. So there's more of a qualification than that in the Constitution. And so under a pandemic situation, you have a different set of circumstances. You have the Governor is giving us an Emergency Order not -- basically not to go vote because there might be a crowd there. So that's what gave people so much hesitation about this. Because it's not strictly through that they themselves are ill, but they might get ill if they do go to a crowded situation that is not safe, which is why the Legislature passed the Bill to make that safe for everyone.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): I agree, but we do see evidence now 100% that nobody got ill from going out to vote, because there have been no reports.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: I have no reports one way or the other. I mean there's no evidence of that. I don't -- I have no idea, and neither does anyone else on this call. But the point is we're trying to make it as safe as possible, and for people not to have to make a choice between whether they might get sick if they go to the polling place or if they get to vote. And that was the underlying principle on which we were all operating.

Is that we didn't want people to have to make that choice. So we tried as hard as we could to make it possible for every single person to be able to vote, even in a pandemic situation where they were not supposed to be going to crowded situations like polling places. And so particularly for the elderly and for those who have underlying health conditions, this was a big provision, this was very important.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right and I had no problem supporting it. I believed at that time it was an issue, absolutely. I just wish it was just 48 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE more transparent and like you said, it really was for fear or sickness, right? We don't want anybody obviously to contract COVID and to get COVID-19, so.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Right.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): My point is that in the future, I just think we need to be more transparent so people know what they're signing when they are requesting a ballot, when they're requesting an application. They think it's because of sickness and it's really fear. And they're signing something that in all reality is false, in my opinion. But I, listen, I want people to vote. I think it was, at that time, I was very supportive of it. I think today we're in a different position. There's no evidence of anybody getting sick from that of which I'm really glad to see and hear that.

So with that I, the other pet peeve that I always have, and my questions a couple years ago, I think it back in 2019 on it is, you know, obviously maintaining the integrity of the our elections but voter ID is always an issue. And I'm curious, so when somebody goes in to vote today when they went to the polls, they don't have an ID. They have no piece of paper, no nothing, correct? And they can vote. They just need to sign off on a form that just says that they did not present identification and just sign off on it to verify who they are. Correct?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: If they're on the list.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Correct, they have to be on the list, but anybody can walk in, give the name of somebody on a list. I don't have any ID, and they sign off on this particular form to verify who they are. They are basically signing a form, you know, with the validity of yes, this is who I am. I don't have my ID with me today. Correct?

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SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, yes, you are asked for an ID. We have a very, I think, a very good voter ID law. We were one of the first states in the country to have such a law. It is, you certainly are asked to produce an ID but it's flexible. It can be a number of different kinds of IDs. But that assumes you had to produce an ID to get on the list to begin with, right?

So now you're just worried about whether someone's impersonating somebody else who's on the list. And, first of all there's almost no evidence that that happens, ever. We've had so few cases that we couldn't even find any when we went to look. But assuming you're worried about that, yes, it is true that if you left your wallet at home, you're on the list, you say you are that person, you can sign an affidavit that says yes, I am the person on that list, and you are allowed to vote.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And through you, Mr. Chairman, do we know how many of those forms have been signed in the last election or prior elections? So how many people came in and actually voted by town without an ID that they needed to sign off on an affidavit?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: I don't think that is reported to us. I guess, I'd turn to Ted again and ask. I don't believe that is part of the information that's reported to us or the federal government but I'm not positive of that. Ted, are you still there?

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: Yes, I am. So again, this is Ted Bromley. No, that is not information that is reported to us. That is kept at the local level.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, so the town, registrar of voters, town clerks do not have to report any of that information there, so how would 50 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we know? There's no checks and balances on this. How do we know that that's accurate.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: That there's any of these affidavits signed?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Yeah or if they're legitimate.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Ted, I'm trying to remember what we do with voters that vote by affidavit are kept aside. Are they the ones that are kept aside? Ted, help me out.

DIRECTOR OF ELECTIONS TED BROMLEY: Okay, sure. I'm here. No, so they're not kept aside but those affidavits are certainly kept with the election materials for the required retention period. So for this election, it would be 22 months because it's a federal election. And certainly, it is kept with the checklist so those individuals, they can be cross-checked against the checklist.

And to the extent that there is an issue with it, that would be something that could be referred to Elections Enforcement if there is a true issue. But as you have said, Madam Secretary, I don't think we've come across in my 21 years of state service, I don't think I've come across any rampant fraud of that nature.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, I appreciate it. So I can't imagine there would be any reports on it, because if the towns are not required to report it to the Secretary of State, I guess how would we know? There's no requirement. They just take the form, they sign it, yes, okay, and it just kind of gets filed away. Unless, obviously, somebody sees their name on a voter thing that they checked off that they did vote. But that information is not accessible to people either. Is there a way that people can check that, Madam Secretary, if they voted in the last election? 51 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, that's part of the voter history, voter record. Actually, it is part of the public record.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So would they have to request that through their town, through Freedom of Information, just to get that data?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, anyone can purchase the voter list, and I believe you can - - yeah, you can purchase the voter history as well.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And I'm not trying to say that anybody did anything fraudulent that they went in and impersonated anybody, but I'm trying to say is that in order to gain confidence in the public and maintain the integrity of our elections, they need to have trust.

So when we do stuff like this and there's no process or no follow up, and you can walk into a voting place and vote and no show no ID whatsoever, no photo ID, you even just need a name and address, it causes concern for people.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: An ID is requested under our law. It doesn't have to be a driver's license or have a photo on it, but it has to have two pieces of information that identify you as the person on the list.

Moreover, when you first register to vote you have to produce identification that you are that person. The only thing that changes is your residence, and that can sometimes change, so you have to show an ID to show you're still at that residence.

REP. FOX (148TH): May I come in here for a minute, if I can. Representative Mastrofrancesco and Secretary Merrill, I appreciate the conversation and think it's very worthwhile to have. I just want to make sure our conversation, question and focus is on 52 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the four Bills at hand. I'm not sure if voter ID or things of that nature are mentioned in the four Bills before us. Representative Mastrofrancesco, I don't mean to cut you off. I just want to make sure we kind of keep focused on the Bills at hand before us, if we can. Thank you.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I apologize. Just one more comment, and I just had one more question. So you're saying it's requested. They need to request it, but it's not required. That's all the point that I was trying to make.

And if I can, through you, Mr. Chairman, Madam Secretary, go back to the Resolutions that were on the Agenda today. Will the new applications for an absentee ballot, should that pass, what will the language be on that when it refers to COVID? Will it say the same thing or will you change that language based on our discussion today?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Oh no we [inaudible].

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): It would be the same language? It wouldn't have anything about fear, it would just be COVID and again, people will say that -- assume that it's an illness.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: No, because we consider it a reasonable interpretation of the language in the Bill that was passed.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, I don't think I have any more questions. I don't have any more questions. Well, I thank you very much for your time today, and thank you, Mr. Chairman, for giving me this opportunity. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. I appreciate your time and your questions. Up next, 53 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Representative -- comments by the Chair of the Committee, Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Great, thank you, Mr. Chair. Welcome, Madam Secretary. I apologize, I'm loath to keep you one second longer but I must. I'll start off by saying something controversial. Constitutions are not sacrosanct. They become obsolete and things change all the time. In fact, one of our first amendments about voter laws to our Constitution happened in 1864 because no one foresaw that there would be a civil war and that soldiers wouldn't be able to vote.

So I'd like you to address one more time why you think it makes more sense to propose an amendment that would allow the Legislature to make future changes, versus codifying something that we can't possibly foresee, like we saw with the pandemic, into the Constitutional language.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, thank you very much for asking, and that is the heart of the question. And I think what happened was this 2020 election laid bare the fact that when it comes to an unanticipated situation, we have little ability to make necessary changes. In this case, we have a few restrictions that you're correct, came in as amendments to the 1818 Constitution, that allowed civil war -- people fighting in the civil war to be able to vote from a distance.

Now, of course, the world looked a lot different in 1818, much less and in 1864; we were still a state of very small towns and everything was still done locally, pretty much as it is today. We haven't changed all that much, but the world has changed and different circumstances came up and this year was a perfect example of that. Although there have been others, even within my tenure, where we just didn't have the flexibility to allow people to exercise their right to vote.

54 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

And if you keep remembering that it's their right to vote. It's not a privilege. It's not a, well, if we can manage it kind of thing. It is something that we owe to every citizen in this country. And so as we struggled to make sense of the choices that people were being forced to make, it was very evident that a lot of people would have simply chosen not to vote because they didn't feel they could. They couldn't safely go in person to a polling place under whatever condition they found themselves. And there were thousands of those people, I can tell you, because many of them contacted me personally.

And largely they were elderly people who had some underlying conditions, some were just afraid that they would contract it under the very real fear that people who were older were much more likely to contract the illness, and we're still seeing that. I mean back then, in the summer, you know there were all the discussions about nursing homes, so we had to find -- we simply had to find a way that we can allow every person to be able to vote under this very extreme situation. The constitutional provisions just don't take that into consideration.

They were taking one set of circumstances under consideration, but that time has long passed. And other states, because they didn't have these things enshrined in a Constitution, where frankly I don't think they belong, we are now literally the only state that has in our State Constitution where it's simply too difficult to meet the needs of the moment.

And so it should -- those provisions need to be in statute where they can be addressed by the lawmakers, so that if something else happens, some other circumstance comes up, that we can allow people to vote, and vote safely and securely. We could have situations coming up in the future, and I very much anticipate this, where cyber security is an issue. And so we're going to have to address 55 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE that at the time, too, and that might involve big changes in the way we are actually transmitting data and keeping track of results.

And we've already faced a number of those, even in the time I've been in office. For example, the question of whether people are going to be allowed to vote remotely online, we've had those debates already. So there are many circumstances where we're just going to have to have more flexibility.

And the Constitution, as it stands -- and you are absolutely right, there are always amendments to Constitutions. Sometimes immediately, as in our original Constitution of 1787. Right away, they passed a Bill of Rights after that; hadn't been included. So I don't think it's immutable, it's just much more difficult to change.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): And I thank you for that and I'll provide you with your first bit of anecdotal data. I do know someone who caught COVID on Election Day, so I'm sure it happens. But more importantly, I know, you know I did -- Jonathan Steinberg said earlier he knocked fewer doors, but I knocked many, many doors and I know the fear about going out to vote was palpable, and people were so grateful to have this opportunity.

But I want to talk about something that one of my colleagues said earlier about wanting to be stricter about what an early voting or absentee voting policy would look like when the law is passed, saying that the Legislature is partisan. And I want to push back on that, because I don't think the Legislature is partisan. We interact that way, but we are a reflection of what voters, who they elected into office. So if we are partisan, it's because of the voters are partisan. And if there is a Democratic majority, it's because the majority of people in this state have supported those Democrats or we would not be serving in this office. So it's not 56 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE like 151 random people get together and make up these things.

So it feels to me that the voters, much like they decide that we will represent them, that they should be the ones to decide if they would like the Constitution to be changed. And then, at some future date, they will elect people who will implement that type of changes that they want.

So my question for you is, can't we walk and chew gum at the same time? Can't we vote yes to amend our Constitution, which -- and please fill me in on the dates for the people watching. The soonest it will appear on our ballot is a year hence. And in that intervening time couldn't we engage in very deep conversation about any holes, loopholes, gaps in our system, improvements, many of which are before us this year? Couldn't we work to strengthen our system and pass this constitutional amendment?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, the short answer is, of course we could. What we can't think about until we actually get these measures passed is, you know, how many days of early voting are we going to have? Well that's going to be up to the Legislature that's in place by the time we finally get this, if it passes on the ballot. I mean, we're not talking about until at the earliest 2023. So of course there are other changes about the current way we do business can certainly be debated and that doesn't have to relate to absentee ballots or early voting. I mean, that can relate to just what we're doing right now.

As a matter of fact, I've been in discussions with the clerks about this whole issue of whether we should have two envelopes for absentee ballots, and maybe we should just have one and maybe they should be color coded, and I think we have some proposals around some of that this year. There are always improvements we can make, and we learn every year from the things we do. This past year was, I have 57 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE to say, a real learning experience for all of us, and we did take away some lessons learned. So yes, of course we should be talking about all of that.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Absolutely. And although I don't think it's relevant to any of the Bills in front of us, since all of these issues were raised earlier, I want to touch on a couple of things. And to me numbers matter and I don't know anything that exists in perfection. Meaning, you could have the best system in the world in place and there will be anomalies, people will seek to exploit a system, et cetera. Can you -- and I don't mean to put you on the spot -- but do you have a sense of, one, how many people vote and how many successful lawsuits there were for people, or arrests, whatever it might be? I always hear anecdotal stories, but that doesn't interest me as much as actual data. So how many people were arrested for voter fraud? How many lawsuits were won from people who proved cases of voter fraud? You know, any data like that, and how many people vote?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well, first of all, that's actually a question best addressed to the Election Enforcement Commission who are the hearing officers, so to speak, for all these matters. I can tell you at one point when this was a big issue, maybe five or ten years ago where everybody was saying voter fraud, it's everywhere, it's a problem. Time and time again when courts of law -- I mean this year, for example, was the most litigious election ever in the history of the country. There were something like 50 lawsuits filed before the election even happen, in multiple states, all trying to find some form of what I would call voter fraud, election mismanagement, whatever. And all of them failed because there's no real hard evidence on that point.

Now here in Connecticut we certainly have had cases of, all different kinds of cases against individuals, against organizations, and I don't know 58 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the disposition of all of them. But certainly, if I were you, I would ask. I don't know if SEEC is testifying today, but that is the organization you should talk to, the agency you should talk to about that.

My experience and my information that I have nationally is that it is extraordinarily rare. There's a statement made by one researcher that you're more likely to be hit by lightning than to experience voter fraud of the kind that people talk about. So that's all I can say. It's been said over and over again nationally. It's been tried multiple times when the Trump administration was definitely trying to find fraud anywhere they could to show that he had not won the election, and they just couldn't find any evidence, and that's the truth.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): No, absolutely. I often make the point that there's a big difference between mistakes and fraud, and I do think people make mistakes. I know I spoke to one couple in my district who accidentally thought they could put both their ballots in one envelope, so I was happy I was able to educate them in time so their vote counted, and it speaks to the need for education, which I hope we will do, regardless of this legislation.

Another thing was touched upon, and it's a personal story for me because my first Connecticut election was in 2014 when the ballot question appeared about early voting. And I am here to tell you I had no idea what it meant. I thought, because of the way it read, it appeared that it meant people could like electronically vote or something like that. And out of curiosity, because I'm just that kind of person, I actually went back and listened to the hearing in the Legislature after the fact and someone raised that question, and mentioned that it might be confusing to voters, but he was voted down.

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So I bring that up again just to touch upon, I know it came up why you change the language from that earlier ballot Resolution and could you just speak to that again?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah, I had the same experience. Many people when I asked them about -- I was actually very surprised when it went down, but the people I talked to said they thought it was taking some right away from them from the way it was worded, because it was sort of worded in the negative. But be that as it may, it is what it is, it did go down, and I think we are seeking to make it more clear this time exactly what this is trying to do, which is remove the restrictions from the Constitution.

But like I say, my office is not the office that designs the language. That is up to the Legislature and the LCO's office is the one that eventually puts the wording on the ballot. SO I would advise all of you to pay very close attention to what that language is this year if it goes forward, and I very much hope it does. I've every indication that it is not -- it's much more well received now that was even five or ten years ago, not just by the public, but by Legislators themselves, because they're hearing from their constituents.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I know we've had this conversation in the past, but I wholeheartedly believe because people have told me so, most people did not even realize how restrictive our voter access laws work. They always thought they would go to the poll because they like to, but they didn't realize they would not be allowed to vote, except by lying, and many people admit to that as well under the current system, commuters like myself who just, you know, we're on like the 5: 23 a.m. train, we don't get home until after 8: 00, so they say they openly lie so that they can vote absentee, which is not something I'd like to encourage that people break the law on purpose. 60 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

One more question for you having to deal with mathematics, if you will. I don't remember the numbers offhand, but a lot more people voted by absentee this year compared to any year past. Was it like a half-million more, or?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Oh yeah I mean it was a difference of -- well, we had 650,000 approximately who voted by absentee, which is about 35% of the number that turned out, and that number fluctuates, obviously. Normally we will have about 4% to 5% of people use absentee ballots in a normal election. But of course, that's a different number because the turnouts vary widely by election. But yeah, huge increases. Huge increases.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): And related to that I thought I read that turnout was the highest since something like 2004 or, you know, a long time ago it was much higher. And although, you know, as a former student of statistics I won't correlate the two, you can make some loose correlations but there's no way to prove that higher turnout was because of absentees, but it is compelling evidence.

Earlier it was brought up that because some people make mistakes in how they submit their absentee ballot, like the example mailing two in the same envelope or forgetting the inner envelope, et cetera, that number might add up to, I don't know, a few thousand. But when I cross reference that against half-a-million more people voting, our turnout being way up, I think it more than cancels out that risk. Do you have any thoughts about that?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yeah, I would totally concur, especially when you consider the fact that many of the people filing those absentee ballots had never done it before. So honestly, I think it's a bit of a tribute to our public education campaign, which was very robust, particularly in areas where there's big use of 61 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE absentee ballots, mainly Fairfield County is a heavy user of absentee ballots even normally, and we had enough funding from a foundation, actually, that we were able to put ads on TV, we were able to put a lot on social media. So we did everything we could to inform people of exactly how to file that absentee ballot, and I think that was critically important.

Because it is complicated. Every time you put in one of these checks and balances, as we call them, it's another wrinkle that people have to figure out and it is complex. I mean there's envelopes and you have to mail them at a certain time, to a certain place, and you have to sign it, and you have to sign it just the right place in just the right way. So we don't make it easy exactly, and that is that's something that we ought to look at. I know those processes are important but there's probably better ways we could do some of this and streamline it a little bit, honestly.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I do agree with several of my colleagues that, you know, whatever we do with this legislation, it's no reason not to look at further refinements and ways to improve the system. I think education is key. The last thing, actually, it's not a question it's a comment so I'll make it brief, but you're not a public health expert, nor am I, but it did come up earlier about underlying conditions. And I know plenty of people, because I spoke to them during the campaign, who have health problems that are underlying conditions for contracting COVID but would not prevent them from going to vote in a COVID-less environment, so they were very happy to have the opportunity to vote by absentee.

That's all I have, Madam Secretary. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Thank you so much.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Thomas. Next, Representative McCarthy Vahey.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and thank you, Madam Secretary for your advocacy over many years. I'd like to thank too Representative Thomas for the statement you made about our Constitution. And thank goodness it is not sacrosanct because it's not lost on me that neither Rep. Thomas, yourself or myself or any other woman on this Committee would have been allowed to vote for people of color if we had not made those changes to the Constitution, so I'm certainly glad that we're here today to discuss those changes.

And specifically with reference to the earlier conversations with some of our colleagues, you were having a little bit of back and forth discussion about what was allowed in language and what wasn't allowed in language. And I just wanted to see if you agree with the fact that that conversation and the confusion around that conversation would certainly be mitigated if we were to make the changes to the Constitution that are being proposed today?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Well that's exactly right. Some of the confusion is because we're trying to figure out how to allow everyone to vote. That's the bottom line. And we're trying to shoehorn it into definitions that were constructed 150 years ago that, you know, we have two different competing mandates, in a way. And if we remove the language from the Constitution, we would no longer have to worry about that. We could construct whatever language made sense for our time.

And that's what we're not able to do today and that's why it has been so confusing for people, and that's why we felt so strongly that it was important to mail those applications out with an explanation of when it's okay to get an absentee ballot. Because people want to follow the law. They don't 63 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE want to do something that's not legal, but they also want to vote. Like I keep telling people, I had people calling my office, emailing my office, literally panicked about the idea that they would be forced to go stand in line to vote when they shouldn't or couldn't. And so it was really heartbreaking, although I have to say it was, in a sense, rewarding in the sense that it brought home to me so powerfully how important this is to people, how much they care about voting.

It was heartening, to be honest. You know because you're never sure if people -- you know, the biggest problem we've had in elections in the last couple of decades is apathy People simply weren't voting, and then our biggest problem was trying to get people back in to make them be civically engaged. And suddenly, we didn't have that problem. We had almost the opposite problem that they wanted desperately to be engaged and it was up to us to figure out a way to make that happen.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): And thank you for that answer. Specifically, I don't think we've talked today about the process for the constitutional amendments and what kind of votes we need here in the Legislature in order to be able to have things go on the ballot in 2022. There is a difference between each of these resolutions and I wondered if you could speak to that so that everyone is clear what needs to happen. In my mind I'd like to see everything go on the 2022 ballot so that we can have these changes in place as soon as possible. Can you speak to that and clarify that for us?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, absolutely it's a very important point, because people are wondering why are these two separate questions? They are two separate questions because before the 2020 election, the big question was about early voting. That seemed to be the thing most on people's minds. So last year, the Legislature did pass the early voting amendment that you see before 64 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE you today. It did not pass -- in order to get right on the next statewide ballot, it would have had to pass with a 75% vote, a super majority in both the House and Senate. I believe it did pass with a super majority in the House but did not in the Senate, therefore, it had to come back to a second Legislature and that's why it's before us today.

So, even if this measure only gets a bare majority vote, that is 51%, in both Houses of the Legislature, it will still -- it will go on the ballot in 2022, which is the next statewide election. So even that is quite a while, and so that's why that amendment is separate.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: The amendment concerning liberalizing the absentee ballot rules and taking that language out of the Constitution that limits the number of reasons you use as the excuses for absentee balloting has not passed either House, and so it would need to go forward and if it passes, with a super majority in both Houses, it also could be on the ballot in 2022.

That's why it's so important that we get a big vote on that and that people talk to their Representatives if they're interested in getting this passed, and make sure that we get enough votes for passage. So that would be, we would need, let me think, I think we need to have, well whatever 75% in the House, I think it's somewhere around 114 votes in the House and 75% in the Senate.

So that will be coming up, I hope. If it passes out of this Committee it will go directly to the floor and then we'll see if we can get a vote big enough to get these measures both on the ballot in 2022, which would be the best-case scenario, frankly. Otherwise the absentee ballot amendment would have to come back to a second Legislature again, so not even just the same group of people, it would have to wait another year, get voted on again in 2022, and then it wouldn't be on the statewide ballot until 65 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

2024. And that's really a long time to wait for this measure. So that's why it's so critical that people come forward and let their Legislators know that they support this idea.

Because I do believe this has gained much support since our experience in 2020. I think that really changed things dramatically.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you so much for that. It's too long to wait and from what you said earlier, a super majority of the people of Connecticut want this change to happen. And to clarify and just repeat, a super majority of this Legislature has the ability to put this on the ballot in 2022. A simple majority for absentee balloting and a simple majority for the early voting, that would be phenomenal.

Just two quick follow-ups as well. Representative Palm spoke earlier about your work with other Secretaries of the State around the country and I just wanted to reference that as a tremendous resource, because when I moved here almost 20 years ago from the state of Washington, when my husband was in military service out there, I had access to a no-excuse absentee ballot then. And I know that there are a lot of great examples for us to follow, even though we're not quite the same.

But one thing that strikes me is that we may need additional resources for our town clerks and registrars who are the heroes and heroines of this election and I wonder if you would agree with that statement?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Oh yes, absolutely. If we are to continue to use the current system that we use of having town clerks deal with absentee ballots, they would definitely have to have more resources if we would have more of them.

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Now, there could be changes in other ways that we haven't even foreseen yet. I know that you're right. NASS, the National Association is a tremendous resource. States do things all different ways, but it's interesting you reference Washington State. They have had voting by mail for I think almost 20 years and it has been under Republican administrations, all the way along, that instituted the idea of voting by mail. And it's well entrenched in Washington, in Oregon, in Utah, I mean in Montana. I mean, these are not, you know, it's sometimes people think it's a partisan issue. It is not a partisan issue, has not been in the past, and it shouldn't be.

This is an issue about who gets to vote and how we make it as easy as possible for every citizen to exercise that right. So anything we can do, we can look at states like Colorado where they have mail-in voting, but they also have Election Day voting. They have county voting centers where if you live in a huge swath of territory, you can vote anywhere in that county at a voting center. You know, we no longer have to be tied to residence, necessarily. We have computers. They can check you on the voting list if you live in Fairfield or in Westport. You're right next door.

So there are many changes ahead that we can't even conceive of right now, but that is a great resource and I have to say I'm pretty envious of some of my colleagues that have very, very different systems than we do and they work extremely well.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Well, thank you for that. One last brief question. Earlier it was asserted that more people are disenfranchised, or I should say this -- the idea of being disenfranchised when you're voting absentee because of those ballots being spoiled for different reasons, and that it, I think it was said that that doesn't happen in person. Can you think of any examples of when folks 67 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE have come to vote in person when their vote has not been counted?

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Yes, actually, we've had some issues around that in the past. Sometimes we have, shall we say, overzealous poll workers and moderators who turn people away because they don't have some form of ID that they think they should have, even though that's not the law. I mean, we do have things like that happen.

A lot of things like that that happen are really not intentional, a lot of them are just mistakes. And I, you know, I want to say that a lot of the things that are claimed to be fraud are usually more a result of some incompetence, quite frankly. That has been the case more than once in Connecticut where we've had to go in. And now, I think we're much better than we have been, let me hasten to say. We have certification and training now for all election officials. That's been very important and has helped dramatically. But yes, of course, there are always, there are mistakes all the time, as I think it was Representative Thomas noted.

It's a human system, there are errors, there will always be some error, but a lot of it is not deliberate and certainly not on the part of voters. I think most cases, it is not the case of voters trying to vote illegally or irresponsibly. So, yes I don't think voting absentee ballot -- and there are some things that we could do right now to address some of the problems that we saw that came up during the you know the last election. For example, the debate that you all had about how early you should be opening that outer envelope so that you can start the processing. And then you'd be able to see if someone hadn't signed their envelope, and maybe we could, this time, have time to inform those people. "Folks, you didn't sign your inner envelope." So you give them a chance to be able to rectify the ballot.

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There's ways that we can deal with that right now.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Well, I thank you for that answer and I appreciate you underscoring the stakes. This would be an opportunity to also recognize all those poll workers who do such an amazing job. And, yes, they are human and I've had experience standing outside of the poll in a split district years ago, before I was a candidate myself. When people, a number of people had been given the incorrect ballot, and it was impossible to go back and find out how many people had actually voted incorrectly. So it does happen, but I agree, this is a mistake often, or usually.

Madam Secretary, again, I can't thank you enough for the advocacy that you have undertaken on this issue over a course of many years, and I'm glad you're here. And I'm hoping that we can get this done this time. And, like you said, let the people decide. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Next Representative Santiago, your hand was raised. The floor is yours.

REP. SANTIAGO (84TH): Mr. Chair, thank you for calling on me. I have a very short question. Thank you, Madam Secretary, for being here today. When this -- hopefully when this is passed through the constituents, the citizens that are voting for it to change the Constitution -- is your office part of the education plan? To make sure before people take the vote on the ballot that day, or is that part of LCO, is it part of the Legislature? So basically, I'm looking at there has to be some kind of education plan, orientation plan or action plan, whatever we might call it, to make sure that people know that the question is on the ballot. Thank you, Madam Secretary.

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SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Thank you very much for that question, Representative. You're right, it is absolutely key that this time around we do public information about why those ballot questions are on the ballot and what they mean. And yes, my office can be somewhat involved in that, although I would suggest that there's lots of room for Community Action, others can be involved as well. My office has a very limited role. I cannot advocate for particular measures, but I can certainly inform, and that's the important part. And yes, we will be very involved with that.

REP. SANTIAGO (84TH): Well, thank you for that, Madam Secretary. And just one more comment, thank you, Mr. Chair. That my daughter lived in Montana for 15 years and she loved the mail-in voter system that they have. They've had it for, I don't know, 20,30 years. And when she came to live in Connecticut she was very surprised that we are still doing in person, and absentee ballot is very restrictive, except for this time. So these are the two measures that I will be supporting and thank you for your advocacy. And thank you, Mr. Chair, for giving me an opportunity to say something.

REP. FOX (148TH): Representative, as always, we value your input and your opinions on these matters. Madam Secretary, I think that being -- any more further questions for Madam Secretary? Seeing no hands, I thank you for your time and your attendance today, Madam Secretary. I look forward to working with you on these issues in the days ahead. Thank you for being here.

SECRETARY OF THE STATE DENISE MERRILL: Thank you very much, and thanks to the Committee. Your work is very valuable and I admire all of you. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you. Up next, the next speaker is Ms. Kimberly Fiorello, Representative Kimberly Fiorello, followed by Luther Weeks, 70 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE followed by John Erlingheuser. Representative Fiorello, the floor is yours.

REP. FIORELLO (149TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. And, with your permission, I will be yielding my time to Mr. Dominic Rapini. For 32 years he has been a community coach in youth football. A former candidate for US Senate, Mr. Rapini today serves as board chair of Fight Voter Fraud, a grassroots nonprofit advocating for election integrity in Connecticut. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. As you and I discussed earlier this morning, in light of the virtual world we now live in, the Committee is somewhat. reluctant to allow individuals to sub in and out in this manner, but we will make the exception today and allow Mr. Rapini, I think you said he was Speaker No. 21 on the list, is that correct?

REP. FIORELLO (149TH): That's right.

REP. FOX (148TH): We will allow Mr. Rapini the opportunity to speak. So thank you very much, Representative Fiorello. Mr. Rapini, the floor is yours. Is Mr. Rapini present.

VALENTINA MEHMETI: He is present and he is a panelist at the moment. He has two accounts. I will add the other one in.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Okay, guys. Good morning -- good afternoon now. Hello, everybody, I think I just got promoted to panelist. Can everybody hear me fine?

REP. FOX (148TH): We can, sir, thank you for being here.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Great, Chairman Fox and Chairman Flexer, Ranking Members Senator Sampson and Representative Mastrofrancesco, thanks for having me 71 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE here today. And Kimberly, thanks for the introduction.

Kimberly, I would add that I've also been a Connecticut voter for 40 years and I cherish my state, this state. I've lived in the state my entire life. I work here. I'm in technology sales as a senior account manager for a large tech company, and I want to continue living in this state and I want my vote to matter.

I would say I'm a little disappointed, we have to do this by Zoom. I've been quarantined with my family, ten extended members of my family for about nine months now and I really needed a day out of the house, but we'll take Zoom.

So listen, I want to start with a few things. I want to state that I had some exceptions with some of the things Madam Secretary did state. You know, the fact that we're not going to get the details or any type of outline of what our proposed legislation is going to look like is -- I think the plumbing matters. I think those details matter to voters and they matter to me in business and as a voter in this state. It sounds like a Member of Congress who once said that, you know, you've got to pass the Bill to read it later. I don't think that's the right conditions for us to have this discussion.

She also mentioned that there are restrictions, we have the most restrictions of any other state, yet she also mentioned that we're flexible and we have no photo ID. Now, don't know about everybody here, but when I had to go get my COVID-19 tests, I had to show photo ID and sign. I did the same thing for the vaccination. If you want to get a mature-rated video game, you know, you've got to show photo ID. If you're going to live in Section 8 housing, you need photo ID. So I think that's something that needs to be reevaluated as we build or reform our election systems.

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We talked about checks and balances. She says we have checks and balances, yet our organization identified 5,700 people that voted on November 3rd but were registered to vote in the months to follow. I mean, to me that tells me that our amazing registrars and clerks, they're overworked and that we're throwing too much at them, and we need to give them bandwidth and resources to do this stuff right. Right now we're not ready.

And then, it will also mentioned that the rest of the country is doing mail-in voting. Yeah, that's fine, but you know, most of the world is not. Most of the world, including most of Europe, has said that mail-in voting is too subject fraud. It is imprecise and it disenfranchises voters. So whatever the United States is thinking, you know, let's also remember that we're part of a world community and that the rest of the world doesn't agree with that premise.

So right now, I ask the Committee to imagine a strong, trustworthy election, what you think that looks like. You know, what is the definition of success? What are the key ingredients for successful elections? Reasonable people will identify access to voting, dedicated trained election personnel, good data, the absence of fraud and candidates with a good message and sufficient time to get their message to the electorate. Something that doesn't really happen when you have absentee voting and you have early voting.

You know, to summarize that, what I think is an important point is that our election system must -- it must be easy to vote. It must be easy to trust, but it also must be hard to cheat, and we have to balance all those objectives as we reform our systems.

Now, one of the things I have issue with is the narrative that we had the greatest turnout or percentages in the history of our state. Well, we 73 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE may have had more people voting in some cases, but our registration rates were not an 80% turnout as claimed by the Secretary of State. In fact, it was closer to 74%; three points less than it was in 2016. Well, why was that? Why is her numbers not 74%, but 80%?

Well, is it because she calculated the number of voters versus what she said were the registered voters? But in her mind, the registered voters were the only people that are active voters and she ignored the 200,000 people that are inactive on our list. Our total number of registered voters in Connecticut is 2.5 million, so that calculates to 74%.

And our cities even did much more poorly. Hartford was at 48% turnout. In New Haven, it was 47% turnout. And New Haven has 40 precincts and the residents of New Haven had access to -- or …

REP. FOX (148TH): Could you please summarize your remarks? You're at your three-minute mark. Please summarize your remarks.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Yeah, so here's the thing. You know, we have to make sure our voting is easy. We know that mail-in voting and early voting actually results in less turnout, like we just saw here in Connecticut, connected, even though the Secretary of State's numbers bear some explanation. And we have to remember that we have to provide more -- better resources and plumbing for our election officials. It's not adequate what we do today.

And I've not even got into our bloated voting rolls which has over 400,000 people that probably shouldn't be the voting rolls, inactive voters and undeliverable voters from our active list. We have serious problems with, I think the ability to trust the way our elections are running and I think right now the Secretary of State is probably just grading 74 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE her own report card, which is why we don't see the full extent of the issues.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, sir, for your testimony. Are there any questions? Representative Labriola, I see your hand is raised.

REP. LABRIOLA (131ST): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Dominic, it's good to see you.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Yes, sir.

REP. LABRIOLA (131ST): Thank you for testifying. I just have a simple question. You know, I've long advocated that the basic function of the GAE Committee with respect to elections and of us as Members of that Committee, as well as Legislators at large is to make sure that our integrity of the election process is sacrosanct and we have to make sure that we have no voter fraud. That as long as there are bad actors out there, there will be people who try to influence our elections and to perpetrate fraud.

And so this idea that we keep, put our head in the sand and we act like no voter fraud happens in Connecticut, it just goes against the facts. In the last several decades, if you go all the way back to in Waterbury during a gubernatorial delegate primary in the 80s, people were arrested, were prosecuted. And since that time, in many towns, in many cities, right here in Connecticut, there have been arrests and prosecution for voter fraud. So I would like you to address this idea that, oh, there might be voter fraud in other states, but it never happens here in Connecticut.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Yeah, thank you, Representative Labriola. So, guys, everyone needs to understand there certainly have been convictions of voter fraud in Connecticut, over 21 people. Recently we had an official in Stamford. We have over 20 other people that have been convicted. 75 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

But, you know, researching voting fraud is really hard, and you have to have a clue that somebody didn't sign -- was not the right person who signed a ballot. You have to have a clue. You have to know that the person who didn't show up with a provisional ballot to vote, actually and without ID, you have to know that you have to go back and vet those people and that's not happening.

So we know voter fraud happens. And particularly, the source of voter fraud is almost always with absentee ballot voting. And the source is also -- usually with the inactive voters on our list of people that shouldn't be on there. They're either dead, gone or duplicate. So if you're going to commit voter fraud, what you want to do is take a name from somebody who hasn't voted in two federal elections, use that name to scrape a ballot or to fabricate a ballot and send it to a commercial address. I mean, this last election, we had 20 -- just 20 alone of our ballots went to commercial addresses. You know, and just because you only catch it -- what seems like a small number, doesn't mean it's not a bigger number because where there's smoke, there's fire.

REP. LABRIOLA (131ST): Dominic, I want to say thank you for your testimony. I want to thank you for your advocacy and good work that you're doing to preserve the sanctity of our election process and the integrity of our votes. In a democracy, how important that very critical task is that you're doing, so thank you again for testifying, for being here. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Appreciate your question. Next, Senator Sampson, your hand is raised, the floor is yours, sir. Senator Sampson.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Dominic, thank you for being here with us 76 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE today. I appreciated your testimony very much, as well as all the other documents that you have forwarded to Members of the Committee.

And, you know, I appreciate you being here just because you're probably, maybe the most outspoken voice in opposition to the narrative that the Secretary of State is putting forward. And I appreciate the Secretary of State very much and we have a good relationship, and I know she's definitely doing her best to try and expand access to voting. Something that, despite the fact that some members of the public, some tweets that are out there already this morning, and even Members in this Committee keep trying to suggest that the Republicans are opposed to, the issue is that we are all in favor of allowing people to vote and expanding access to voting. I can't say it enough times to get people to understand that that is exactly what we are after, the same as our Democrat counterparts and the Secretary of State.

The fact of the matter is, though, that we have an obligation to protect the integrity of that vote and you are the biggest voice in the state for that, so I'm very happy that you're here. If you undermine the integrity of the election, then every other lawful voter's vote is diminished, and no one wants that. We've got to work together, friends. This is not a partisan issue. Let's expand voting and let's do it responsibly.

So I just want to throw a few things at you, Dominic. First off, the Secretary of State indicated that our voter rolls are among the most accurate in the country. That's a direct statement she made while speaking with me. And I know that's not true, but maybe you can elaborate and tell us exactly what our voter rolls do look like.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Yeah, thanks for that question. Listen, I respect the job Madam Secretary does. It's not an easy job, but transparency and accuracy 77 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE in data is critical to me in my professional life and it's critical to me as a voter. So for the last six years, Connecticut has averaged 182,000 people that are inactive voters, defined by the federal law as not having voted in five or more -- excuse me, two or more federal elections. In addition, we saw 8% of the unsolicited ballots sent in August were undeliverable, and that was just to the active voters. Because, at my request, Denise Merrill did not mail out unsolicited ballots to the inactives. So 8% of the 110,000 people -- and those are the ones we know of, right? -- And then during the election, instead of them having come back to her so that she can quantify the issue, she had them sent to 169 towns.

So when you add in the 2.3 million people that voted and receive unsolicited ballots, that's another 184,000 people that were likely undeliverable. So in total, it's just under 400,000, maybe over 400,000 people that probably shouldn't be on our list. Our active voter list is probably not 2.5 million; it's probably closer to 2.2 or 2.1.

But as voters, we need to know this and we need to be honest with ourselves. We just saw our turnout go down with a huge influx of absentee ballots. We saw the same thing in 2008. The ten states that had the most convenience in voting, according to the American University and University of Wisconsin, the ten most easy states in the country to vote when Barak Obama was up for the ballot, they went down in turnout, right?

And so our voter rolls have to be really, have to be scrubbing -- and Linda Szynkowicz, my good friend and the CEO of our company who will give more detail on this, but if we're not scrubbing the data, then we don't understand the impact of our policy on the things that we're advocating.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Understood. And I totally understand, I mean the Secretary mentioned that 78 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we're reluctant to take people off the voter rolls, and I completely get that and I'm sympathetic to that. I don't want to take people off in error either, but that creates a problem, because you -- maybe it's less of an issue if people are requesting the ballot applications themselves. And then certainly they can do that. But if we're ever engaged in another situation where the election is done by mailing out absentee ballot applications to the people on the list, that problem is going to rear its head again, as we talked about earlier.

Which is many, many people received multiple ballot applications at their home for people that no longer live there, people that have passed on, and so forth. And there are countless examples, and far more than anecdotal. I mean, there are hundreds and hundreds of examples that I'm personally aware of. And it's not like I'm -- you know, went out of my way to go ahead and collect them from every registrar in the state, et cetera.

You put out this very nice document that kind of lays out some concerns you have about elections, and I think it's on Page 7, you list people that are on our voter rolls with lots of different problems and I just wanted to ask you a couple of specific questions.

One of them says there's 101,000 2020 voters that have a registration date that is January 1st of 1800. And clearly that's not an accurate thing. How can that happen? Where do those names come from?

DOMINIC RAPINI: That happens because there is no oversight on our data, all right? If this -- this is our lifeblood for our election, is our voter rolls, and if we're not going back and looking at the 101,000 people that have this arbitrary registration date, it is clearly an input here; it is clearly somebody who wasn't trained on how to put in that information, or it is just overall 79 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE sloppiness. And it just undermines the integrity of our database and it undermines confidence in our elections when our data has such sloppy maneuvers in it.

This, quite frankly, the Secretary of State should be furious that this is happening and task every one of her registrars of voters in all 169 towns to go back out and fix that data, all right? It's just, you've got to -- you have to want -- you have to lead on that issue. You've got to fix it. You can't accept sloppiness as the status quo or say there's too many towns to manage. Leadership never requires an excuse.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Right. Yeah, I know quite a few registrars of voters personally and they all strike me as a very competent and conscientious people who are doing their absolute best. But they don't have the staff, they don't have the tools, they don't have the means necessary to follow through on a lot of these things. And we touched on a little of this in the conversation about the additional burden that will be placed on them if there is an expansion of early voting or no-excuse voting. I mean, this is going to mean more poll workers, more days, more confusion for them and more costs for municipalities in the form of workers, memory cards that go in the tabulating machines and so on.

You have on your list 11,000 registered voters that are deceased. It just, it strikes me that if the voter rolls are so disturbingly flawed, why anyone would think it was a good idea to send out the mass mailing as she did. And would you describe our mailing, or our voter rolls as in like crisis mode? Because that's the way I look at it.

DOMINIC RAPINI: I think it is a crisis. Anytime you have bad data, that's a crisis for any organization. You know, these are easy fixes. I can fix that tomorrow, getting the 11,000 deceased 80 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE people off our voter rolls just by accessing the Vital Statistics database from Social Security Administration. That's a tool that our Secretary should be making available to everybody, even if it's done at a central level and it's done once or twice a year.

Right now, you know the registrars, do you know how they figure out the dead people? They go, they read the obituaries, right? And go see if anybody died in their town, and they take them off the voter rolls. And sometimes they don't even do that because they feel that they don't want to disenfranchise them. That's a direct quote from the people that we interviewed. So that is something we can do.

Right now we are trying to put ten pounds of potatoes in a five-pound bag, to these poor people who are registrars. I mean, they're amazing people. They're smart, but they're getting too much thrown at them. On Election Day, they had to process 50,000 people for same-day registration. And we know for a fact that at least 5,700 of those people didn't even get -- they got to vote but they didn't even get registered to vote until months later. And that's telling us that the system is broken.

We talked about Washington State, Colorado. Kim Wyman from Washington State where they're pretty decent at doing mail-in voting. And she said, " It took us seven years to build the infrastructure." They put in, Colorado has tabulators for signatures, and they don't just use one signature, they use your hunting license and your taxes, they use all that stuff to create an aggregate signature. I know this because I have a background in image analysis so I know what that does and it's very accurate, contrary to other errors. They had to train their staff. They had to clean their voter rolls. That was a primary, prime directive on Colorado.

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So here in Connecticut we lack that infrastructure and we lack the database and we need to beef up our registrars just to do the normal elections that we're doing.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Right, and this is not even talking about the potential for fraud, which I know a lot of people want to minimize all the time, because they will say, well there's no evidence of fraud, there's no convictions. Well, there are some. We can document them. A Member of this State Legislature was convicted of 18 counts of voter fraud for absentee voting. I mean, it's a real thing and it does happen. Is it so widespread that it's impacting our elections in a way that is altering the outcomes? I don't know. I certainly hope not, but any amount of voter fraud is unacceptable, in my mind. And if we're going to expand the early voting and no-excuse absentee, you're only expanding the opportunities for voter fraud.

And one of the most notable things that has happened to me in this Legislature is during the debate, during the Special Session about the expansion for COVID voting, there was one no vote in the Senate. And it was my Democrat counterpart, Senator Dennis Bradley, who made it quite clear it's because he believes voter fraud is rampant in the cities.

He told a story about an apartment building, you know -- oh, no. He found 60-something people that were registered to vote at the same address, and he took a ride by expecting to find an apartment building and he found a vacant lot. This is a story he told on the floor of the Senate. It's not a partisan issue. It's a real thing.

DOMINIC RAPINI: You know, I want to add to that. You know, Jimmy Carter, Jerry Nadler, you know, a lot of prominent politicians have gone on record saying that mail-in voting is the least secure way for us to vote in this country, right? Because it's 82 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the most -- there's human error, there's fraud, there's accountability, these are all major problems here. But we have to remind ourselves that what's the goal here? We just expanded voting, right? And we saw that our turnout was actually less than 2016. I'm sure everyone's going to want to verify those numbers. Go to fightvoterfraud.org and you'll see my sources for everything.

But we went from 77 -- 74%. When 47% of the people -- registered voters in New Haven voted? I mean, that's not an accessibility problem, that that is an enthusiasm gap. And that's the problem we need to solve, right? And that's where I think is where we have to focus our energies.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Right. So I mean, you've already covered quite a few things that we need to address to improve our situation and over the years, you know, I've proposed a lot of Bills, some of the things we've touched on today like, you know, Election Day registration audits, you know, that those -- I forget what they're called, the ballots that are --

DOMINIC RAPINI: The provisional ballot.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): The provisional ballot, yeah. Auditing those, auditing absentees. The Secretary of State said voter fraud was as common as being struck by lightning. That's just -- I don't think that's the proper characterization and I don't think it's acceptable, either. I guess what I want to know from you is, what else would you put in for requirements if you wanted to really protect our current voter integrity with the laws we have? And if we do expand to early voting or no-excuse, signature verification strikes me as something. She dismissed it as not important. I want to know how you feel about that. And I also want to know how you feel about a couple of other things like those audits and photo identification which you listed some reasons, places where you need photo ID. I 83 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE know you can come up with a thousand more places. It strikes me as inconsistent that we don't require it for voting. So let me know what you think are the things that we need to hammer home here to let people know, look, if we're going to expand voting, we have to do these things to shore up the process.

REP. FOX (148TH): Sorry, if I can just quickly jump in here, Senator, Mr. Rapini. Can we just, I want to remind people just to keep the conversation to the four Bills at hand, and then try to kind of focus on the Bill before us? We're veering off into some territory, making claims in here which I think are not necessarily -- I don't want say that they're not true, but there's claims being made and practices being discussed which are not part of the four Bills before us. SO I just ask please, just keep our focus on the four Bills before us, if you can. Thank you.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Senator (sic) Fox, I appreciate you're trying to herd in the cats here, I understand that. But we're talking about absentee voting and we're talking about how to develop good legislation that can maybe enable that to happen on a broader basis. So very quickly I'll tell you, when 19 states require photo ID with the absentee ballots in it, that's a good practice, that's a best practice. Right? They verify, they have great voting, strong management of the voting list, all right? That's the best practice.

Signature verification, putting tabulators in the town clerk's office tied to a Hartford-based system that has all of our signatures on file, right? So they can be vetted and we can eliminate fraud. And listen, if something gets rejected, we cure it at the local level. And that's what they do in Colorado. So in deference to Representative Fox, I'm just going to end my shopping list there and say there's more to do.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, sir. I appreciate that.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much, Dominic and Mr. Chairman, with respect -- and that was my last question, I'm not going to continue anyway, but I would argue that the conversation about voter fraud and maintaining the integrity of the vote is inherent in all of these Bills. So please, you know, give us a little bit of latitude. I'm going to try and limit my questions. Obviously we certainly had to focus on the Secretary of State, and Dominic, as the head of the Fight Voter Fraud organization, but I think we will do fine and move faster through the speakers going forward. I just, I don't want to omit what I believe is a very important aspect of this debate. So thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator. Next, Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hello, Mr. Rapini.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Hello, Representative Thomas, thank you for having me.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Yeah no problem, thank you for your time. I too was confused about which Bill you were here testifying for, but am I to understand just the general concept of voting?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Well, so to be very clear, you know, HB 58 and 59 are the Bills that I'm testifying against -- about or against these Resolutions, which have to do with early voting and absentee voting. So hopefully most of my comments were very germane to those topics.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I just wanted to make clear. So you are saying that we should not let voters 85 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE decide if they want a change to the Constitution because of these reasons? Is that --?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Well, we've done that for 155 years, Rep. Thomas, and as everyone noted in 2014 we rejected it. The pandemic creates a different situation where people are scared and will probably do things they normally would not too. Pandemics are generational events. I don't think we change our entire election system and go to a system that would probably, maybe reduce turnout, cause expense and for which we don't have the bandwidth just because we're scared for a pandemic which we will be exiting this year.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I guess that's my confusion. For 58 and 59, we're not actually saying we will change anything, we're just letting voters decide if at some point in the future, they would like the flexibility to make a change.

DOMINIC RAPINI: It sounds like a change to me. I understand there's different --

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I will disagree.

DOMINIC RAPINI: But that's the discussion at hand.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Okay, so you brought up this concept of fraud. I am not a person who believes fraud does not happen. Of course fraud happens. There's no system built that someone does not try to defraud. Maybe I'm jaded, but I 100% believe that. But I think that's true of our current election system. So, you know, if I follow this argument, it makes me think that we should be throwing out the results of every single election we've had, at least in the last couple of decades. You said yourself, or someone mentioned fraud back in the 80s. So how can we trust any election we had in the last few decades because there is fraud?

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DOMINIC RAPINI: You know, what we can do -- you know, in the game of football you don't worry about the last play, you worry about -- and you don't worry about the fumble, you worry about the next play and that's where we're at today. What we have to make sure we do is make sure that we learn from the past and we do that -- we adopt the best practices going forward.

So I'm not trying to overturn any election. I think what we've done, whether there were good elections or not, they're in the books and we've got to move forward, and we've got to secure our future elections to make sure people want to vote. We want to make sure people have -- they're enthusiastic. We want to make sure they know they vote. We can't accept any level of voter fraud or create opportunities for voter fraud.

Because, you know, you look at our local races which are often decided by single and double digits, just a little bit of fraud can disenfranchise all of us. So we -- this is all about looking forward and doing what's right for the voters and for our democracy.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I agree that there is risk, right? There's risk in life, but if I were to paraphrase what you just said, it is that some level of fraud is acceptable in elections because guess what? That's what we've been doing all along.

My next question, I am happy you made this a global issue. I would love to see us follow Australia's example and make voting compulsory. That would be my fondest wish. But, alas, I doubt that will ever happen in the United States, as when our Constitution was written, as Rep. McCarthy Vahey pointed out earlier, it was content to disenfranchise Blacks, women, and many others in this country. So yes, a worldwide comparison is fair, I guess. There are plenty of -- Spain, Germany, Canada, New Zealand, to name a few. They 87 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE all have some form of early voting or no-excuse absentee voting by another name.

So here in this country we are the minority. There are 40-plus states who allow -- actually I think every state except two, Connecticut being one, allow some form of either early voting or absentee, no- excuse absentee ballots. And for as many states as exist, they all have different ways of doing it. So am I understanding you correctly to say that they are all getting it wrong? Like we are the last state who is doing the right thing and we are making voting the best process it can be right now?

And I realize we may disagree on this, but I'm like, are you really saying that?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Here's what I'm saying. Is that we live in a republic, and we have a federated system of government where every state does what is proper for its state. We do -- it is up to our lawmakers to assign the manner and form of our elections per the US Constitution. So we do for us from Connecticut. The value of other states doing what they're doing is we get to learn -- we get to learn from their mistakes and their successes. And I will submit to you that there are problems with mail-in voting or inconvenience voting, and that we see where it actually reduces turn out.

So let's, you know, let's learn from that. And listen, if this body decides we're going to do this, I would love to be part of an agent of contribution onto how -- on some of the mechanisms that we need to make it safe. I don't think we need to do it and, for me, I tell my kids just because your friends are doing it doesn't mean you need to do it, right? You do what's right for yourself and that's where I think we are as a state.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): So is there any data that you have that says that the residents of Connecticut don't want early voting or no-excuse absentee 88 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting, to follow your thinking there? So if we are doing what's right for Connecticut, you're saying there's data saying that Connecticut doesn't want this. I only ask because I know in my district, I would say -- I'm in Norwalk, Wilton and Westport, and I would say, you know anecdotally based on conversations with, I don't know, 5,000, 6,000 people that they all want it. So what data do you have that shows the counter?

DOMINIC RAPINI: So for citizens to make informed decisions they need data, right? And I don't think our citizens have the data. I don't think they know. They don't understand the realities of our turnout in this election. I don't think -- we have a 90% -- we have a 90% registration rate of US citizens over the age of 18 in this state, right? So everybody's registered. So, you know, the question we should be asking is, with all the conveniences that we do and the access that we provide, why is it New Haven only show up -- 47% of New Haven has shown up to vote, right? So do they really want to vote by mail?

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Well, I do have an answer for that, but go ahead.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Well, they didn't. I worked, I was at 12 different precincts on Election Day in New Haven. And it was just very light turnout and you know, they had more people voting by absentee but they have enough. And so what was going on in New Haven? We gave everybody the access they wanted and they still didn't show up. To me, enthusiasm is the solution, Rep. Thomas, not changing our voter laws and making them more susceptible to issues that we have to fix later.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): We are 100% in agreement about enthusiasm. But I think where we probably differ, I believe it's this that's happening today is what tamps down enthusiasm. Because it's a prime example of where sort of this process that we have created 89 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE disenfranchises people from what they have already said they would like to have. But anyway, again, we will agree to disagree.

My last question, I think, you mentioned earlier something about the voter rolls and how we -- whatever we do to clean it is not sufficient. I do agree with you that, like again, any system -- I used to work in databases. And I literally would spend weeks updating it but guess what? Like, it's not static. People die every day, people move every day. Things happen every day. So you can never have a database that is 100% accurate, like never. Because people can do anything they want and they don't have to tell us.

But one thing you mentioned, something about the town clerk you spoke who's like reading the obituaries, I know in my district, our town clerk -- so maybe I'm lucky, I don't know what the norm is -- our town clerks get the death notices and then the rolls get updated based on that, not like accidental readings in the local paper.

So I'm wondering, you know, obviously we belong to the ERIC system. We deal with NCOA list updates, we have a reciprocal agreement with the DMV when people make changes. Towns have reciprocal arrangements if someone. files like a change of address or if they move in and register to vote in a different town, the old town gets notified; death notices, undelivered mail, like these are all ways that our voter rolls get updated.

So I guess I would ask once again, based on the fact that these are the systems and improvements that have been in place for every election in Connecticut, ever, what -- why would it go afoul now, just because we're going to allow early voting? Might be one answer. And we might -- and again, we're not making any changes, we're just saying that people can decide that if we want to make changes 90 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE later we can. So why now is this system not good enough?

DOMINIC RAPINI: So it's a good question and I'll tell you this. it's not now. It's been for the history of our elections that they have been -- we are very analog the way we do our data, right? So death notices and checking obituaries when we have databases from the Social Security Administration called Vital Statistics databases that they use in other states like New Hampshire that will flow that information in. It is very manual with a population of workers that are often part time, and I'm talking about registrars of voters.

So it's nothing new. This is not a new issue, but it's really important to the conversation before we talk about expanding these capabilities. Well, we've got to go back and fix these things. And I would ask everybody here on the Committees and all the lawmakers on this call, why don't you guys know about this already? Right? This information has been reported to you. This is out in the public record. I mean all I had to do was go back and just -- we bought the state database, right? And we did the research, right? And we've done the investigations, and we found this stuff out. This information should not be a surprise to anybody on call.

Unfortunately, I'm just maybe one of the first people to tell you about it but it's there and it's systemic and it needs to be fixed before you -- as you craft this new -- any new legislation.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I'm going to disagree again and raise the issue that I've raised earlier that you may not have heard.

DOMINIC RAPINI: I think we're batting 500.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Is that I think we can walk and chew gum at the same time, I really do. I don't 91 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

-- I think everyone on this call is very well educated about our election law. And I think what we're saying with these two Bills, in particular, is that let's let the voters decide about a constitutional amendment and in the interim, let's engage with a wide cross-section of people and figure out what we can strengthen. I 100% agree that many of our systems are antiquated. I know I am supporting Senator Haskell's Bill to allow people to apply for an -- to request an application online, because I know I spoke to parents at every door who kept FedEx in business because their kid at college had no easy access to a printer, or they had no printer. And, you know, the old-fashioned way of doing things go on and on.

But I still just think you're making my point. These types of things have gone on in every election, so if we're not throwing out all the results of every election, I think it's an acceptable risk while we keep working on refinements. To your point earlier, we have 40-plus states who do this already we have. We have probably 48 states who do one or the other, so let's learn from them. And I think we have that opportunity.

I think I'll leave it there, but thank you for your time. I so appreciate it.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Thank you, Rep. Thomas.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Up next, Representative Mastrofrancesco.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Dominic it is very nice to see you. Thank you for taking the time today to testifying, to give us your testimony and thank you for your advocacy for bringing to light the problems that we have with voting, and how it needs to be cleaned up. I think if there's not organizations out there that. inform the public, I don't know how they would know. 92 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

It's very hard to get that information, so I appreciate the work you've done on that.

Just a couple quick things, I keep hearing from the Secretary of State and other Legislators that, you know, we want to let people decide. And I'm all for letting people decide, that's why we have this in our Constitution and they have to make the decision. But if this piece is changing our Constitution, the people will no longer will be the decision makers, it will be the Legislature, virtually stripping out the voice of the people. Would you agree with that?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Well, I think philosophically the people who will make the decisions were elected by the people, so I think on a philosophical level, I think that people still have a say. But I think what's going to happen is this will become a runaway train and the guardrails for our elections will get stripped away or not considered. Because I think we're already hearing that well, there's some acceptable risk. I think no amount of fraud is acceptable. You can't go to a bank in the United States and find an acceptable level of fraud, right? There's no corporation that accepts fraud at any acceptable level.

We have to have zero tolerance for fraud and that's got to be our goal, and so I'm up at night thinking there's not enough people who are like-minded about the zero tolerance for fraud.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): I agree, and you had mentioned that there were 5,700 people who voted, but they were not registered to vote until after? Can you please explain that and let me know how you came up with that figure in that data?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Linda and I, we are going through the database of 2.5 million records of registered voters and we're looking at people's registration dates and we started seeing all these registration dates at, you know, the end of November, in December 93 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

2020, January 11th is when we ran it up to. And we added them all up and there was 5,700 people that had voted on November 3rd, but they weren't registered until later.

Now listen, we're not saying anything nefarious, but it speaks to the point that our registrars don't have enough bandwidth to do their job. If they can't register 5,700 people the day of the election, and they need two or three months to get caught up, that tells me that we're already throwing too much at a system that's got great people but not -- people without great resources.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And these were all from Election Day registration that you found?

DOMINIC RAPINI: Yeah that's -- well, we know that the -- we know that's 2020 November 3rd election. We think it's from the Election Day registrations, that's the only thing that makes sense, right? In terms of, you know, 14,800 people who vote on -- registered on Election Day. And we think that's a correlation.

When we talked to the registrars they said yeah, that was it. We were overwhelmed, we couldn't do it. I can't say that for all 5,700 but it's very likely, right? It makes a lot of sense.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, well that's very alarming in itself. And you mentioned something about the voter turnout being, the numbers that you have, the percentage is different from what the Secretary of State -- just would you elaborate on that and just explain it to me?

DOMINIC RAPINI: This is what everyone has to understand, we trust our data. And the Secretary of State said we had 80% turnout all of our eligible voters, our registered voters. Well, when you look at her October 27th statement of the election, and she had a -- she publishes on the basis of, you 94 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE know, six days prior. It showed 195,000 -- it showed 2.5 million people registered to vote. All right? And we didn't lose, you know, we didn't lose 200,000 people on November 3rd. So she chose to use the number of active voters, right?

And that's kind of, you know, that's screening your own report card. If you want to get turn out, if you want to show turn out, you've got to show your registered voters. And I think she was reticent to show the fact that there's 200,000 active voters and they had been for quite some time, because it's not a good look for her office. Now listen, I think her office does a lot of good things, but this is something where they need to do a better job.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you and I agree. I am all for expanding voter access. I keep hearing that we're restricting voting and we're disenfranchising voters. Nobody's being disenfranchised. If you want to go vote, you can go vote. Nobody's handcuffing you, nobody's saying that you can't vote. You can call and get an absentee ballot if you're out of town, if you're sick or whatever, and if you don't, you can go vote. Nobody is telling people they can't vote. It's really frustrating when I keep hearing that.

DOMINIC RAPINI: You can download it online. Senator Haskell's Bill wasn't fully, I don't think described, but you can download an absentee ballot application today online.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): You can.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Then you've got to send it in with a date, but that's, you know, what I'm seeing as best practice around the country.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And that's fine. I think people should be able to go online with technology, you know, download the application and send it in. I don't have any problem with that. 95 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

But -- and certainly we want more people to vote. I would love for 100% of the people to come out and vote but as we do know, things do not run smoothly all the time, and we really need to fix the problems that we have today.

Because if anything, I think legislation like this is going to deter people from coming out to vote because they're not going to trust the process. And until they trust the process, I don't believe we will have an increase in voter turnout, and I would love to see that. I would love to see more trust in it.

So thank you so much for your testimony. Again, thank you for all the work that you're doing to bring this issue to light, and I appreciate you coming out today. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Up next, Representative Palm.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Hello, Representative Palm.

REP. PALM (36TH): Mr. Rapini, in 2018 when you ran unsuccessfully for US Senate and were primaried, were you a victim of voter fraud?

DOMINIC RAPINI: I don't know. Sorry, no, you'd have to go look at -- by the way, thanks for throwing in the word unsuccessfully, that was a good adjective to add in.

REP. PALM (36TH): Well, I do believe in accuracy and speaking of which, I would like to correct the record. What Representative Thomas actually said was acceptable risk not acceptable fraud. And I would also like to comment that not everyone can vote on Election Day. People with low wage jobs, people who are ill, people who are elderly, people who have disabilities often cannot in fact get to the polls, so that is also inaccurate.

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But back to my question, if you don't know whether you were a victim of voter fraud, why do you persist in the narrative that it is widespread, when no fewer than 86 claims and settlements nationally of voter fraud were tossed out for as frivolous and unsupportable? Why is this --

DOMINIC RAPINI: You're talking about during the presidential campaign, you're talking about the claims that were dismissed? Well, go back and look at those claims. Not one piece of evidence was actually heard in a US court. They were dismissed on standing, they were dismissed on [latches]. There was no emotional courage to go out and do the hard work and listen to those testimonies. That's - - so don't take that as a false negative on voter fraud, all right?

REP. PALM (36TH): Well, I do take the fact that 86 -- no fewer than 86 courts -- found that there was not sufficient evidence to admit. That is the definition of a frivolous lawsuit, so I'm just trying to -- I'm very mindful of the fact that we have many, many, many members of the public who are very eager to testify and I would like to get to them. So Mr. Chair, I will close my. remarks by simply stating I would like our record to be corrected to represent what Rep. Thomas in fact said and to represent the fact that not everyone, in fact, without absentee ballots can get to the polls, and I would like all of my colleagues to seriously think about why we continue with this narrative of widespread voter fraud, when it has been debunked over and over and over again. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Seeing no further questions, Mr. Rapini, thank you for appearing today. I will say, Mr. Rapini, I do not necessarily agree with many of your statements. I appreciate your commentary. I do take exception to a number of things you said today, the fact that you stated -- that you implied that Members of this Committee and this Legislature are not as concerned 97 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE about fraud as you are. I think that was an incorrect statement. I think we're all very concerned about fraud. The Members of this Committee, I think, more so than any of the Members in the General Assembly. Our first and foremost is putting the integrity of the election system first and we will further continue down that path. So thank you for your testimony today.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Representative Fox, I said the Committee was not as familiar with the data around our elections, not that you're not concerned with voter fraud. So if that was your understanding, I stand corrected.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for being here, Mr. Rapini. We appreciate your time.

DOMINIC RAPINI: Thanks, everybody. Thanks for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, No. 4, Luther Weeks, followed by John Erlingheuser followed by Kelly Moore. Mr. Weeks, you've been very patient with us. Thank you for your patience and look forward to your testimony.

LUTHER WEEKS: Okay, thank you. Chairs and Members of the Committee and Connecticut voters, my name is Luther Weeks, the Executive Director of CT Voters Count. As you're contemplating amendments to the Connecticut Constitution for elections, we need to go just a bit further than the changes now in HJ 59. Just a few more words would make a great difference going forward. Actually, a few words deleted from the Constitution.

The additional changes would remove deadlines for reporting state contest results that are now baked into our Constitution; these same deadlines would remain in effect in law, yet easier to change in short order, should that become necessary.

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Why are these changes critical? There are at least four reasons why these deadlines may need to change quickly in the near future. Not removing them as soon as possible in our Constitution would cause significant problems and limitations while waiting for another year's long amendment process to change them.

Reason No. 1, HR 1, or a similar federal law, if it were to pass, it would only apply and override our Constitution for federal races. Then, in even year elections, Connecticut would be faced with two election deadlines; one for federal elections and another for state elections. To do what we do now within 10 days after an election, under HR 1, would take at least 30 days. Not something that could be completed before early December.

Reason 2, if our Constitution is amended to provide for no-excuse absentee voting, presumably there will be calls for the same things in HR 1 here. For example, accepting ballots postmarked by Election Day after Election Day, and followed by curing, the process where members of the public can correct errors in their absentee ballots.

Reasons 3 and 4, are ranked choice voting and risk- limiting audits. If either were to be implemented in Connecticut, they would require days and sometimes weeks longer than the current limit of ten days. Even longer if they were combined on top of HR 1. At this time, HJ 59 cannot be changed. I recommend placing the additional changes in HJ 58.

Please consider the urgency of making these critical changes in Connecticut's Constitution. Further details are available in my written testimony. Thanks.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mr. Weeks. A quick question, Mr. Weeks. Can you repeat for me the timeframe you wanted, that you suggested for HJ 59?

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LUTHER WEEKS: Well, it's the fact that let's say HR 1 passes in DC, very similar or some similar Bill passes. Then that requires you to do unlimited absentee balloting. It requires ballots to be -- that are postmarked by Election Day to be counted if they arrive ten days after Election Day, a minimum. And then it also requires a ten-day process for curing, so if on Day No. 10, you know, one of the voters submits a ballot that's missing a signature or has the outer envelopes or inner envelopes mixed up, then you are required to contact them in any way you can -- phone, text, email -- but also to send them a letter to tell them there's a problem and wait ten days to receive that. You know, to give them a chance to come in and cure it or some other way cure that vote.

And so that's 20 days. At that point, we're where we are about two days after Election Day now, when we know what the original counts are and we can call for re-canvases. Unfortunately, it would be 20 days after election, so if we did re-canvases and gave them the same amount of time, we're adding another ten days to the process. So what would happen in November 2022, because that's the earliest we can even vote on these amendments, November 2022, we would have to run two elections.

Because Connecticut law still says you have to have an excuse for absentee voting, the ballots have to be received on Election Day and there's no cure process. And, they have to be -- all this work of re-canvassing and counting initially has to be done less than ten days after the election. So, for state offices on the ballot, we're still required by the State Constitution to do that, so we would have to accept and count those and get it done within ten days after the election.

Meanwhile, for the federal offices on that same ballot -- well, on the same election -- then you have to have unlimited absentee balloting and then you have to allow these 20 days before you can 100 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE really finish up your original counts and then start re-canvassing. So besides running two elections with all of these double deadlines, you would also, in my opinion, end up probably having two ballots; one ballot that was federal only so you could do unlimited absentee balloting. And so you could receive it, you know, if it was postmarked by Election Day and do this curing process. And then a regular ballot for all the state offices or anything else that happened to be on the ballot that would go by the regular ten-day process that we have now.

I'm not saying that HR 1 is going to pass. I'm not saying that these two amendments are going to pass, but it's specifically for the absentee balloting. As soon as we pass this, people are going to say at least they want the cure process, and they want a fair cure process that's fair to everyone, and to me that's that ten-day requirement. We will send a letter out to people that might not have an updated phone number. They might be in a nursing home. They might not be able to get emails or phone calls, so the fair process is to -- the fairest process is to send everyone a letter that needs the cure. So, you know, that that kind of thing.

So, you know, I'm not saying all that's going to come to pass. I'm just saying you don't want that to come to pass such that two, three, four years ago you're starting over a constitutional amendment process. For all we know, it'll be 2030 before we could resolve this issue. Because even if we put it in right now, 2022, if HR 1 passes, 2022 we're going to have those two elections. And if it passes in 2022, then by 2024 we can hold one election.

And the same applies, by the way, to primaries as well, where there's federal officers on the primary. You know, you have the same kind of double thing if you happen to have say a primary for State Senate; at the same time you've got a primary for -- excuse me. For yeah, for State Senate, but also the US Senator on that same primary, then you've got a 101 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE little problem there. You've got to run two elections, two sets of deadlines, all that stuff. You know, maybe two ballots, even if those were in the same party. So that's the kind of thing we're trying to avoid or I'm suggesting you work at avoiding here at that same time.

You know, as Representative Thomas says, you know, constitutions aren't perfect and we learn things here. I mean, I only realized how hard it -- how big an issue this was, you know, recently. I had sort of known this was true for ranked choice voting, which has come up. But that was for a task force where we could figure that out. But still, that would delay that by a few years if somebody really wanted to do it.

And I kind of knew that it might be a problem, but then suddenly reading HR 1 and going over it, it sort of dawned on me, you know, this is an underlying problem with a lot of things we might want to change here in Connecticut.

REP. FOX (148TH): Okay, thank you. I will encourage my colleagues in the Committee to refer to Mr. Weeks' testimony which I thought was very detailed, very well written and very thorough. So I thank you for your time, Mr. Weeks, and seeing no further questions, thank you for being here and thank you for your patience today. I appreciate it.

LUTHER WEEKS: Thank you all.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, John Erlingheuser followed by Kelly Moore followed by Candace Banks. Mr. Erlingheuser, if I mispronounced your name, I apologize.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: You were perfect, Representative Fox. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, Ranking Members, I appreciate the opportunity to come before you today. I represent AARP Connecticut, who has approximately 102 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

600,000 members in the state, almost 38 million nationwide, and we advocate on issues of matter to older folks and their families. I'm the advocacy director and community outreach director for AARP, and also I'm a former registrar of voters, having served the City of Ansonia for 16 years.

I'd like to say the right to vote is among the most basic of all civil and constitutional rights. Recent elections, also, however, revealed many flaws and practices that make it more difficult for citizens to vote. These include registration impediments, long lines, lack of early voting opportunities, inadequate facilities and the like. AARP believes policies should be enacted to encourage and promote maximum participation in the electoral process and, you know, adopt the voter registration and voting systems that expand those ranges.

Two of the major policy changes that should be adopted include no-excuse absentee voting by mail, and allowing early voting in person. So two of the ways we can do that is by passing Joint Resolution 58 and 59, which would begin the process of facilitating those changes. Public opinion surveys show overwhelmingly that older voters, the folks I represent, and younger voters support those changes and the 2020 election experienced demonstrated the popularity, safety and security of those options. We also support the two Bills that would make the temporary changes for the 2020 elections applicable to the special elections and the May elections.

I did rush through that a bit because I did want to address a couple of things that really kind of got me unnerved from two speakers ago. A couple of things were said about, for example, you know, having the data and having the data and the mess the lists are in and accuracies.

I was there for 16 years starting in 1996 as a registrar. The 1800 date issue, I want to bring 103 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE that up because it's not -- that 1800 data issue as to when people were registered to vote goes back to when there were no electronic voter rolls and then there were electronic voter rolls and every municipality had a different system. And then the state went to a centralized voter database. There are people that are on the rolls whose registrations go back decades. Decades and decades. And so those people have no registration date on their voter registration cards. And in order to get their registrations into the system, there had to be a registration date created. So that's why there are that many people that have the 1800 registration date. Nothing nefarious, nothing sloppy, nothing inadequate, nothing bad. That is why that 1800 registration date exists

The other thing about inactive voters. Inactive voters get on their list for several ways, and I'll wrap it up, but that's -- they don't respond to a canvas, you know, they don't respond to a piece of information or mail. They don't get taken off the voter list, they get put on to inactive voter list, and if they take no action after five years they're removed from the list. They are not voters -- they don't become voters unless they show up at the precinct on Election Day and fill out a restoration form, swearing under penalty of the law that their information is accurate, and then they become a voter, and then they become listed as an active voter. And, at the end of the election night, those who have voted, are the total number of active voters at the beginning of Election Day and those that are restored to being voters through the electoral process.

So the Secretary of State's data on those who have voted is 100% accurate, because you never use the inactive voters because they're not voters. They're only voters if they get restored, and they get restored by filling out that affidavit. So those are two things that, you know, a lot of talk about having data, having data, having information. But 104 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE it's a dangerous thing if you don't use it properly and you don't give the context in which that data should be used.

So I just wanted to -- I took those notes in the four hours I was waiting. So anyhow, I thought I would get that off my chest.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Erlingheuser. We certainly appreciate you being here and appreciate your honesty in the points you made. Can I -- you represent AARP, you said?

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Yes, sir.

REP. FOX (148TH): How many members do you have here in Connecticut?

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Approximately 600,000 and I will tell you, our members loved the experience of being able to vote by absentee ballot in the previous election cycle, and are encouraging us to continue with that, the ability to have that. And so we are all in favor of that, as well as other things that are going to be coming up in future public hearings around the drop boxes, around voter registration practices and such. So our folks are thrilled with these changes and want to continue them and start that process going.

REP. FOX (148TH): Well, with the LOB being closed, I miss seeing all the red shirts up in the Capitol, in the complex there, but I am glad to see you [inaudible] so I appreciate that you're still waving the flag, showing the colors.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Thank you, sir.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, Rep. Thomas, the floor is yours.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you for being here and for waiting so patiently. I 105 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE can't wait until I become AARP eligible. I've been looking forward to it for a long time.

I was struck by the commitment of seniors in my community. I talked to 90-year-olds who were like, "I'm going to the polls. I've never missed an election." You know, and so on. I'm curious because it was said earlier that, you know. by one of my colleagues that no one is suggesting that people -- no one's trying to prevent people from voting. That someone can go vote anyway. And I'm just curious, based on the demographics of your members, are there people who really want to go to the polls in person but would not qualify under the current illness statute? Like, can you think of any reasons why the current law might hold some people back?

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Yeah, I mean, I think the state or the 2020 elections correctly interpreted fear of COVID and that, you know, was -- I mean, if you look at the pandemic last year and you look at who actually was getting COVID and dying from COVID, it was the people in the demographic that I represent, and there was a tremendous fear of going to the polls. I still know folks that haven't -- that barely go out of their house. And if we did not pass the legislation that we passed last year, that we fully supported and correctly interpreted it as to mean fear of COVID, folks would not have gone to the polls and would not have used absentee ballots, because they're very restricted.

You know, a lot of the quote-unquote fraud that people perceive about elections revolves around the miss -- of the improper use of absentee ballots by those that are not eligible to use them, not people casting a ballot on behalf of somebody else illegally. But those, you know -- just as an example. You know, a polling place across from a senior housing building where the folks are not -- just because they're 65 doesn't mean that they don't have the ability to cross the street and vote in the polling location, but somehow use an absentee ballot 106 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE because, you know, they would prefer to do that. That would be a violation of the law. But, you know, is that something that we're going to send election enforcement over to a senior citizen who inappropriately -- who probably just not having a full understanding of what the law requires, casting that, and you know, casting an absentee ballot.

So, you know, what that change did was encourage a maximum participation and as I say, the numbers were very accurate because you don't count inactive voters, so there was a significant increase in participation. I think both due to the fact that we had the absentee ballots, but because it brought down the traffic at polling places which then made it more accessible for folks to actually go into a precinct where you can maintain proper social distancing. And the Secretary encouraged the registrars to take all the precautions that were needed like hand sanitizing and, you know, wiping down the machines and, you know, everything that our folks found the experience both in terms of the. absentee balloting and the in-person voting to be very, very successful.

And if we do pass the Resolution on in-person early voting, that will also contribute to being able to cut down on long lines, bringing access to the folks that several of you all brought about, those in low wage jobs who can't take the time off. You know, they can't go super early because they have kids that they have to wait until they get on the bus and then they have to get to that job, and you know.

Because under the law now, you have to -- you have to vote in person if you don't meet one of the criterion, one of which is if you're in town at for one minute during polling operations, 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., you have to cast a ballot in person. It's unreasonable, it's discouraging and it keeps down turnout and it impacts low income folks, multicultural audiences, elderly voters. And we 107 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE want to do everything we could to encourage all those folks to vote, not discourage.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): And I would add old-fashioned and it impedes hard worker. I used to work 80 hours a week, and it was in Manhattan and it was a hardship to make it to the poll. On my last question, someone raised -- again, one of my colleagues raised earlier about how expanding to no- excuse absentee ballot would deter people from voting. So, since you represent over half-a-million people, I would love to hear your take on that for your members.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: I would say it would certainly encourage folks. Again, if you look at the survey data that the Secretary of State presented, our folks overwhelmingly support having no-excuse absentee balloting. The feedback that we've gotten says it would encourage it and I think, you know, all of the kind of commentary from two speakers ago aside, actually turnout was up and in a pandemic, right?

I mean, even if turnout was down slightly, we have to consider the fact that we were in a once in -- not even like he said, a generation, but once in several generations pandemic. And because of the things that the Legislature did and the Secretary of State did, not only did we not have turnout go down, in fact it went up and that was because of things like no-excuse absentee balloting. And I know folks would continue to use that moving forward.

And I will say she was absolutely right. The number of ballots that were not counted as a result of being mailed was down significant from a typical election, and that was because of the work that Legislators, the Secretary did, AARP, League of Women Voters, other organizations did, to educate the public about the use of absentee ballots.

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You know, we went into multi -- we had literature printed in Spanish, Creole, Mandarin and we had folks that went into communities that were hard to reach, you know, virtually in some instances; you know, socially distanced in others to encourage those folks to understand the process and know that it was safe and that they had the right to vote that way because of the laws that were changed.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you so much for your time and for your advocacy on behalf of Connecticut seniors. That's it, Mr. Chair.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Thanks, Representative, and nice to meet you virtually.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Thomas. Representative McCarthy Vahey, the floor is yours.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you so much, Mr. Chair. I love following Representative Thomas. It's fun. Mr. Erlingheuser, I'm so grateful for you being here today and your perspective, both with AARP and having served as a registrar is really important. And I want to touch base on something that was discussed earlier in the hearing with respect to the security of data, specifically when it comes to early voting and how machines are handled. But also with the way that our lists are shared and the way election results are transmitted.

In your experiences as a registrar, is there anything that these two proposals would do that would put our data security at risk?

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Well absolutely not, in my opinion. I mean, first of all, right, these are enabling Resolutions that would allow one of the few things I agreed with the gentleman from the Voter Safety whatever the organization was, was that we are a representative democracy, so once the voters make the decision, they're making the decision to empower our Legislators to make changes. 109 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

But, you know, we don't -- our voter tabulation system is actually more secure than it was. When I started, we were using the old lever machines which actually were less secure than the current machines that we use, which have a paper ballot backup that can always be hand counted to ensure the integrity of the election. And our machines are not connected to, you know, the internet, so there can't be any, you know, manipulation of votes that way. I see nothing that we're doing with these two Resolutions or any changes that the Legislature might make in the future to enable in-person early voting or no- excuse absentee balloting to change the integrity of the elections that we have.

And I would say we have a very strong system in Connecticut. And in spite of the fact that it's, you know, broken down into 169 municipalities . It would just have to be done in such a way that is economically feasible and physically practical, right? I mean, you're not going to have, if you do in-person early voting, every single precinct open, that you would have on Election Day.

So, you know, there's some work to be involved but would it would it hinder the safety and the security of the process? Absolutely not. You know, we have a good system now and I think it would be a better system because it would encourage more participation, and it would be more convenient for the voter. And, you know, that in spite -- I do not believe there would be any reason to believe that it would be less secure.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you very much for underscoring the way some of the mechanics of how the system works, and we certainly would have plenty of time to improve upon the process, as there's always room for improvement. Because the earliest that we'd be able to vote on this, if we do pass these Resolutions, is November of 2022. So 110 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE thank you so much for being here with us today. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Thanks, Representative.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Up next, Representative Blumenthal. The floor is yours, sir.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you, Mr. Erlingheuser for your testimony already. It's great to see you virtually, if not in person. And I really appreciate your testimony so far. One question I had -- and I apologize if you answered it already because I've been in and out of another Committee meeting -- have you heard from members of your organization about actual cases in which people were unable to vote, or did not vote because of the difficulty of obtaining an absentee ballot under our current system?

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: So in the last election cycle, right, the 2020 election cycle with the expanded no- excuse or the COVID-19 as an excuse to use -- fear of COVID-18 as an excuse to use absentee balloting, our folks utilized that in large numbers. We did a lot of work around that. We did tele-town halls with thousands of our members on it. You know, people wanted that. They utilized it. They want to keep it. I'm not so sure they all understand what we're going to have to do to get to a place to be able to do that. They want us to be there. And I think you all as public officials will find that out, particularly from older voters when they can't have that experience again in the November municipal elections and the statewide elections in 2022.

So the short answer is yes, our folks want the process. Did they have difficulty with the process? No. You know, I think that was a lot due to the efforts of good organizations like the League, like AARP, like the Secretary of State, like elected officials who made them aware of what the process 111 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE was and what steps they had to take in that two-step absentee balloting process.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): I actually was unclear in my question. I meant in previous elections before our COVID exceptions.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Yeah, you know, I think what I would say, folks wanted to use and utilize absentee balloting a lot more, you know, but because of the restrictions they did not. And I suspect there are instances of folks not casting a ballot because of not having the ability to use an absentee ballot and, you know, for one reason or another couldn't or didn't want to go to a precinct. You know, it's transportation is an issue. Think about some of the thing we're finding out with the difficulties of getting certain populations vaccinated, right? I mean, you could have all the vaccinations in the world but if you can't get somebody to a vaccination site because they don't have transportation and the site is that within, you know, walking distance to their home, how do you get it done? That's some of the same problems older folks have when it comes to voting and having to vote in person.

And so, you know, no-excuse absentee ballot would solve that and would increase the population of older folks voting.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you. You know, my experience has reflected that as well. Anecdotally I don't have data, but I've talked to a number of people, not only seniors but commuters who in the past have been unable to vote because they weren't able to obtain an absentee ballot. And, you know, in the commuters' case, they were gone. They knew they would be gone most of the day, but they weren't sure what train they'd be able to catch back, so they didn't know they were going to be gone 100% of the day, but the fact that they were or that it was so close prevented them from voting.

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And to me, that's profoundly troubling because we have a fundamental right embedded in our Federal Constitution, in our State Constitution to exercise our franchise. There's no similar right to a complete fraud-free election. You know, although there is really no evidence that we have any meaningful level of voter fraud in Connecticut.

And, you know, I think what we should be aiming for is election integrity, which means not only that there is as little fraud as possible, but also as much and most easy participation as possible. Because every instance in which someone who would like to vote is prevented, either by logistical difficulties or the difficulty of our system of obtaining an absentee ballot, that is a violation, a fundamental violation of the integrity of our electoral system.

And so I think we should be moving as quickly as possible to remedy that, and we're really at the back of the pack in doing so. So I think there's no time to lose. I really appreciate your advocacy and I hope we'll be able to pass this Resolution and expand access for your members, and for really all citizens to ballot.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Right, and thank you so much, Representative. And I just will say this. You know. This issue of photo Ids, it's the same issue with getting access to the vaccine, getting access to a polling location. There are many, many people, particularly a lot of older folks, some born in other states where there are no records. You know, they were born at home, you know, they don't have a record of their birth. Getting a photo ID sometimes is an insurmountable task for certain people, particularly older folks and particularly, you know, people from multicultural audiences. They can't get to the ID license center, they don't have the money it costs to buy the ID, but we do have a process. There are other things that can be used for 113 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE identification if it has your name on it and you can sign the affidavit.

So these are important things and folks should understand that, you know, it's not as simple as people would like to make it out to be that, you know, not using a photo ID when people vote creates this whole issue of fraud. There are precautions built into the system. The system works and, you know, we shouldn't be putting up obstacles that will keep certain populations from voting under the guise of security when it is, as you said, a fundamental right guaranteed under the Constitution. It's not like being able to drive a car which is a privilege, not a right. It's not, you know, being able to, you know, whether you're going to get vaccinated or not.

I mean, this is one of the most basic, if not the most basic and important fundamental right that's given to us as our franchise, and so we should be making it as simple while keeping integrity in mind but not putting up roadblocks on particularly that harm some populations more than others. So anyhow, I just wanted to say that as well.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Mr. Erlingheuser. I really appreciate your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any further questions for John? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony today.

JOHN ERLINGHEUSER: Thank you, Senator.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Kelly Moore, who will be followed by Candace Banks, who will be followed by Danielle Dobin. Kelly Moore, the floor is yours. Welcome.

KELLY MOORE: Thank you. Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Distinguished Members of the Government, Administration & Elections Committee, my 114 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE name is Kelly Makani Moore. I'm the interim senior policy counsel for the ACLU of Connecticut. I'm here to testify in support of House Joint Resolution 59 and 58.

The ACLU of Connecticut strongly supports measures to ensure equal access to the ballot box, and we especially support measures that increase voting access for historically disenfranchised groups, particularly Black voters. Improving voting rights and voting access strengthens democracy, since voting is the foundation of democracy itself.

In Connecticut, during non-pandemic times, voters have shockingly few options for casting their ballots. These constitutional restrictions have led Connecticut to be one of only six states without some form of early in-person voting, one of only 16 states lacking no-excuse absentee voting. Some people rank Connecticut among the worst five states for voting options.

Connecticut's limited voting options have historically disproportionately harmed voters of color. In many recent elections, long lines have affected the same cities and precincts repeatedly, always areas with greater concentrations of voters of color. In fact, nationwide, Black voters are 74% more likely than White voters to wait more than 30 minutes to vote in person.

In addition, because of interlocking systems of oppression, voters who are less likely to be able to get to the polls on Election Day, like people with little job flexibility, people lacking transportation, people lacking childcare, people with disabilities, voters without identification and voters who lack language access, they're all disproportionately likely to be people of color.

Many of these barriers to voting can be solved by providing people with greater options for voting, including early voting and no-excuse absentee 115 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting. Indeed, recent polling shows that communities of color are utilizing early voting more and more, leading to a surge in the number of Black people voting. Enacting these solutions will confer an outside benefit on voters of color, making passage of these Resolutions an important step towards voting equity. On the other hand, rejecting this measure is a vote for the status quo and let's be clear, the status quo is that people with low wage jobs, people with disabilities and Black people and other people of color, among others, are less able to vote than wealthy, able White voters.

The Legislature should embrace this chance to decrease congestion at the polls on Election Day and improve the chances that vulnerable people will be able to cast their ballots. When more people have a chance to make their voices heard through options like early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, it strengthens the democracy for all of us.

We unreservedly support House Joint Resolutions 58 and 59 and urge you to support them as well. Senator Flexer, you're muted.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Sorry I said thank you for your testimony and are there questions from Members of the Committee? Like everyone, I'm always more concerned about being unmuted when I shouldn't be than -- Representative Fishbein, is your hand raised?

REP. FISHBEIN (90TH): Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good afternoon. There was a portion of your testimony that had to do with the time period that individuals of color have to wait to vote. Can you just repeat that portion?

KELLY MOORE: Absolutely. What I said was -- it's a little in the weeds -- is that -- let me make sure I've got this right. So it's Black voters in particular, not all voters of color, are more likely -- or 74% more likely to wait 30 minutes or more on 116 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Election Day to vote. It's actually from a really interesting study based on tracking people's cell phone geolocation data on Election Day, and so this is recent from the past few elections data, the national elections.

REP. FISHBEIN (90TH): So that's what I wanted to inquire about. You're saying that somebody tracked cell phones and they were able to tell from the cell phone that Black voters had to wait longer? Can you just explain to me how somebody who wasn't there was able to ascertain that?

KELLY MOORE: Well, what I told you is really all I know. I didn't conduct the study. I'm happy to send it to you and I do agree, listening to you right now I'm not sure how they correlate that data with somebody's race. Maybe it was in majority people of color precincts. I'm not exactly sure, so I would be happy to look that over and get that data to you.

REP. FISHBEIN (90TH): Yeah I'm just a little concerned because, you know, if that's true that would be of concerning, you know, to me, but I spent a lot of time analyzing reports and studies and that just jumped out at me because, you know, I've been voting for, oh God, 30 years now and I don't recall anybody ever like tracking how long it took me to vote. I've lived in New Haven, voted there, and I don't recall, you know, seeing that. And I'm just - - you know a lot of things, you know, over what time period, what years, you know, what polling place? All of those things are variables.

Because I know like in New Haven a few years ago, the Governor's race, I think, when Mr. Foley ran the first time, maybe 2010, there was a long line. And I remember seeing pictures and that was individuals of various different races. And you know, they're allowed to leave the polls open, so yeah. Do you know the name of that study?

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KELLY MOORE: Yeah, I just pulled it up. It is in my written testimony which is submitted to the Committee. It's in the Scientific American and I'm sorry, my reference is from the Scientific American, that's not who did the underlying study, but I will email that over to you right away.

REP. FISHBEIN (90TH): Yes, please. Thank you. That's all I had. Thank you, Madam Chair.

KELLY MOORE: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. And I would just add briefly that you'd be amazed how much data is out there about all of us, and if folks are interested in those issues, I know that the General Law Committee will be having a public hearing on Thursday with regard to privacy for our data, because I thought when you read that study, you can figure out how they knew the race of people. But thank you for that question and thank you. Is there any other questions for Kelly this afternoon? Seeing none, thank you very much for your testimony.

KELLY MOORE: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next, we will hear from Candace Banks, followed by Danielle Dobin, followed by Tia Murphy. Candace, the floor is yours. Welcome.

CANDACE BANKS: Thank you. Good afternoon, Madam Chair and Mr. Chairperson, and all the Members of the Committee. My name is Candace Banks and I've been a resident of Westport, Connecticut for almost 13 years and I am speaking today wholeheartedly and passionately in favor of the two proposed amendments on the table, HB 58 and 59 which I firmly believe will impact our Connecticut voters by expanding the options by which they can cast their votes, both via no-excuse absentee voting and as well as in-person early voting.

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And why I signed up to testify today, so I think I have a bit of a unique perspective. In the past 16 months, I spent a total of 40 hours on my feet observing elections -- actually I say on my feet, the people in Georgia did give me a chair, which was nice, but first as a candidate here in Connecticut in November 2019. And I won that election and now I'm the RTM Rep for District 6 here in Westport. But then in November 2020 I served as an outside poll observer in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and then last month in Fulton County, Georgia, I was an inside poll observer and that part of a voter protection effort in both of those states.

And so I'm coming to you as a trained poll observer and both advocating for commuter constituents in my town. Because I think the, you know, especially the early voting, I think, as some of the previous folks have indicated, really, I mean really would benefit those of us who commute. You know, this is an unusual time and I have to applaud all of our elected officials for setting up a framework for which we got our votes counted in November. It wasn't easy. But -- and there was, I know from just in Westport everyone, you know, everyone was very, very busy in town hall sort of navigating all the things that need to be done to make sure every vote was counted. And I think HB -- I'm sorry, HJ 58 takes the framework that you've already built and just expands it. And I think you've done much of the work already to make no excuse-absentee balloting -- the frameworks are there, the boxes are there. Yes, we absolutely need more funding for the people in town hall who, you know, are dealing with the influx of these new ballots, but we'll only get better at it.

Turning to HB 59, and this is where my experience in other states come in, and particularly in Georgia, which I think everybody, you know, can acknowledge that historically has thrown down obstacles to, you know, have people of various demographics vote and have their votes counted. I mean, Georgia has early 119 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting and when I submitted my testimony today, I saw that there were 38. We were an outlier state in the sense that there are 38 states around the country who have some form of early voting.

And meaning Election Day is not a magic day. Meaning there are other opportunities for you to show up and vote in person, which is very important to a lot of people to actually cast their ballot in person.

Secretary Merrill, I guess my data was old because Secretary Merrill said earlier that there actually are 43 states now who give their voters the ability to vote on early voting. I thought that this was going to be relatively pro forma hearing that everyone would be in favor of early voting, like we need to get on board. I'm very -- I'm concerned. I'm concerned. We should not want to be one of the club that doesn't have early voting. We to get this done somewhere or the other. It's not a proud group to be part of that -- those last seven votes. I mean we have just I think in Westport -- oh, excuse me.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes, I'm sorry to interrupt you, but your three minutes are over so if you wouldn't mind summarizing, I would appreciate it.

CANDACE BANKS: Sure, absolutely. And so I'll just finish off as an RTM, as a member who represents a commuting town, and really I feel like most commuter towns would say that you shouldn't not get your vote counted if you missed the train or if you miss a day, can't take off work. I mean this is really important, and we should make this an election issue this year. I mean a lot of us are running for reelection this year and I hope everybody asks their candidates where they stand on these two Bills. Thank you.

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SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Madam Chair. Hi Candace, how are you? I commute through Westport so I feel your pain. Congratulations on your 2019 win and thank you for all of your volunteer work these past couple of elections. I actually, you brought up Georgia and I had a question because it came up from some of my colleagues earlier today. Did you have an opportunity to think about signature verification? It was raised earlier, like how that does not disenfranchise people, and it restricts fraud. And I'm just curious if you --

CANDACE BANKS: You know I did, actually, because in addition to observing on Election Day, I was actually part of a team that did ballot curing. And that's for people who had submitted their ballots via absentee. Georgia, you know Georgia had -- there are a couple -- several different ways you could vote in Georgia. One of them was like here, you know submitting an absentee ballot. And they had ballot tracking. Like here, you had the ability to track to see where your ballot was and if your ballot was quote bounced or needed to be cured, if you had access to the Internet and email, et cetera, you would have the ability to cure your ballot.

I spent a day in Clayton County, Georgia helping people cure their ballots. One thing that was very interesting was -- and distressing for many people that I encountered, all of whom are people of color and a lot of whom are elderly, and this is why this is important is the signatures that the county had on file for them, maybe when they registered when they were younger, like 50 years ago, their signature didn't look the same and so their ballot was bounced for that reason. And so I, along with some other canvassing volunteers helped them correct that. But these are folks who did not have internet, who did not have email, and it wasn't 121 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE easy. Georgia had a lot of obstacles and they don't make it easy for you to do it, but I mean the signature verification piece was, I mean yeah. There was a big -- you know, someone who was 86 years old, maybe the signature the county had on file he had done in his 20s and it didn't look the same. So it's a real problem.

And one more thing I wanted to mention about -- because Mr. Erlingheuser who I've never met before, but I did just in terms of the elderly and folks with, anybody really with mobility issues, it's just, it's very, very difficult for some folks to just -- every step to the polls is a challenge. I want to say, I actually had forgotten this, but Mr. Erlingheuser's testimony reminded me. I actually carried somebody out of the polls who was 101 years old. You know, like he just, he made it through and he needed help getting to his car. And I just, I think the more options you have for people who have mobility issues, who are elderly, I mean, the better. I mean, you need to do right by these folks.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you. You make a great point about signatures. Although I'm not 86, my name contains 15 letters and I used to sign all 15 when I was 21, but not so much now. It's very truncated, so thank you for your time and thank you, Madam Chair.

CANDACE BANKS: You're so welcome.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Thank you. Next is Danielle Dobin who will be followed by Tia Murphy, who will be followed by Carol Rizzolo. The floor is yours.

DANIELLE DOBIN: Thanks, Senator. Can you hear me?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes. 122 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

DANIELLE DOBIN: Excellent. So thank you so much for the opportunity to speak to all of you today. My name is Danielle Dobin, and I'm the elected chair of Westport's Planning and Zoning Commission. I also volunteered as part of the same voter protection team is Candace that deployed to Pennsylvania and Georgia. I've seen firsthand how lack of voter access can lead directly to voter suppression. I'm here to testify in favor of Resolutions 58 and 59.

Simply put, no-excuse absentee voting and early voting increase opportunities for political participation. It's so important that this Committee begin this process for our state. Voting in person on Election Day is a terrific civic tradition that I've long enjoyed. As a candidate running town-wide, I absolutely loved my in-person interactions at polling places, bringing my kids to come in and vote with me, and the wonderful tradition of everybody voting in person, all across our state on the same day.

But let's be honest about what we're talking about. This wonderful civic tradition leaves out so many Connecticut voters of all income levels. There are people like my husband, who like many, many residents of Fairfield County, commutes to New York City, leaving Westport at 7:00 a.m. with no idea of whether he'll be on the 5:00 p.m., the 7:00 p.m. or 9:00 p.m. train back on any given day. It's generally impossible for him to vote in person on Election Day, even in order to come to vote for me. But he rarely likes to state on an absentee ballot application that he'll absolutely be out of town all day because he could possibly catch an earlier train than expected, if his day changes last minute.

Leaving aside the huge number of Fairfield County residents that work in New York City, like my husband, there are also so many people in our towns and cities with disabilities. who have trouble 123 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voting in person on Election Day, and would welcome the option to vote early, especially on a weekend when they can more easily arrange for a ride or for assistance. It can be really tough for lots of people to find someone to help them on a Tuesday when everybody that they know is at work or at school.

Lastly there are, of course, the countless Connecticut citizens who work at fast food restaurants, care for elderly relatives, or work in low-wage jobs where they simply have no advanced notice or control over their work schedules. They can't possibly stipulate on an absentee ballot that they'll absolutely be out of town, because they don't get there. schedules that far in advance. And it's really impossible for these voters to ask for the day off or even to take a few hours away from work while the polls are open.

Many of these same voters rely on public transportation, which further limits their access to polls on Election Day itself. Making Election Day a holiday will do little or nothing to resolve any of these issues. Executives like my husband will still have to commute to their jobs in New York City. CT residents who work at Target or other big box stores, or who work as caregivers, nurses, home health care aides, or who work in fast food or as bus drivers or in public transport, they do not get the day off for a holiday. Much like the Fourth of July or Christmas, some of these workers work even harder on days that many of the rest of us have off, so creating a holiday doesn't solve the problem that voters are facing now.

Insisting that citizens vote in person on Election Day or fill out time-consuming paperwork simply privileges people who can control their work schedule or have the resources to hire someone to watch their children or assist elderly relatives. While there were legitimate issues with understaffed election officers across Connecticut feeling 124 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE overextended this past year, based on the explosion of absentee ballots being processed, this is a problem that's easily addressed by allocating additional resources to local election officials and offices.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Danielle, I'm sorry to interrupt you but your three minutes are up so if you wouldn't mind, wrap up.

DANIELLE DOBIN: This isn't a question of partisanship. It's one of patriotism. We know that many of our citizens can't vote in person on Election Day because of work or disability. We know that making Election Day a holiday won't make a difference for so many of these people. Let's do the right thing by them and by our democracy Thank you so much.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Just for everyone's information we are having some difficulty with the bell we had hoped to play at the end of the three minutes. I really wanted to avoid the rude interruption, but it's the way we've got to go for the time being. So next we will hear from Tia Murphy, and after Tia we will hear from No. 10 Carol Rizzolo, who will be followed by Carol Reimers. Welcome, Tia. The floor is yours.

TIA MURPHY: Thank you so much. Good afternoon to everybody. My name is Tia Murphy. I live in Bethel, Connecticut and I'm the volunteer state president for AARP Connecticut. And today I'm speaking to you from the perspective of a citizen who availed herself of the opportunity to utilize no-excuse absentee voting for the first time in this November's election.

While I am a poll worker here in Bethel, I was uncomfortable with voting in person this pandemic. 125 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Why? Well to start, I expected to have to wait in line with a lot of people given the predicted large turnout, and that would have been true. Having been so scrupulously careful about avoiding exposure situations, I didn't want to miss voting in this important election, but I also didn't want to risk infection and all its potential ramifications stemming from exercising my fundamental right to have my voice in the form of my vote go on record.

I have to say, the process of applying for, receiving and then dropping off my completed ballot to the secure ballot box outside our municipal building, and taking my required ballot selfie for posterity was easy-peasy, and the registrars that I spoke with about it post-election agreed that having so many voters take the opportunity to vote absentee, combined with their ability to get the ballots ready to be processed through the tabulation machines on Election Day, made for a busy but smooth count, and all of them got to go home much earlier than they had anticipated, which was a great thing.

All of this caused me to reflect on why, other than the particularities of this voting year, why was it so difficult to get an absentee ballot here in Connecticut? I read through all the restrictions about what excuses would allow an individual to validly request and vote absentee. I was so surprised to find out that Connecticut's State Constitution would have to be amended to allow no- excuse absentee balloting, as well as allowing early voting. You all have to excuse my lack of knowledge about this, because I'm not a native of the state, didn't grow up here and I've only lived here for about a decade.

Having lived, however, in many states due to work- related relocations, I took it for granted that anyone could get an absentee ballot if they wanted one, regardless of the reason, as well as having the ability to vote early. Prior to the pandemic, there might have been many reasons why I might not have 126 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE been able to vote on the one and only day during the only open hours on that designated day, and I'm not alone. In fact, a recent public opinion poll of Connecticut voters conducted by Secure Democracy showed strong bipartisan support, meaning nearly three-quarters, 73% of voters, support the option to vote by absentee ballot without needing an excuse, and 79% for early voting.

So in conclusion, safe, secure voting is imperative. Having the option on how to vote is also imperative. I want to thank you all for the opportunity and for your collective time, and also wanted to let you know that our 600,000 members here in the state greatly appreciated this opportunity that was made both available to them and to their friends who are also age cohorts of theirs. Any questions?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony and thanks to all of your members. Are there any questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and your time today.

TIA MURPHY: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next No. 10 on our list, we will hear from Carol Rizzolo who will be followed by Carol Reimers, who will be followed by Joanna Swomley.

CAROL RIZZOLO: Hi there. My name is --

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Carol, the floor is yours. Welcome.

CAROL RIZZOLO: Thank you. My name is Carol Rizzolo. I retired from a 25-year career as a primary care physician assistant, with a specialization in pediatrics and asthma. I'm testifying in support of HJ 58 and 59. There are many reasons why voters might not be able to come in 127 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE on one day a year, and I would like to give you some examples from my own life.

For 25 years I worked in clinical office pediatrics. We regularly accommodated urgent care visits. Most of my patients lived in neighborhoods in Connecticut where access to public transportation was problematic. Few had reliable cars of their own and the timing of medical care was and continues to be unreliable. My patients tended to live in lower income communities of color and, as you can imagine, clinical pediatrics included children who had woken up in the night screaming in pain or struggling to breathe, or any of the myriad urgent issues that brings one into an acute care office. Imagine yourself in this situation, stressed and frightened for your child. It is that moment that all parents fear, the moment when your child is acutely ill.

Now, have that be on Election Day, on one Tuesday in November during those 14 hours when this person might have had the opportunity to have their voice heard. Was it predictable? No. As a representative democracy, these parents have just as much of a right to have their voices heard at the ballot box as any of the rest of us. Our representative democracy only works if all of our voices participate. I could cite case after case of people who would show up in my very full schedule on Election Day. And I could go on and on with the different things that impact and interrupt a day when an emergency occurs, but every one of us has lived long enough to have an emergency on some day, at some point, that forces us to readjust our plans for the day.

I've now read several responses from Legislators who stand in opposition to these Bills. The responses have been that everyone can come in in those 14 hours, but that just doesn't reflect the reality that life happens in unpredictable ways on Election Day, just as it does every other day of the year.

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Because I was a professional with reliable transportation, I had the wonderful freedom to arrange my schedule to accommodate Election Day. Unless, of course, one of my own children had an emergency, or my 98-year-old mom fell ill and required my attention. So I implore you to create a system in which voters can choose to vote by absentee if that's what works best for them and their particular life circumstances. All Connecticut voters have the right to have their voices heard by those who represent them in Hartford.

Please put yourself in the shoes of those less fortunate and support both at HJ 58 and 59 by supporting expanded ballot access here in Connecticut. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony and I apologize for mispronouncing your last name, Carol.

CAROL RIZZOLO: I didn't think you did.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Are there any questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Palm.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Madam Chair. Ms. Rizzolo, good to see you and thank you for bringing up the concept of emergencies. I'm not sure that anybody else has actually said that yet. We do talk about the lack of access for a lot of working families. And indeed, some white collar workers because of commutes, but I don't know that I had actually thought about a last-minute emergency that would prevent any of us from being able to do that, so thank you for that.

In your clinical work, did you ever have the chance to talk to folks afterward about this missed opportunity? Do you know how they felt about it, or have you ever discussed this with anybody in the circles that you revolve in? 129 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

CAROL RIZZOLO: You know, the folks who are in -- when they are in the office, and I also do work in the emergency rooms, when they're there, the last thing on their mind is voting, right? I mean there's been a car accident or their child is screaming or their child can't breathe. And the focus is very much on the crisis at hand, rather than oh, and by the way, did you vote? Right?

So in my role as a clinician, it really wasn't necessarily my place to say so, you know, were you able to register to vote? A lot of them spoke about language barriers, it was a largely Hispanic population, and so just trying to understand like somebody raised earlier that this had been on the ballot in 2014. But it wasn't understandable to a lot of people who could speak English, who knew English, but it also certainly wasn't understandable to them as well.

But more to the point is, I really just didn't feel like it was my role as a clinician to bring up this question, particularly in the midst of an emotional and physical crisis.

REP. PALM (36TH): No, understandable. One more question. You are primary caregiver of your elderly mother, are you not?

CAROL RIZZOLO: That's correct.

REP. PALM (36TH): So for people who also take care of older parents and the unpredictability of that, I know I was the primary caregiver of my mother and mother-in-law and there were falls, there were emergencies that came up all the time, so. Another, as so much of Connecticut ages, I think we're the six most rapidly aging state, we also have to worry about our older folks. And so I think again, thank you for your testimony which takes into consideration those of us who care for older folks 130 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and the incumbent responsibility on keeping them safe.

CAROL RIZZOLO: And actually, I really want to address that point as well, because even though, you know, fear of COVID and the whole discussion that happened earlier. If I was to get sick, my mother has no one caring for her. So even though she might qualify for an absentee ballot because she's almost 99 years old and things can be mailed to her, and I can help her fill them out, that's great. But my going to the polls puts her in jeopardy, whether I go out in an ice storm like we had a couple of years ago on Election Day. You know, I need to know that I have the ability to take care of her when something occurs in her world. And if that's on November, whatever the Election Day is, I'm going to -- I will prioritize taking care of my mother and say well I'm sorry, I just can't vote. But I just don't think that's okay either.

REP. PALM (36TH): It's not a choice anybody should have to make Thank you, Carol. Thank you, Madam Chair. That's it.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. And I think that dialogue points out a key thing we should all remember, is that the rules regarding the elections are written by people for whom Election Day is the end all be all, no matter which side of the aisle you're on. So I think it's important to maintain that perspective that was just shared in that dialogue, so thank you very much for that. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony.

CAROL RIZZOLO: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next, we will hear from Carol Reimers, who will be followed by Joanna Swomley, and she will be followed by Callie 131 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Heilmann. Carol, the floor is yours. Thank you, welcome.

CAROL REIMERS: Thank you very much, Chairwoman Flexer and Chairman Fox and the Ranking Members, as well as the honorable Committee Members. I am Carol Reimers, I'm president of the League of Women Voters of Connecticut and I am here to urge you to support HJ 58 and HJ 59.

The League of Women Voters of Connecticut is a nonpartisan statewide organization that works to make voting accessible to all voters. We have made no-excuse absentee ballots a priority issue since 2009, and early voting since 2013. And over the past years, we have seen a lot of changing in people's opinions about particularly absentee voting and the 2020 election experience has really made that, brought that home to many people in their lives.

The focus for elections has to be the voters, and we believe that every citizen should be protected to have the right to vote. We also want to encourage maximum participation, so the league supports measures that will assure not only that the absentee ballot privileges are available to all electors, for any reason, but also for no reason at all. As we saw from the Connecticut voters who participate in the 2020 election and that one-time chance to vote absentee because of COVID, the number of voters who took advantage of the absentee voting was truly impressive.

And many voters made the effort to get that information from the Secretary of the State and organizations like the League of Women Voters to make sure that they understood how they were going to vote by absentee, and then were able to go ahead and vote with the process that was in place.

So I think it's very clear that the option of absentee voting for voters was truly embraced. We 132 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE did a post-election voter experience survey after both the primary and the general election, and overwhelmingly the response was people loved the opportunity to vote by absentee, they wanted it to continue. They felt that it was a way for them to exercise their vote without fear of any concerns about whether they can get to the polls or feel safe at the polls.

But also, you know, we know that there's a large number of people who prefer to vote in person, and so that needs to be an extra option for people as well. And early voting provides that option, particularly for people who can't get to the polls on the day of election as had been noted here before, that it's not always possible for one day to show up and to be at that the polls. And that option of early voting then helps all the under- franchised communities, the communities who have difficulty because they have a job commitment --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

CAROL REIMERS: Okay, and so just in conclusion I would like to say again, elections are for the voters and removing this unnecessary barriers to voting is absolutely necessary to preserve our democracy.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Thomas, the floor is yours.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I thank you, Madam Chair. Hi Carol, how are you? I can think of no other organization that is more bipartisan but more committed to making sure that everybody has access to voting, so I want to read something. It's a piece of testimony that was submitted for this hearing for someone who's not speaking and they wrote, in part, they didn't put their name on it, so I couldn't follow up with them. 133 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

They said "Vote no to any changes that makes it easy for illegals and undocumented to vote and for voter fraud we witnessed in Connecticut and throughout the state. Without voting integrity, we have nothing."

And I would just love to hear your response, your anecdotal response to something like that about integrity, because I do think people misread this as a partisan issue, and I don't mean to put you on the spot, but I would love to hear your thoughts.

CAROL REIMERS: Well, I think, what we found is that many people did not really always understand how the process is done in Connecticut for elections. The Secretary of State earlier alluded to the fact that we have this application process. The application has to be verified before someone gets a ballot, there's a lot of checks and balances. In fact, we want citizens to recognize more and more the hard work that registrars and elected officials and town clerks this year had to put in.

And we don't get to see as one of my colleagues put, you know, what goes on behind the curtain. Many voters just show up, they give their name, they get their ballot, they vote, they walk away and they feel good about it, which is wonderful. That's what we want. But behind the curtain, there are a lot of people. You know, we heard from someone who was observing polls in other states. There's a lot of people who are contributing to making that safe and accessible for people.

And you know as far as voter fraud, I've heard a lot of back and forth about it. I think that we know institutions like MIT have conducted a study looking over 20 years of elections and found that I think the number is 0.00006% of voter fraud was identified across the nation, nationally. So, you know, I think that sometimes people confuse maybe a problem at the polls with what they would like to put under the title of voter fraud and it's not -- it's not 134 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE actually fraud that's happening. Maybe it was a mistake, but often those mistakes, you know, as John Erlingheuser said earlier, as a registrar, many of those mistakes get caught and corrected very quickly and again, the voter has no idea that any of this correction had to happen.

I think that answers your question.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I believe I may have said at one of your events that people commit fraud on their taxes, but it doesn't stop the IRS from collecting. They just try to educate and improve systems to make sure it's minimized, and I think the same could be made true for voting. Thank you, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Blumenthal.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you Ms. Reimers for being here with us today. I appreciate your testimony. You represent one of, if not the premier nonpartisan organizations in our state. We heard testimony and some commentary earlier that entrusting decisions about absentee voting to the Legislature would somehow make it a partisan issue. Do you or your organization have any reason to believe that would be the case?

CAROL REIMERS: No, I don't. I think that, again, you know actually I think there's more impact, a direct impact from citizens on their Legislature than they can have changing the Constitution. I mean, we're an organization that was born out of changing a Constitution to allow women to vote, and that took 70 some years, if not longer, depending on when you start counting. I think that allowing the elected Representatives of the people to make the determination, obviously we're hopeful that those elected officials such as yourself are listening to your constituents and listening to the voters and 135 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE hearing what they have to say before you vote on a proposed legislation.

You know, I think that we feel as an organization that this is part of what the practice of good government is, the public having input. Public Hearings like this are for the public, and so, you know, this is an opportunity for Legislators to hear from people and also there are other opportunities to share.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Ms. Reimers for your testimony and thank you, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Next, we will hear from Joanna Swomley who is No. 12 on our list. She will be followed by Callie Heilmann, who will be followed by Susan Zabohonski. Joanna, the floor is yours. Is Joanna here? I don't believe she is, so we will move forward to Kelly and Joanna will be given an opportunity if she comes back on, when Kelly has concluded her testimony. Callie, welcome, the floor is yours.

CALLIE HEILMANN: Hello, thank you. Hello Members of the GAE Committee. My name is Callie Gail Heilmann and I am the co-director of Bridgeport Generation Now Votes and a resident of Bridgeport, Connecticut. At Gen Now Votes, we are on a mission to strengthen democracy in Bridgeport and increase voter turnout in our local elections. We are a member of the Connecticut Safe Vote Coalition and organize our own Bridgeport Safe Vote Coalition, which includes our important grassroots partners, the Council of Churches, Make the Road Connecticut, PT Partners, the Greater Bridgeport NAACP, and the League of Women Voters, Bridgeport area.

Thank you for your leadership on HJ 58 and HJ 59. We strongly support these Bills because they 136 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE strengthen our democracy and expand our voting rights. By limiting in-person voting to Election Day and by placing restrictions on who's eligible to vote early by mail using an absentee ballot, our state is engaged in a system of voter suppression. These constitutional restrictions disenfranchise Connecticut's low income working class citizens, while creating significant burdens on our disabled, homebound and elderly voters. In order to create an inclusive, multiracial democracy in the state, we need real structural change.

For the voters of Bridgeport, these amendments would revolutionize our local elections. While there is no widespread voter fraud in Connecticut, for generations it's been an open secret that Bridgeport voters suffer under absentee ballot fraud and abuse. Political operatives abuse the absentee ballot process by targeting, lying to, and manipulating our youth, elderly, disabled, low income and Spanish- speaking residents, all for the purpose of controlling the outcome of our local elections.

The closed nature of Connecticut's elections and the burdens placed on voters to exercise our right to vote means local elections in our state can be manipulated when political actors are highly motivated. When we sued city officials after Bridgeport's 2019 mayoral primary, the evidence presented at the 2019 trial with Ganim proved that certain political operatives in Bridgeport are paid to solely distribute AB applications, which is against state law, that they lied to voters about the laws governing who is qualified to use an AB, which is against state law; that they forged voter signatures and applications, which is against state law. That they take voters ballots from them, which is against state law; and that our town clerk was using antiquated methods of tracking ABs which caused them to mail out duplicate ballots, flooding the system.

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This behavior in Bridgeport is not new. The lawsuit just brought it into the light. Bridgeporters have known for decades that the game is rigged and it drives our voter participation and our civic engagement down. From 2015 to 2019, Bridgeport saw a 23% decrease in voter participation in our local elections.

What we need is to be freed from this abusive system and we, the voters of Bridgeport, know best what the right solutions are.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

CALLIE HEILMANN: I'll just say in closing that by passing these two Resolutions, we create the opportunity to enfranchise Bridgeport voters to vote on their own accord and their own timeline and it dilutes the power of abusers to target and manipulate our local election results. I know you all believe strongly in democracy, in voting rights and fair elections, and it's time to strengthen it in Bridgeport and expand our voting rights by letting the voters of Connecticut decide.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions from Members of the Committee? Senator Sampson.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much, Madam Chairman, and thank you for being here today, Callie, I appreciate your testimony very much. Mostly because it was very balanced and that you see the world clearly, you recognize the importance of opening elections to as many people as possible and making sure that there are as few barriers as possible, but at the same time, we have to recognize that there is an element of fraud that does exist and we have to be mindful of it and find solutions.

You close your remarks by suggesting that there is a solution and Bridgeporters know what it is. And I just want some clarification, that's all, because I 138 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE would like to really focus on finding ways to expand our means of voting while maintaining that integrity. And I just need some cooperation, because it seems like almost everyone that testifies is just blind to everything other than, we need to expand voting because otherwise our social justice crusade is being interrupted.

Instead of saying, yes, we want to expand voting. I know everybody does. But we have to recognize that there have to be rules to follow so that we can make sure it's a legitimate election and no one is disenfranchised. So what would you suggest to improve the two proposals that are before us to make sure that we don't have the kind of fraud in Bridgeport that you mentioned, or elsewhere in the state?

CALLIE HEILMANN: Well, my testimony here today is in support of the two Resolutions so that the voters of Connecticut can decide on a ballot referendum whether to amend our Constitution. And our position as a Bridgeport-based coalition and as Bridgeport voters is that if we removed these restrictions from our Constitution, then we could go in as the Legislature and create the very system that enfranchises voters, expands our voting rights and strengthens our democracy. So we are in full support of these two Resolutions and look forward to them being on our ballots, hopefully next year.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I appreciate your comments, Callie, and I can understand that you're in support of early voting and no-excuse absentee. But I don't understand how that relates to what you said about fighting the problems in Bridgeport. If you open up no-excuse absentee voting, you're essentially allowing those political operatives that are motivated, that you mentioned, a whole new means to canvas for voters and create more fraudulent absentee votes. Are you not?

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CALLIE HEILMANN: No, actually, because those questions would be raised in a legislative process. And our position, as Gen Now Votes is that we would like to see Connecticut move to an all mail-in voting system where every eligible, registered voter is directly mailed a ballot and then the voter can choose between voting by mail or voting in person early or on Election Day, whatever the choice of the voter is.

And the reason why we support that system as the ultimate vision and the end goal is because the very nature of the absentee process lends itself to abuse. So the idea of an application that, you know, this application process inserts itself and inserts partisan people who want to abuse the process into the voters, you know, it gets between the voter and the voting booths. And what we would like is to see the whole system gone eventually, because what we know in Bridgeport is that when highly motivated people do take advantage of it and abuse it, in order to rig elections. And what we see is that these, like, restrictions placed upon who is eligible for a an absentee ballot is the reason why the manipulation and targeting is happening.

And so our solution, right, is first we must pass these Resolutions so that the Constitution can be amended, so that then we can legislate the whole process.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): So Callie, what I'm hearing from you is that we must expand voting before fixing these problems? I just want to suggest that, you know, this Committee meets every year, and every year there are proposals to audit absentee ballots that would catch a lot of the fraud that you described in Bridgeport, and it's never been adopted. The majority party, while I respect them very much, they don't see a problem with these Bills. They don't advance them out of the Committee. They're never raised for a vote. 140 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

What makes you think that if we suddenly expand to no-excuse absentee voting that they're going to adopt anything close to what you're describing? They're going to keep the same exact process, I can only imagine that it's going to have the same application process and so forth, and there will be no additional audits or anything.

Well, let me ask you this question. So if we ultimately are passing the Bill for final passage in the State Senate, are you going to approve of my no vote, which will be simply because we're doing it without inserting any protections whatsoever?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Senator Sampson, I would ask that you ask the person who's testify for their opinion related to the legislation and Resolutions before us, not her opinion on your potential forthcoming vote.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well, it's more or less the same thing, Madam Chair, but I understand. I'll rephrase the question. It's simply, Callie, I'm asking you if you would understand that people might not want to support the legislation because it doesn't have the checks that you are advocating for.

CALLIE HEILMANN: Well I'm just here to testify in support of the House Joint Resolution 58 and 59.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I appreciate that. Thank you very much and it's duly noted. And forgive me, I got the wrong impression, I guess. When you started to speak about your concerns about this fraud, I thought that you and I might be on the same page to say yes, let's expand voting, but let's put some checks and balances in there. Sorry if I misunderstood. Thank you, Madam Chairman.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Senator. Are there other questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Thomas, the floor is yours. 141 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Good afternoon, Madam Chair. Here I am again. I just want to state for the record because I took great exception with what my colleague just said, that my desire to bring greater accessibility to the voter process for residents across the state, I do not characterize it as a social justice crusade, nor do I think many of the people testifying here today would follow that characterization of our appeals, if you will. Yes, there are rules. Yes, we all have to follow them, as we have in every election that has happened in the state of Connecticut up to this point. And yes, there is room to refine some of those rules, which no one is arguing.

In fact, I believe it's Rep. Rosario who's on this call today, did put in a Bill about Election Day monitors, which would help restrict exactly the types of things we're talking about. And I would also just with respect say that I am new to the Legislature --

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Point of order, Madam Chairman.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): None of my colleagues --

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Is my colleague asking a question of the witness? It's not a place to debate.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Whoa, you will not restrict me in this way, Senator Sampson, with all due respect.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Okay, wait, let me just clarify. Hold on. Hold on for just one moment. Representative Thomas, you do have the floor, but if someone has a question or something to say, they speak through the Chair and to the Chair, not to each other. The Chair runs this public hearing, and that is the way it works.

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SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Point of order, Madam Chair.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): So my question for Callie --

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): I'm allowed to speak when I make a point of the order.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I have the floor.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Point of order, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Representative Thomas, hold on just a moment. He has a point of order which does stop the hearing. Senator Sampson.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you, Madam, Chairman. My point of order is that Representative Thomas is allowed to ask the witness as many questions as she wants, but she's using her time to debate me without my opportunity to respond. I hope that she is just as willing to debate me when we actually have the meeting on these Bills and we get to actually go through many, many examples of fraud, and we can talk about whether it's real or not.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes, thank you.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): You know, I just, I would like to see the witnesses get their chance to have their questions answered.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Senator. So I would just ask moving forward, there have been several Members of the Committee who have made statements before asking their questions of people who are testifying today. The time for the Committee Members to debate each other will be when this is on Agenda for a Committee meeting, so I would ask that everyone tried to be respectful first and foremost, of all of the members of the public who are waiting for their turn to testify today. We 143 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE still have more than 120 people left to be heard, and I don't want us to get bogged down and use a lot of our time today debating each other or having discontent within the Membership.

So Representative Thomas, the floor will be yours again. I know you are about to ask the person who's testifying a question. And I would ask that all Members please try to be clear in their questions and they go to the testimony that the member of the public is actually giving. Thank you. Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Madam Chair and Senator Sampson I do apologize. I am new to the Legislature so obviously I've just been following what I've been seeing in hearings across the board. So I apologize if I have done something that is untoward.

My question for Callie, so getting back to -- we do have Bills in front of us like Rep. Rosario's Bill and some others. So my question for you, I've asked others, do you think there's a reason that we cannot walk and chew gum at the same time? Like, because we make the constitutional change, can we not consider the other Bills? Can't we do all of this at the same time?

CALLIE HEILMANN: Yes, if you're asking for -- yes, our organization actually brought the election monitor issue to this Committee during the Special Session last year and got it in place for the presidential election cycle. And we have been working with Representative Rosario to get it for the next several election cycles, two years.

And so I agree, yes. We can do it all. We can both address the issue that Bridgeport voters believe is holding back our local democracy and suppressing the vote in Bridgeport, and we can amend, then put the question to the voters of Connecticut to amend our 144 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Constitution and expand voting rights across the state. Yes, we can do it both.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you for your thoughts and your efforts in this behalf.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Mastrofrancesco, the floor is yours.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Madam Chair. Callie, it's nice to meet you. Thank you for your testimony today. You had mentioned that there was voter fraud going on in Bridgeport regarding absentee ballots, and that it would be okay if the Legislature stepped in to put some guidelines around that. What would you suggest that they do that would help the voter fraud that you talk about in Bridgeport? What would you recommend that they do?

CALLIE HEILMANN: Well, my testimony today was specifically to say that it is our position that amending the state Constitution to lift the restrictions on absentee balloting would alleviate the problem with absentee ballot abuse in Bridgeport, specifically because it dilutes the power of political operatives to game the system.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And how would it dilute the power?

CALLIE HEILMANN: Because whatever -- well first you remove all the restrictions from the Constitution, right? That's the very first thing that has to happen, so that the Legislature can go in and build a system that allows Connecticut voters to vote by mail. Now if we -- if every single voter in Bridgeport receives an absentee ballot application in the mail, then every single voter in Bridgeport is equally enfranchised to vote by mail.

The current system that we have, political operatives know that the only people who quote 145 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE qualify for an absentee ballot are disabled and elderly people who are homebound and sick, and they target those populations, right? And then, so it creates an unequal system in Bridgeport, and then that system, that unequal system is then abused even further as operatives not only target, but then lie to and do all kinds of shenanigans.

What we are here to do today is to remove those restrictions from our Constitution so that we can create a system that enfranchises all voters equally to vote by mail and to vote early.

Now in Bridgeport, we saw a record turnout in the presidential election of 72% which was significantly higher than other Connecticut cities, and the Bridgeport voters that we spoke with really enjoyed having that access, receiving the application in the mail. They really enjoyed the ballot drop boxes, so our perspective is that we want to end this absentee ballot system, period.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So did your group see any complaints or problems with ballots like you had mentioned in the 2018 election, where you said that there was a lot of fraud going on compared to the 2020 election? Because obviously, the more -- ballot applications were mailed to everybody, so it opens the door for a possibility of more fraud. You were specific in the 2018 -- I'm sorry, the 2017 election, the municipal election.

CALLIE HEILMANN: 2019.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): 2019, I'm sorry. So did you see any difference? Did you see a change between 2019 and 2020, where there was more fraud going on in 2019 than there was in 2020?

CALLIE HEILMANN: Well I'm not here to testify on the 2020 presidential election but I'm here to offer my support for HJ 58 and HJ 59.

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REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, I get it. I'm just trying to understand how doing that is going to help your cause to stop voter fraud, but I understand why you're here just to talk in support of it and you don't really know the answers to the other ones which I totally understand Thank you much, so much for your testimony. Thank you, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Before I call on Representative Palm, just a quick bit of housekeeping. My understanding is that some Members of the Committee are having a hard time with the raise hand function to speak, so if you find yourself in that situation, please email the Clerk and she will let us know that you would like to ask a question. Representative Palm, the floor is yours.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Madam Chair. Hi Callie, it's good to see you. I just have a quick comment, really, and you're welcome to respond to it if you choose to. I find your testimony very heartening because unlike many of the people who spoke and then will speak, there was a clear measurable line of pro and con. It seems to me as though you've had an experience with fraud, but you still believe in the system. And I want to thank you for that, and I want to thank you for your faith that when and if we open up the Constitution and we do move forward with this initiative, that you feel you will be part of that process, because you have access to your government elected officials, rather than being jaded by your experience. So I just want to thank you for that. Because this is exactly what we are here to do is to fix problems when they do occur, as you've experienced, and your testimony gives me hope that we can do that together. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Rosario. 147 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. ROSARIO (128TH): Thank you, Madam, Chair. Thank you, good afternoon, everybody. Callie, thank you so much for your testimony on behalf of the residents of the City of Bridgeport. Being born and raised in Bridgeport and seeing the whole process happening, many of my constituents work two and three jobs, and many of them rely on mass transit, public transportation to get to and from work and necessarily taking time out of their day to go vote definitely makes it difficult for them to do so.

Let's have the conversation about the election monitor another day. I thought it was great this last presidential election. What we see from the people of the City of Bridgeport, they want an opportunity to vote, they want to do it the right way. We want to make sure that we give them the tools to do so, and not be so far behind the curve on like many other states in the country. We want to continue the conversation. Thank you, Callie, so much. Thank you. Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Next, we will hear from Joanna Swomley, and after Joanna we will hear from Susan Zabohonski, and after that Veronica DeLandro. Joanna, the floor is yours. Sorry for the technical difficulty.

JOANNA SWOMLEY: My name is Joanna Swomley. I live in Greenwich, Connecticut and I'm speaking in support of HJ 58 and 59. As the founder and leader of the grassroots organization Indivisible Greenwich, I have learned much about our nation's voting laws. While most states have moved with the times and public opinion to make voting more convenient, Connecticut has remained stuck in a time warp. With limited exception, Connecticut still compels its voters to show up in person on a single day in November, in order to exercise a fundamental constitutional right. When effective and safe 148 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE alternatives exist, this compulsion cannot legitimately be justified.

I would like to address my remarks today to the major excuse proffered by those who do not want to make voting more convenient. The big lie of voter fraud. I'm a lawyer who lives in a fact-based world, on evidentiary based, tired of hearing sweeping allegations of voter fraud without support. After the 2016 election, the Trump-Kobach Commission on Voter Integrity looked high and low to find evidence of widespread voter fraud. Oh, did they want to find that fraud. It disbanded after finding none, including in states that had early voting and vote by mail.

To anyone who cares about the actual facts and the actual truth, the 2020 election definitively puts the light to this time-worn excuse. Court after court after court after court looked at the evidence proffered in Trump's attempt to overturn election results and without exception, dismissed every case. The courts confirmed what every city on the subject has heretofore concluded; there is no widespread voter fraud affecting election results.

And if you think about it, how could it be otherwise? No one could know in advance of counting ballots the names of individuals on local voter rolls who would not be voting. No one would know in whose name to cast all these nonexistent fraudulent ballots. The claim is nonsensical. Connecticut's 2020 election counted more absentee votes than ever in its history, the election was well run, and the election went smoothly. There was no voter fraud that affected the election results in a state, and no one has come forward with evidence otherwise.

The big lie cannot legitimately be used to stop this legislation. Recent polling and Connecticut shows the Connecticut voters want Connecticut to join enlightened states who have figured out how to provide their voters with convenient access to the 149 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE ballot box through early voting and no-excuse absentee ballot voting. At a minimum, Connecticut voters want their Legislators to let them decide if they want to make voting more convenient by putting these options on the ballot box. Please do not stand in their way. Please support and vote yes on HJ 58 and on HJ 59 and allow registered voters to make this decision.

Finally I also asked you to raise Bill --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

JOANNA SWOMLEY: To raise HB 5884 out of Committee to establish a task force to study ranked choice voting, an Act that will better reflect the will of the people. Thank you very much.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Mastrofrancesco.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Madam, Chair Thank you, Joanna. It's a pleasure to meet you and thank you for your testimony today. You had mentioned that about a recent poll. Can you tell me what poll that was that you were referring to?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: Yes, that is the Connecticut poll conducted by Secure Democracy.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, I'm curious, I haven't heard of them, unless -- I mean are you familiar with the organization? Do they have polls just for Connecticut or all over, do you know?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: I know this one was Connecticut based, and if you would like, I would be happy to get the poll and send it to you.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): That would be wonderful. You also mentioned that there was no voter fraud, and we just heard testimony from the 150 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE last person saying that in 2019 there was a lot of voter fraud going on in Bridgeport. Would you agree with that? Do you think that's not true, or are you just referring to the 2020 election there's been no fraud, but in the past, there has? Or there's never any voter fraud at all?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: So thank you for the opportunity to let me speak to that issue. As a lawyer, I believe that people throw around the term voter fraud way too loosely and picking up on what Carol Reimers spoke to earlier, there are instances that don't rise to the level of fraud, which is a specific intent prime. So what's going on in Bridgeport is not fraud the way that we're talking about. Are there instances of bad actors? Absolutely, but there is not the widespread voter fraud that affects an election result.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So what would you consider fraud?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: Where someone specifically intends to cast a vote, knowing that they have no right to cast that vote, and that is not -- it's a little different than what is going on in Bridgeport.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And are you familiar with what's going on in Bridgeport at all? Where you involved in any of that?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: I've tried to inform myself, yes.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, thank you, I just really wanted to know about that poll, if you would be so kind to send that to me, I would appreciate it. Thank you, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Are there other questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Blumenthal.

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REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Madam Chair and thanks for catching my late hand raise. Hi, Joanna, it's nice to see you. Thank you for coming to testify before us. I've one follow-up question that kind of touches on the Bridgeport issue that you were just discussing. You know, we heard from the previous speaker, the previous witness that, you know, one of the issues related to Bridgeport's issues with voter irregularity, shall we say, since it doesn't really meet the definition of fraud, is it seems the way she described it essentially that political operatives try to take advantage of the restrictiveness of our absentee ballot laws in order to get absentee ballots to people who are not currently eligible under those restrictive laws. Knowing that if those people vote absentee, then other people who choose -- on the other side who choose to obey our restrictive absentee ballot laws will be at a disadvantage. Is that a fair approximation of your understanding of what is alleged to have happened in the past?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: I'm glad you caveated it with the alleged, but yes.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Okay, so it seems to me that in that way, or in that alleged phenomenon, the restrictiveness of our absentee ballot laws actually is an incentive to, shall we say, act badly. Would you agree with that statement?

JOANNA SWOMLEY: Absolutely.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Well, thank you so much for your testimony today really appreciate it, as well as all your advocacy. Thanks, Madam Chair.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any other questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and Joanna, I'm sorry for mispronouncing your first name. Thank you, have a good day. Next we will hear from Susan Zabohonski who will be 152 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE followed by Veronica DeLandro who will be followed by Lauren Gray.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Hi, can you guys hear me?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Susan, the floor is yours, yes.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Okay, thank you. Thank you to the Members of the Committee for hearing this matter. I'm a voter in Plainville, Connecticut. I'd just like to first, before I began my testimony, echo Senator Sampson's concerns about having these hearings via Zoom. It's very difficult for people to navigate the website and I consider myself pretty tech savvy and I found that to be true as well. And I also never received a link to the Zoom meeting and I had to, in the middle of the night last night, try to send emails and make phone calls and hope for a response. And I did fortunately get a response and was able to get the link resent to me. So I just think that it's hypocritical that we're trying to expand voter access while we're limiting the constituents' ability to be involved in the legislative process. So with that, I'll begin my testimony.

I'm here today to speak in opposition to Joint Resolution 58 and 59 and the extension of the COVID- 19 Bills, which in my opinion, by its very language is no-excuse absentee voting and does question the legality of circumventing the legislative process to override our Constitution.

During a time where there's heightened public interest in integrity of our elections. I believe that it's extremely important that this Committee be focused on legislation that instills confidence in our electoral process by ensuring its security and validity before proposing any legislation that changes to attempt to expand the voting process. Both Bills, in my opinion, place the cart before the horse, and while a couple can -- and while a couple 153 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE have mentioned that we can walk and chew gum at the same time, we heard that over and over again, it's not prudent to assume that these issues can be dealt with in one year's time or two years' time, when other states have taken several years to implement these changes in their states.

Regarding Resolution 59, there's no language --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Well, in conclusion, I would like to ask that if anyone else has any other -- would like to continue to hear my concerns that they ask me any questions that they have.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Mastrofrancesco.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Madam Chair. Hi, Sue. It's nice to see you. Thank you very much for taking the time out today to share your concerns and your testimony. You were you were starting to say about the other Resolution. Can you just expand on that a little bit more for me?

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Yeah, so there's no language that defines the time limit regarding early voting. This can lead to unintended consequences that need to be hashed out prior to proposing changes to our Constitution. These can include fair campaigning, the cost of staffing of polling locations, the actual ability to staff those locations, the question of who ensures the security of the tabulators and ensures their security and confidentiality of the information, and the list goes on. And are we realistically able to handle these issues prior to implementing these changes in a year's time or two years' time? These things should be hashed out before and Joint Resolution 58 allowing no-excuse absentee ballots opens a whole other set of issues. 154 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I mean, we need to have in place ways to verify who sending these absentee ballots in. We have to list -- you know, we listened to the testimony of many supporting this change who believe it's great, and that there are so many people who got to vote in this last election. However, without solid methods to ensure the validity of these ballots, lack of confidence in our electoral process is perpetuated and I would like to mention many -- they may sadly increase the public's interest in voting. No matter what our party affiliation, we should all want to ensure the integrity of our election process before potentially expanding that process.

I mean, it's the due diligence of our Legislators, first and foremost, to protect the integrity of our elections and thereby instilling public confidence, and then protecting the individual vote. I mean the intended -- go ahead.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And I don't mean to interrupt you, I just wanted to get a quick question in here, because I know there's a lot of other people we've got to get to. So would your concern be that the election, if we did early voting, the election really could -- they could start voting as early -- it could be 90 days out. And a lot of times, many things happened during a campaign that could change people's minds on that. Would that be a concern of yours?

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: That is. Right? I mean, there's a lot of concerns with doing that. The financial cost to the taxpayer, that's a huge concern. I mean, we can put voter fraud aside for now, but there's so many concerns. Do we have the infrastructure to even handle the volume of votes that we're trying to create? We don't even have -- you know, this is all anecdotal. We don't even -- it's anecdotal. We don't even know that expanding this is going to increase the number of voters, but 155 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we have to have all the infrastructure in place in case it does.

I mean, you know, it's mentioned time and again and we're already in a burden in the state financially and to put more burden on the taxpayers at this moment, for issue which we've only heard anecdotal data that says that people you know want to expand this process. I mean, I'm sure, just as many Legislators have heard from people that they're concerned about the integrity of our elections as people who have said "Oh, we love this process." And we even have the AARP guy come on, and you know he didn't give us -- he was asked the question, you know, did people bring up this process beforehand that they didn't have access to absentee ballots, and he couldn't give us an answer. He didn't give us an answer to that.

And so I think everything we are speaking about is all anecdotal evidence and not pure data, so we should be doing studies before this even -- before we even make any changes to our Constitution, I think that we should, you know, we need to take a look at all the circumstantial things that could happen as a result of this legislation and trying to change our -- you know, putting the cart before the horse is not a good idea.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So, and so you bring up a really good point is, and one of them that we really haven't focused on during this public hearing today is what the cost would be involved. Not only for, you know, for the municipalities and of course that cost is always going to be pushed off to the taxpayer. So we certainly need more conversation about that. And then really, we haven't touched much on that at all today during this this testimony, and I think you bring up a really valid point as well. Thank you so much for your testimony, I appreciate it, and thank you, Madam Chair.

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SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Sorry, Rep. Palm had her hand up before me.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): I called on you Representative Thomas. I get to decide who speaks when.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Sorry, I was in the middle of grabbing some lunch. Thank you so much for being here, Susan. I'm bringing my standing desk down. I just want to clarify, we don't have a Bill in front of us about what our early voting or absentee ballot program might look like, so I definitely understand your concerns about how those programs might turn out. I have heard of states that have a 90-day period. I know the Secretary of State talked about the weekend prior. I know AARP talks about two weeks prior, like everybody has. There is a million different ideas out there.

So is there any reason that you think we can't let the voters decide whether or not this is something we should interfere with? And then commission a study, as you suggest, or some sort of cost benefit analysis, or all of these things before a change is actually made? Because the voters would just be saying we can change our Constitution to allow the Legislature to make changes, if we ever decide to do so. I would love your thoughts on that.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Yeah, so I think that the people need to make informed decisions before going ahead with a vote that's going to change our Constitution. I mean, without having all the information, why would we even suggest a change? I think the voters should always go into any vote with all the information being presented to them, and right now all they're hearing is sound bites, which I find kind of offensive. You know, disenfranchising voters and restricting voters and we're making a 157 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE political game, a mockery of our electoral process, by using those sound bites. I think it doesn't do any justice to the voters by using that. I think it doesn't give them full information on what all this could cost the state or what the implications are, what are the unintended consequences quantities of moving this forward? I don't think a change should be made to our Constitution without the voters having all the data to make an informed vote.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): So, I guess I feel like we're conflating two issues. So the vote they'd be making is that -- so Connecticut's the only state in the country where our voter laws are baked into our Constitution. No other state has this problem and that's why you don't hear a lot about this. My headset is saying low battery.

So it's a unique problem in Connecticut. So the Bills that we are -- the Resolutions that we're discussing are, do voters want to allow a change to our Constitution to enable us to have any of these other discussions? So in my opinion, they actually do have all the information because we're not talking about any changes, we're just talking about do they want our Legislature to have the right to make changes as they might occur down the road? I guess I'm not -- it feels like we're conflating two totally separate issues.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: I don't believe that the language of this Bill is --

REP. THOMAS (143RD): My headset died.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: I understand. You know, I'm supposed to be picking my daughter up from school but I don't believe that -- so I'm sorry, your question again was you think it's two separate issues that we were only proposing that this moves forward. I don't even -- I think it's putting the cart before the horse. I reiterate again, I don't think that we should be doing that without having -- 158 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we don't have all the facts. You're just saying let's propose to make a change to our Constitution to allow this but you're not giving everybody the full scope of data that's necessary to make those decisions, so I stand with that. I mean --.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Yeah, I guess I'm not understanding because the "this" is that we could just have the discussion. Right now, we can't even discuss these things because it's in the Constitution. So, in order to I think everybody agrees we need to modernize, tighten up security, all of these things, but many of these things we cannot do because of our Constitution. So, you know, we may be talking in semantics, but I think that the cart before the horse is to try to discuss changes before we can make them.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: But that's not what these -- these Resolutions don't suggest that this is just a discussion. They're suggesting a change to our Constitution. They're not just saying let's discuss changes to our Constitution. Literally by their very nature are a suggestion that we make a change to our Constitution. So passing that forward without having these discussions and having other systems in place for like what you said, for voter verification, ID, whatever, securing the integrity, cost analysis. I mean, I think that needs to all be done prior to even suggesting that we have a discussion about changing our Constitution, so I guess we're going to -- it is semantics and I've heard you guys constantly over and over again using that, well, we're really just -- all we're really trying to do is just discuss. But that's not what Resolutions -- I mean what these, you know, are suggesting.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I'm sorry, you may have misunderstood what I said. We're not, this Bill, these Resolutions are not about discussing. The Resolution is about changing the Constitution. But 159 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we can't discuss until after we change the Constitution, but again, semantics.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: I don't think that's what happened.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): We have so many more people who also --

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Of course.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Palm.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Madam Chair. Ms. Zabohonski, you've been one of a couple of people who have objected to doing public hearings by Zoom. I'm just curious what you would suggest instead? That we meet in person?

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Yeah, absolutely. It can be done safely. I go to the grocery store, I voted in person during the height of the pandemic. You know, the Legislators met in the Capitol building during the height in April, March, April, May. Our numbers are decreased over last year at the same time when you were meeting in person, so I don't see how -- it can be done safely.

REP. PALM (36TH): Okay, thank you.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: Just like everything else is done.

REP. PALM (36TH): I just wanted to say also that there are the possibilities of, you know, using the phone to call in. There are other ways to do this, the written testimony. So it has in fact expanded access to a lot of people. I only want to point that out. Thank you.

SUSAN ZABOHONSKI: I would disagree, because there are many, many people who cannot get on this, 160 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE couldn't even navigate the CGA website to even find how to get on to these hearings. If it weren't for my local Legislators and my relationship to try and keep myself informed with them, I wouldn't even know about these hearings.

REP. PALM (36TH): Well I'm glad that your Legislator was responsive. That's our job, that's good to hear. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you and thank you for your testimony. I do just want to point out that on the General Assembly website, there is a guide for how to participate in this new setting and this new format, and it has clear instructions. And I know that this Committee, or Clerk and our Committees are very responsive to emails ensuring people who wanted to participate today could get in. Thank you again for your testimony.

Next we will hear from Veronica DeLandro, followed by Lauren Gray, followed by Shannon Lane.

VERONICA T. DELANDRO: Good afternoon, can you hear me?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes, we can.

VERONICA T. DELANDRO: Okay, sorry, thank you. To the distinguished Members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, my name is Veronica T. DeLandro and I live here in New Britain. I gave this written testimony in July regarding LCO No. 3576, AN ACT CONCERNING ABSENTEE VOTING AT THE 2020 STATE ELECTION AND ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION. I just want to thank you for your support to ensure Connecticut residents have the ability to vote by way of absentee ballot or in person during the 2020 primaries and the general election.

The purpose of my testimony today is to ask for your support for HJ 58 and HJ 59. When COVID-19 hit 161 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voters statewide, Members of the Legislature and Governor Lamont and Secretary Merrill jumped into action to safeguard voter rights and ensure that voting would be safe, secure and accessible throughout the pandemic. The Governor had to sign an Executive Order to allow all eligible CT residents to vote absentee in the 2020 August primaries.

The truth is that despite these temporary reforms, Connecticut, as the Secretary mentioned earlier this morning, still lags behind our neighboring states and across the country when it comes to voter access. We should not be one of the seven states that does not allow -- provide early voting. We have some of the strictest voting laws in the country, and that is nothing to brag about.

Absentee voting is restricted to specific situations. It's not something that everyone has the ability to do when they're not able to vote in person. The time is now for all Members of the Connecticut General Assembly to support these voting rights expansions, and I also want to talk about restoring voting rights for individuals on parole, as that is an issue that strikes at the heart of social and racial justice. Stripping the right to vote from those on parole is an act of disenfranchisement that has disproportionately impacted communities of color in Connecticut for far too long.

And before I close, I just needed to make a comment on what I've heard earlier this morning regarding sound bites and regarding a comment made by, I think a Member that said that no one is being disenfranchised. If you want to vote, go vote. It is so simple to say what someone can and cannot do when you have not been in their situation on how they can and cannot vote in person or have the ability to vote in person. We need to be mindful of the opportunities, to provide access and 162 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE opportunities for all Connecticut residents to have the ability to vote.

And another comment was made in terms of we gave everyone the access they wanted. Nothing is given. This is our right to vote, and so today I'm saying to you and encouraging increased voting accessibility for all state residents. These changes will make Connecticut a national leader when it comes to voter access and voter rights and it's the right thing to do. I thank you so much, and I yield the rest of my time.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Thank you. Thank you again for your testimony. Next is Lauren Gray, who will be followed by Shannon Lane, who will be followed by Tony Morrison.

LAUREN GRAY: Hi everyone, I'm sorry, I have my one- year-old here so he's trying to take the laptop. But I just want to thank you guys for hosting this over Zoom so people like me can access the hearing without driving to Hartford and taking away time from family members.

I'm here today to testify in support of early voting and no-excuse absentee balloting. And I've heard several comments today, and anyone concerned about access to technology should all be concerned [inaudible] for elections. Early voting extends the opportunity for voters and parents to have more than one option to vote. When I lived in North Carolina and Georgia, we both had -- in both states we had access to early voting and no-excuse absentee balloting. When I moved here to Connecticut, I was very shocked and having met many voters who just moved here over the past year, they are also shocked at how antiquated our laws here in Connecticut.

My main points, I'm going to summarize, CT is behind in access to the ballot. Vote by mail is safe and 163 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE secure, and access to the ballot via early voting and no-excuse absentee for all in our communities that struggle with Election Day voting, people want to participate.

One example, when I was canvassing I met a single mom with three kids who told me she couldn't afford to vote. She had to take time off her job, wait for the bus, stand in line for the bus, and then stand in line at the polls, while she was paying for childcare while she was gone. She knew she could not legally vote the absentee ballot without one of the listed excuses, so she had never voted, and that's one very real example.

I heard a lot of talk about the Constitution, well laws are meant to be updated with the times, and that's why there are amendments. It's past time that Connecticut updates it's voting laws. Voting by mail is also very safe and secure, and many states like where my brother lives in Oregon, have been doing this successfully for years. In fact, [inaudible] do not have polling places.

So in conclusion, I asked all of you please vote to support early voting and no-excuse absentee balloting in Connecticut.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions from Members of the Committee? Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Hi, thank you, Madam Chair. Hi Lauren, sorry your comments timed out very briefly in the beginning. You said something about technology and at the end you said something about Oregon. Can you just repeat those two things?

LAUREN GRAY: Yeah, sorry, our Internet is not great here today, but I said anyone on this hearing who's concerned about [inaudible] for hearings should also be concerned about access to the ballot for elections. And in regards to Oregon, I said that my 164 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE brother lives in Oregon and they only vote by mail. They actually don't have polling places, so voting by mail is not only safe and secure, it is also being done by mail every year.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Great. Thank you so much, and hello to your little one.

LAUREN GRAY: I know. Parenting today, another reason we need early voting and no excuse absentee balloting.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there any other comments or questions from Members of the Committee? Well, thank you for your testimony and I don't want you to be finished because frankly seeing your baby is the highlight of the meeting.

LAUREN GRAY: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you so much for your testimony today. Up next we will hear from Shannon Lane, who will be followed by Tony Morrison, who will be followed by Beatrice Pickett.

SHANNON LANE: Hi, Senator Flexer. Thank you everybody, and I wanted to echo what Lauren said. If this hearing wasn't available on Zoom I would have had to pull my two kids out of school and risk exposing them and myself to COVID up in Hartford, so I absolutely agree that we need to address the digital divide and make technology accessible to more people. But I am grateful for the opportunity.

My name is Shannon Lane. I'm a social worker, I am a faculty member at Yeshiva University in New York City and I research voting rights and access with the Humphries Institute for political social work at UConn. I also serve as the deputy registrar of voters in Bethany and I've worked every election, I think, since 2016 here in town.

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And I wanted to first highlight my support for Senate Bill 901 and House Bill 6464 to extend the COVID-related changes. You know, Bethany is one of the four towns and one of many boroughs that has spring municipal elections, and I remain concerned about the COVID-19 related risks for our registrars, our poll workers, our town clerks and our voters, particularly those who while they may not be ill themselves, have family members with significant concerns that they need to take care of and other reasons that they can't make it to the polls safely.

My Republican counterpart and I counted more than 1,000 absentee ballots in the November election and the process was safe and secure, and it also meant that the people who chose to vote in person had the ability to do that in a more safe manner because there were less people in the polling place and it was easier for us to create social distancing for them, and provide them the space to vote safely in person, if they chose to do so.

You know I think we, you know, there's been a lot of talk today about voter fraud, but I also think there's some really important opportunities here to highlight the work that the registrars and the town clerks and poll workers are doing in order to enact Connecticut's current voting laws and to make sure that our voters have access to the polls.

I also wanted to highlight, I hadn't heard anybody mentioned yet that the ballot boxes that we used in November were really key to that election being safe and secure for people so that they didn't have to rely on the postal service to get their ballots in or risk coming into town hall to interact with the staff there, and that was really key, and I hope that that continues to be an option.

Also, like many people we've heard from today, I support the two Resolutions to amend the state Constitution to allow for early voting or expanded absentee ballots. You know, and I think that, you 166 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE know, I want to reemphasize that so many States already have early voting and that we're an outlier. Secretary Merrill mentioned earlier that when she talks to other Secretaries of State they're really surprised to hear about some of the voting laws in Connecticut. I train social workers and social work students across the country to engage with voter engagement. When you have people from Texas who are really surprised to hear about the limited hours folks are able to vote, I think that's a real marker for me that some of the decisions that we're making, we need to reexamine those. So thanks for your time. I'm happy to answer any questions.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Thank you again for your testimony.

SHANNON LANE: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next, we will hear from Tony Morrison, who will be followed by Beatrice Pickett. Is Tony here? All right, I do not see Tony so I will move on to Beatrice Pickett and we will go back to Tony if they show up in the Zoom.

TONY MORRISON: I am here.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Oh hi, Tony. Okay, the floor is yours, Tony.

TONY MORRISON: Hang on a minute, I'll just start the video. Hi, my name is Tony Morrison. I'm an elected municipal official in the great town of Southington. I'm also an immigrant and one of the gifts that citizenship gives you is the gift of voting in the freest country in the world. And it's not a gift that should be taken lightly, in my view. I'm also obviously a voter myself. And for that reason, I would like to talk in testimony against HR 58 and HR 59.

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I'll restrict my comments to the absentee ballot issue, because otherwise it would go far beyond three minutes. It's interesting that when you talk about outliers, the US -- well, I should say the US states because the state's determine the election, the 50 states are actually outliers in the rest of the developed world where the [inaudible] Asia, even South America because a lot of those countries have moved in totally the opposite direction. And what they've done is they've constantly actually restrict it more, especially the absentee ballot issue, and they've gone more against, you know, less excuses and they've tied it down.

The country I voted in before I became a US citizen, for instance, has far more restrictive voting things in order to combat fraud. Now, the US has gone the opposite way. The US in the pursuit of maybe bringing in as many people as possible to vote has essentially gone the other way and said, let's open up as much as we can and we will deal with the risk as we go along. And it may be not particularly good, especially for our situation which obviously the US is different from other countries.

The issue -- there's two issues here. The first is fraud. There is fraud, and you know, I think everybody has recognized that on the call. You may disagree on how much there is, how relevant it is, but the problem I have is exactly as the Supreme Court said in one of their decisions which was, essentially, the case demonstrates that not only is the risk of voter fraud real, but that it could affect the outcome of a close election. And now voter fraud in terms of absentee balloting is the most common, right? And the reason is because the chain of custody is lost and states that have opened up mail in to everybody have addressed this issue by very, very serious checks, which was talked about earlier. You know, you actually make sure the data is there correctly from that point of view, and you have serious checking mechanisms such as a signature 168 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE verification. Colorado, for instance, which was mentioned, has a very effective signature --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

TONY MORRISON: I just want to finish, can I just make a point? The other point I was going to make very quickly was that imposing a very serious change upon a system that isn't geared to do that is going to lead to serious problems. And I'll point you to the New York 22nd Congressional District in New York, they just this month sat the candidate, because the election went through three months of court cases, of audits and everything, because New York came up with the same thing that we did. And because of that, in a close election that made a difference, because when you audit everything, and certain things were turned up. Not just fraud, but also processes that the system was not able to handle.

So going forward, don't sort of do magic bullet things like this. We have to make sure our election systems, the data and the processes are tried and tried again before we go down this road. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mr. Morrison. Any questions? Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I raised my hand before you finished, so we may end up disagreeing, but thank you for being here. I feel like we've heard from so many people. I myself, as I said earlier, I'm a commuter, I represent towns in Fairfield County where so many people work in Manhattan, and let's assume that post-pandemic we will again. And, you know, I usually leave before the polls open and I sometimes think I'll make it home, but I don't. But we've also, you know, I've heard from other people, we heard from someone today who is a caregiver for a parent. I've heard -- I've talked to many mothers in particular who confess to me they hadn't voted sometimes because they have three little kids under 169 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the age of seven and they couldn't get the one out of bed and get to the polls, like so on and so on.

Do you agree that perhaps -- I think other than COVID, our last change to absentee ballot exceptions I think was made in 1981 or something like that. There was a time, I think '81 we added poll workers didn't have to present themselves at their poll that day. We've added active duty, all of these different changes. Do you think it's time to expand our absentee voter language so that we can address some of these modern-day situations?

TONY MORRISON: Oh sure, sure. I mean I'm not -- you know, I'm not arguing that we go to what say countries in Europe have done, and Japan, for instance. It only allows absentee balloting if you're disabled. Most countries in Europe do not allow absentee balloting at all unless you're outside the country, and I think that's too restrictive, especially for where we are now. But there's a world of difference between the Legislature discussing what's reasonable. And I think the things you mentioned about young children and stuff doesn't fall under the disabled or medical reason, really should be discussed. Other things, no.

I was the executive at an office in Stamford, I commuted there every day from Berlin I lived in for a time. I had an office in New York. I commuted there for 10 years. I had an office in Boston. I commuted there for 10 years. And in addition, international travel. I'm going to miss voting. And if I had, if I was going to be out of the country, I would have taken advantage of the process that exists.

You know, so I think there are things that need to be addressed and need to be examined, and I hope the Legislature does that. But to do something like this, or throw everything up in the air and cause problems -- and it may cause fraud, especially in 170 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE close elections. It may cause issues like in the 22nd District in New York where seriously, nobody's going to be happy with that election. Certainly the two candidates aren't, and certainly the voters aren't, because they can't really determine except through the Court what actually happened.

So these are the things I'm concerned about, because every time that we trespass with people's votes, it's a zero sum game because it affects my vote too in the sense that it may outweigh it. So yeah, there are some things that need to be discussed. I hope the Legislature does. It may eventually end in some kind of, you know, change to our Constitution. But let's examine it first. Let's examine the entire system. Let's clear everything up, let's clean the data up and then let's discuss it.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): It sounds like, I'm happy that we are closer than I thought in opinion that one, Europe is way too restrictive, so we probably should not compare our system to theirs. And that we do need to modernize who can get an excuse for absentee ballots, so that's why I support this measure to change our Constitution, so we can have these conversations.

TONY MORRISON: That's not what I said though, I'm sorry, but that's not what I said about Europe. What I was saying was for their situation, they do this. All right? Well, we both have the possibility of election fraud. We both have an issue of absentee ballots because of chain of custody, like everyone across the world does. But Europe has chosen one way or certain, quite a few countries, and we have chosen something else and we're an outlier. Maybe we're looking at something that's the best for our situation.

But, you know, European countries have long had more participation in voting over the US, okay? Not with presidential elections, you know, it starts to get very similar. But their view is we have people who 171 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE are voting. Maybe we don't need to open up as much. We're protecting the vote against fraud, which we know happens and that's what our strategy is around. Whereas we have maybe less participation and people are talking about other ways to magically open up the participation.

I think the way to open up participation at this point in time is more from what somebody testified earlier, I think, Mr. Rapini where he said is the question are people enthusiastic about voting? Not to take it for granted, but to go out and vote in whatever method they can. And that's what we should do, rather than imposing a potential strain on our systems that at the moment do not allow us to handle it.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you. I won't belabor the point. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Seeing no further questions, Mr. Morrison, thank you for your time today to testify. I appreciate you being here.

TONY MORRISON: Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, No. 19, Beatrice Pickett followed by Linda Szynkowicz, followed by Paul Chaplinsky. Ms. Pickett, is Ms. Pickett here? Go right ahead.

BEATRICE PICKETT: Hi, can everyone hear me?

REP. FOX (148TH): Yes, we can. Please proceed.

BEATRICE PICKETT: Thank you, Mr. Chair and good afternoon to the entire Committee. My name is Beatrice Pickett and I'm speaking today as a New Haven resident and on behalf of Every Vote Counts, a student group at Yale University dedicated to strengthening democracy through civic engagement. Our organization champions the nonpartisan belief 172 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE that democracy is healthiest when it's voters represent the entire citizenry, a principle which depends upon robust voting rights and accessible election participation.

In support of our mission, we work to turn out new voters, promote a campus culture of voting and advocate for policies which enhanced voting rights and access. We therefore urge the Committee to move forward with House Joint Resolutions 58 and 59. In providing citizens with more options for when and how to cast their ballots, Connecticut will reaffirm voting rights by expanding access to the polls. Other speakers so far have highlighted the pronounced effect this will have on many demographics of Connecticut voters, including minority and low income communities.

Today I would like to speak to the particular impact that these amendments will have on young adults and college students, an age group that has been historically underrepresented at the polls. Based on my personal experience registering my fellow students to vote and reminding them to turn out on Election Day, I can attest that logistical impediments often mean the difference between young voters getting to the polls and staying home. As young adults haven't yet developed a consistent habit of voting, they are highly susceptible to circumstances that push them off course from their intentions to vote.

Moreover, first time or new voters lack familiarity with election processes. This uncertainty is augmented for college students navigating life away from their hometown for the first time, often without reliable transportation. College students with rigid course schedules may not have the freedom to spend hours in line to vote between classes, lines that will of course be much diminished when Connecticut expands the window for in-person voting. I have known friends who skipped an election because they had their own pressing midterm the next day. 173 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

The solution to these logistical challenges is to provide increased flexibility for all voters, an initiative that will be achieved by implementing early in-person voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Last fall, with expanded absentee voting, many of my peers took advantage of the opportunity to cast their ballot by mail. With early voting, I predict that many students will flock to the polls in their weekend free time rather than on a busy Tuesday.

Voting forms the cornerstone of our democracy and today's young adults represent the future of our state and our nation. It is of utmost importance that students build up strong habits of civic participation during their formative years. For this reason, and others, I urge you to advance these amendments to ensure that our elections provide flexibility to voters and include all citizens. Thank you so much, and I'm happy to answer any questions.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Pickett for your testimony. I appreciate your being here, I appreciate your patience with today's Committee. Really value your insight and those of your colleagues at school. Seeing no questions, thank you for your time very much. Appreciate you being here. Next time, Linda Szynkowicz, followed by Paul Chaplinsky followed by Alan Zinser. Is Linda Szynkowicz.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Yes, I am. I don't know, can you see me? I'm having a little bit of difficulty with my video.

REP. FOX (148TH): I cannot see you but I can hear you.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Okay, let me try this one more time. It is not allowing me to, and I sincerely apologize. 174 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. FOX (148TH): Do you want to fix that and come back in?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: No, there we go.

REP. FOX (148TH): Okay.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: I got sent a link, thank you. Chairman Flexer and Fox, Ranking Members Sampson, Mastrofrancesco, thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak on proposed Bills No. 58, 59, 901, 6464 and express at this time my firm opposition to these proposed changes to voter guidelines already in place per our Connecticut Constitution.

As the founder and CEO of Fight Voter Fraud Inc., a 501c4 nonprofit organization, we firmly believe in one vote for one legal voter. In the state of Connecticut, this is not happening. The Secretary of State Denise Merrill has failed the public in making sure that we have clean voter rolls. Before we can entertain making additional changes to how eligible voters are allowed to register to vote and making changes to our Constitution, we need to clean and maintain, per federal law, the voter rolls of people that no longer live in the state of Connecticut, of those that have passed away, of 11,900 as of December 2019 per the data from Public Interest Legal Foundation's Amicus brief that was also filed in the Connecticut Supreme Court in July of 2020, and was sent to the Secretary of State at the same time, yet they're still on the active voter list. And we also need to identify and remove the 200,000-plus inactive voters. We need to again clean the voter rolls.

The focus should be to ensure only eligible voters are allowed to vote in the state of Connecticut. This isn't happening. According to the database records maintained by the Secretary of State, 1,555 with the same birthday, first name, last name and 175 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE street have two voter ID numbers; 104 of those voted twice in the November election, which means 104 committed felonies and deprived the legitimate voter of their right to a fair election. Six people under the age of 18 voted on November 3, 2020. These numbers are right in the Secretary of State's database and easy to see. 2,650 people voted in person and absentee, according to the Secretary of State's database. These numbers don't even include the Connecticut voters that also voted in other states, of which there are scores of them.

The integrity of the voter rolls and how they are maintained is clearly in question. Our votes are being negated because the Secretary of State refuses to do what we elected her to do, and also per federal law, keep our voter rolls clean. I cannot express enough the need for her to first fix the voter rolls in order to provide accurate information on how many legally registered voters living in the state of Connecticut actually exist.

We can't have an intelligent conversation on making historic changes to our Constitution regarding the citizens of Connecticut and how they're allowed to vote until we have the Secretary of State do her job and protect the voting rights of Connecticut citizens. Again, clean the voter rolls, offer more training --

CLERK: Your three minutes is over.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: So in conclusion, we just can't wave a magic wand and all of a sudden have our voter rolls clean. These Bills that you're proposing I'm not against. I'm only against them at this time, because we need clean voter rolls. You are absolutely putting the cart before the horse and there is absolutely voter fraud in Connecticut. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you. Representative Mastrofrancesco, you have your hand raised. 176 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Linda, for your testimony today. I appreciate it. You mentioned something that was concerning to me that, in a couple of stats, if you wouldn't mind repeating them, 104 people voted twice in the 2020 election. Is that what you said?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Yes. This data is actually in the Secretary of State's database which we purchased and then we did our analysis and we found -- see they send out a duplicate voter list to every registrar of voters at least once a year. So the Secretary of State is aware of who's on the list twice. She just leaves it up to the registrars to decide between the two towns on whether they're going to take the name off. Well, people are taking advantage of that. There's 104 people that voted twice. It's right there in the numbers.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So -- and they were obviously from two different towns. They moved, they were registered in one town, they went and registered in another town. The voter rolls weren't -- and they actually went out on Election Day and went to two different polling places and voted, and they have them checked off as voted?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Right. They are voted -- we haven't double checked yet through our list whether they voted absentee or in person, which we are seeing. We do have people who decided to vote in Georgia and in Connecticut, which no longer -- they no longer live in Connecticut if you check their tax records. They haven't lived in Connecticut in several years, but they voted absentee. And this has happened in multiple states. And it's in multiple towns as we're looking through data, it's your neighbor who has decided to take advantage of these absentee ballots and how the voter list is not being checked and cleaned by the registrars or by the Secretary of State. 177 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

My best guess, between the inactive voters and the ones that were returned in August, which was 110,000 just in the primary, those 110,000, contrary to what Madam Secretary of State said, were not removed before the November election. And some of them even to date still have not been removed. So they were also resent ballots, and then you added another million in, and what the Secretary of State did so we can't get accurate numbers, is this time in November, they were sent and returned to the local registrar. So you literally have to go to every single registrar, pull out their boxes and do a hand count. Because there is no state evidence or numbers to show how many were returned.

We've come across ones that have, you know, deceased written on them. I know multiple times that we've come across those. They've moved. And I even got, in our P.O. box in Middlefield, an absentee ballot request form. I've had that P.O. box for several years for my organization. Never heard of this person before. So this is happening all over Connecticut We just need to clean the rolls first, weed out the people who have committed voter fraud, which the Secretary of State is well aware, just look at her own data. And she can pull out those 104 like that, that committed felonies.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Well it's amazing because we've heard testimony today of people saying that there's no voter fraud, it was a perfectly clean election, and clearly based on what you're saying, and I guess I will have to, if you can send me that information or I'll have to get it from the Secretary of State, if 104 people voted twice clearly they knew they voted, and they voted again. I mean clearly that is fraud. It's very, very concerning. I think, you know, everybody here wants to expand voting. We want people to come out. We just want to make sure the process is done with integrity and that we are stopping any type of voter fraud that there is so people will have confidence 178 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE in the process that we put in place. I think everybody here, certainly well I hope would agree with that.

But it is concerning, 104 people voting twice. You mentioned something too about the voter rolls for deceased was like 10,000? Can you elaborate on that for me?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: There's 11,900 people as of December of 2019, a public interest legal foundation had done an Amicus brief for us, which we were unable to use in the Connecticut Supreme Court because of the vote of the Legislature. But it was there, we do have it. They had looked into Connecticut and the oldest person active on the active voter list was from 1995. There were 430 people over the age of 105 that were still actively voting, and God bless the one that was 139 years old still on the active voter list. They identified 470 people that committed voter fraud, but because we were not -- we're not a law enforcement organization, we couldn't get their names. The Secretary of State, certainly can. She was sent that Amicus brief with those numbers the first week of July in 2020. They even asked to meet with her to go over the numbers, because of how egregious our database was, and it's only gotten worse.

And then when you have people citing polls. Oh, we polled X amount of people, they say there's no voter fraud. That's not how you look for it. It's not all that easy to find. There's a number of different pieces of data that have to be looked at to actually show the proof that the person no longer lived there, that they moved, that they sold their house. Between their tax records and other records that you have to look at that are all public information.

So we are currently going to have an incredible list of people with provable voter fraud but it takes time. This data is incredible that we're compiling 179 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE right now. And we're just asking that the Secretary of State help us out. Do your job. Do what you should be doing instead of throwing it saying, well, it's on the registrar of voters. No, it is her job. You send out that duplicate list, you follow up a month later to make sure that those people were removed. That's not being done.

You know, and the registrars, they are overworked. Some of them only work part time, a few hours here, a few hours there. But before we can have an intelligent conversation on changing voter laws, you need to clean the voter list. So that's what we're doing.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Well, I agree. Well thank you for your work and bringing those issues to our attention. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: I'm guessing, are there any other questions?

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Carpino, I see your hand has been raised.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Linda, thank you for being here. One comment, one question. I agree with you that our registrars and our town clerks have a lot on their plates, and I can speak for my district, and they've all done a tremendous job and they're all working hard, and it has nothing to do with affiliation, but their dedication has finally been recognized after these last elections.

And my question to you is really a request. I looked at your testimony and you highlighted some of the items you just mentioned, but if there are additional facts and documents in support to everything that you highlighted and wrote in your testimony, which I'm sure there are, it would be helpful. So if you don't mind forwarding them over. 180 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I know you've put a lot of time and effort into this. I know I can only speak for myself, I believe in accessible elections that are buttressed only by security and the integrity of our system. So if you could share some of the details of your research I would find that helpful.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Okay, well I will also be turning that over to Dominic Rapini, my board chair who spoke earlier this morning. He's my data guru. I'm the one who's into the weeds, so to speak, with looking at all the information that's coming in. But we will certainly send you the Amicus brief with those numbers and we will also, I believe we can send you our analysis of the state records. And in the near future, we will have it available to you, a hard number of what we found to date of voter fraud. We're not ready to disclose that at this point because we're double checking and triple checking because we want to make sure a potential voter fraud that we have found.

And you should know the process with voter fraud in Connecticut, it's very difficult. First, you have to file with the state election enforcement. They then determine whether or not they're going to investigate, and then they have to have within one year a conclusion. If they don't, it gets thrown out and closed.

If they then can't come with a conclusion, it then goes to a six-panel board to decide whether to dismiss, have fines, or push it on to the Chief State's Attorney's Office. So it's a very long, arduous process that's been set up with not enough manpower in the State Election Enforcement, which should be something else you should look into, is having more resources for the State Election Enforcement, so we don't do a blanket thing of saying "Oh, there's no voter fraud." That's not the case. It's the process that's in place.

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REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you, and I did hear this morning with Representative Fiorello and I know Representative Labriola had a couple of questions for him as well, so good job by both of you. And I appreciate you double and triple-checking but as you well know, this body can sometimes move quicker than folks anticipate, so as soon as you can share that information, it would be appreciated. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Senator Haskell, your hand is raised.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'll be very brief. There are many, many questions I would like to ask, but I'll narrow it to just one. Linda, how are you? Thank you for testifying today. Are you aware that individuals who have not turned 18 but will be 18 by the next election, i.e. individuals who are 17, are permitted in the state of Connecticut to participate in primary elections?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: In primary elections, but they are not supposed to participate in the general election until you're 18. That's both federal and state law.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): That's correct, that's understood, but Linda, in the six people who you mentioned in your testimony who are under the age of 18 and voted in Connecticut, is it possible that they would have turned 18 in time for the general election?

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Absolutely not. Not the way our -- the database is being looked at. And the problem with that, with Motor Vehicles, is they get an asterisk put next to their name. They're still on the voter rolls. So when they -- they can walk in and if the polling person doesn't notice there's an asterisk, which means you need to look at this, they need to show their ID, they're just handed a ballot and they vote. Or, they send in -- apply for an 182 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE absentee, somebody misses it in the system because of that little asterisk, and then they vote. But no, we are absolutely confident in the numbers. It comes right from the Secretary of State's office. She can even look it up today and see exactly who those six people are.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): I appreciate your answer, Linda, and Mr. Chair if you'll indulge just one more question. Why would it be a problem if they showed up to vote and they had an asterisk and they were given invalid? If they're showing up for a primary election and they're under the age of 18 but they will turn 18 in time for the general election, then statutorily they're entitled to vote. And if they are able to preregister in the under the State of Connecticut's current laws, then they would have turned 18 in time for the general election, so why should that young voter be --

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: But what -- you're talking about two different things, Representative. Primary is one thing, the general election is another. The primary was in August. November 3, 2020 they would have to have turned 18 by Election Day. There's no getting around that, and these six people did not turn 18 by November 3rd of 2020, or even by the extension that was given, a couple extra days. Absolutely not.

So there's flaws in the system. The Motor Vehicle Department is supposed to keep clean voter rolls by the 1993 Motor Voter Law, the NVRA, the National Voter Registration Act, within 10 days of someone changing their driver's license. It is mandated by federal law that their voter registration be changed. That only US citizens are allowed to vote.

And this is not being done at all. In fact, Motor Vehicle has changed thousands of party affiliations which people go into just renew their driver's license. We've had people that were changed from Democrats to Unaffiliated. Republicans to 183 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Democrats, consistently, and when I approached the Secretary of State's Office about a year ago concerning this problem, at first I was told, well, they fixed the problem. And I said, no, they haven't fixed the problem. Well, there's some glitches in the system.

You know, so it's become a problem. We need -- our system is absolutely antiquated. Do we need to make changes? Absolutely. But the first thing you need to do is make sure you have clean voter rolls, because the same thing going in and counting ballots or absentee ballots, to try to come up with the numbers, you're not getting to the root of the problem. Were those people qualified? Were they Connecticut citizens.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Sure. I appreciate that Linda and I realize we have a lot of other people signed up to testify, so I will limit myself to just one more question in the interest of time, it is just a yes or no question. There are many serious allegations that you've laid out in your testimony today, so I would assume, I would hope you have referred these specific instances to the State Election Enforcement Commission so that --

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: At a certain point, when we get to a certain number, whether it's at you, 400 or 500 that we will do that. We are still compiling. We have 169 towns, 1.7 million people voted. It is a very difficult, arduous process to go through all the stuff that we're looking at right now. It is not just a simple --

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): I certainly appreciate that, but we don't wait to report a car theft or a burglary until there's a sufficient number. And each and every instance of voter fraud is, as a matter of fact, a violation of state law so I would ask just as a State Senator and somebody who cares deeply about the integrity of our elections, that if you have six people who you firmly believe you claim 184 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE to know who have violated the state law, I hope that you will report all six if you haven't done so already. And, all the other serious allegations made in this testimony. I would like them to be referred to SEEC immediately so that our state laws can actually be enforced.

LINDA SZYNKOWICZ: Well, they're not going to come to any conclusions for at least a year, if they get to them, because they're so backlogged at this point. Since this was a federal election, we will also be bringing that forward federally as well. But you're right, they are serious allegations. And like I said, we're crossing our t's dotting our i's, we already know the evidence we have so far. We've got a long way to go. But all we're asking is for you not to vote for any of the Bills until the Secretary of State actually cleans the voter rolls.

It shouldn't be on us to be pulling out and showing you all the different instances of what we're coming across. She's got 104 people right now. She can very easily look at the data and file those complaints or actually give them directly to the Chief State's Attorney's Office. She can do that right now on those 104 people.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you, ma'am. Mr. Chair, I have no further questions. I will be following up with SEEC to make sure that Linda's organization promptly reports those violations of law. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, very much, Senator. Seeing no additional questions, thank you for your time today. I appreciate your comments here and say thank you. Up next, Paul Chaplinsky followed by Alan Zinser, followed by Matthew Meyers. Is Paul Chaplinsky present? I don't see him. I do not see Paul Chaplinsky. Alan Zinser, the floor is yours, sir.

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ALAN ZINSER: Hello, thank you. My name is Alan Zinser. I live in Woodbury, Connecticut. Thank you for the opportunity to testify in favor of expanding voter access in Connecticut. In support of these measures, I could talk about my 88-year-old mother who was able to safely cast her vote last November, thanks to no-excuse absentee voting. But I think all of you will have heard some version of this same important message, so I want to appeal in a different way to try and get past some of the bad faith arguments that oppose the expansion of voting access, by asking you to do what many conservatives do; to look to the past for the things that that keep our republic vital.

In each of Connecticut's 169 towns, you will likely find the pretty church steeples of our Congregationalist forebears. Beginning with the first Puritan settlements in Connecticut in the 17th century, and through the 18th and 19th century, Congregationalist principles of self-government have had an important impact on the culture and history and politics of Connecticut to this day.

So, if this heritage and these principles are at the heart of our story, why does Connecticut have some of the most restrictive voting access in the country? It is far past time to change that, and I urge you to support no-excuse absentee voting, HJ 58, allowing early voting in Connecticut, HJ 59.

Unfortunately, restricting voting access has become a political strategy. These voter suppression efforts of late are increasingly damaging, with cynical and spurious doubts cast upon the integrity of our elections. There is a massive body of evidence out there that shows voter fraud in the US is not measurable past three decimal points. We must reject fear and bad faith of politicians who cast doubt on the integrity of our elections and on the ability of Connecticut's robust, proven election infrastructure to implement long overdue changes to expand voter access. Thank you so much. 186 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, I appreciate your time and your patience with the Committee today. Seeing no questions, I've got to thank you for your comments and your time today. I appreciate you being here, sir. Thank you. Up next, Matthew Meyers, followed by Sharon Mariotti, followed by Gemeem Davis. Is Matthew Meyers present? I see his name. Hello, Mr. Meyers, how are you. You're on mute, sir. There you go. Thank you.

MATTHEW MEYERS: Hello, I am Matthew Meyers. I'm speaking as a Connecticut resident of 17 years and as a member of Every Vote Counts at Yale. Politics has always been an extremely important part of who I am. Ever since my first introduction to civics in school, I've been obsessed with the promise of politics, I made voter guides for local elections, researched close political races, and devoured political history. But above all, I looked forward to the time not to be able to vote myself.

I finally had that opportunity in the 2019 local elections. But as excited as I was, it was also bittersweet because I knew that many of my peers and fellow citizens were unable to vote or chose not to vote. It was this understanding that our system does not sufficiently encourage civic engagement that led me to join Every Vote Counts. I can reaffirm what my colleague Beatrice said, that convenience is often the deciding factor for many young voters.

Many of us have not developed consistent voting habits, meaning that restricting voting to a busy Tuesday often results in many young voters skipping the process all together. These two amendments make voting measurably more practical and appealing for young voters. Not only will this open the door for young voters in upcoming elections, but the habits it builds will likely have positive effects on turnout for years to come. In this way, by 187 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE supporting the youth vote now, you will create a generation of strong voters.

To address the problems may be some other concerned citizens about the integrity of mail-in votes and early voting, I would first like to thank them for being so concerned with the integrity of our democracy. Just as maximizing participation is essential to a functioning government, so too is maximizing security.

With that being said, mail-in voting and early voting are extremely secure. While there is a limited amount of fraud in any election, early voting and absentee voting are not primary causes of it. Early voting uses the same verification procedures as Election Day voting. In addition, there's very little evidence to suggest that vote by mail leads to fraud. In fact, according to a database collected by the Heritage Foundation, only 0.00006% of total votes cast in the past 20 years have been cases of mail-in voter fraud.

Ultimately, this decision comes down to choosing democracy. The legitimacy of our democracy is being questioned by people across the political spectrum. Voter participation is low, and it seems impossible to hold people accountable when institutions fail to deliver. But the Connecticut General Assembly has the chance to make progress. I want as many of my peers as possible to enjoy the first taste of democracy that I did, that I had, when I first had the chance to vote.

Democracy is at its best when as many people are able to participate as possible, and by passing HJ 58 and HJ 59 you can ensure that so many more citizens have this chance. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mr. Meyers. I appreciate your efforts on behalf of Every Vote Counts and your advocacy here tonight. I want to warn you about your addiction or your obsession with 188 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE politics, it can be dangerous, you never know, but I thank you for being here and participating in the process and for your insights tonight. Seeing no questions, again, thank you very much for your patience with us today. Thank you. Up next, No. 25, Sharon Mariotti, followed by No. 26 Gemeem Davis, followed by Alisa Trachtenberg. Ms. Mariotti. I don't see Ms. Mariotti present at the moment, so we'll go ahead to No. 26, Gemeem Davis. Ms. Davis.

GEMEEM DAVIS: Hello, can you hear me?

REP. FOX (148TH): We can, yes. Thank you for being here.

GEMEEM DAVIS: Okay, thank you. Thank you. To the members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, my name is Gemeem Davis and I'm the co-director of Bridgeport Generation Now Votes. You heard earlier from my partner, Callie Heilmann. Our mission at Gen Now Votes is to strengthen democracy in Bridgeport and increase voter turnout in our local elections.

We are a member of the Connecticut Safe Vote Coalition and we organize our own Bridgeport Safe Vote Coalition, which includes our grassroots partners, the Council of Churches, Make The Road Connecticut, PT Partners, Greater Bridgeport NAACP, and the League of Women Voters Bridgeport Area.

I am testifying today to strongly support HJ 58 and 59. I do so because they strengthen our democracy and expand our voting rights. In order to create an inclusive multiracial democracy in this state, we need real structural change. A system of mail-in voting and early voting would be significant and HJ 58 and 59 affords the voters of Connecticut the opportunity to amend the Constitution, thus creating the legislative pathway to these important prodemocracy reforms.

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For the voters of Bridgeport, the amendments proposed would revolutionize our local elections. By passing these, tens of thousands of Bridgeport voters would be enfranchised to vote on their own accord in their own timeline, which is critical for low income, working class, elderly and disabled people. Making it easier and more convenient to vote increases voter turnout and ensures our democracy is one that represents the will of the people.

In the 2020 presidential election, thanks to the expanded access of absentee voting, Bridgeport surpassed Connecticut's other large cities with a record 72% turnout. To build on that success, Connecticut needs to create the right environment for full enfranchisement and free and fair elections. To be clear, Bridgeport does not have a widespread in-person voter fraud. What we have suffered under here is political operatives who manipulate some of our most vulnerable citizens -- the elderly, disabled and low income people. The manipulation of this process is evidence of a system that has dehumanized, disenfranchised and excluded Black people from participating in the electoral process not just in Connecticut, but across the United States.

By expanding access to voting, Connecticut can begin to right the wrongs of systemic racism and racial injustice. Voters our organization spoke with about the 2020 presidential election enjoyed using the absentee ballot from the safety of their home and the convenience of the ballot drop boxes. According to Common Cause, 73% of all Connecticut voters support giving all voters the option of using an absentee ballot without an excuse, and nearly 80% of Connecticut voters support early voting.

I am confident democracy voting rights and fair elections is of utmost importance to you all. It's time to strengthen our democracy and expand voting 190 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE rights by letting the voters of Connecticut decide. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Davis. I appreciate your advocacy here today. Seeing no questions, I want to thank you for your time and patience. Thank you very much. Next up No. 27 Alisa Trachtenberg, followed by Molly Norris, followed by George Wood. Ms. Trachtenberg, I apologize if I mispronounced your name, if I did. Thank you for being here.

ALISA TRACHTENBERG: Sorry. You're very welcome, thank you for having me. In response to your comments earlier, well not yours, sorry, Senator Sampson's comments earlier, I would like to say that holding hearings via Zoom actually offers fewer barriers to participating in the legislative process than having to drive to Hartford, which is extremely convenient. I detailed that in an email I sent to everybody on the GA, following Senator Sampson's comments this morning.

Voting in Connecticut needs to be more convenient for all voters. During the 2020 primary and general election, as a result of COVID-19, we were given just a taste of just how easy, accessible and convenient voting can be to ensure that no voter would have to choose between their health and the right to vote. It became more than obvious how restrictive Connecticut's voting laws are as compared with those of other states.

We watched as state after state voted early in person or by no-excuse absentee ballot. It was an embarrassment, quite frankly, to learn that our great state is one of only a handful of states that does not offer either early voting or unrestricted absentee voting.

I'm imploring you to vote yes on HJ 58, 59, 6464 and 901. By voting yes on HJ 58 and 59, you are simply allowing your constituents to express our opinion 191 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE whether or not we want to make voting easier. It was said in the meeting, I believe by Mastrofrancesco, that the 2014 referendum -- and by Sampson, actually -- was a straightforward question and people don't want no-excuse absentee ballot voting. That question was very confusing. I have a masters and I had trouble. The new wording is much simpler and clearer.

It seems like a number of the Representatives and Senators are making light of COVID and its risks, which are still ongoing, and will be with us for quite some time. I'm 53, I have congenital heart disease and I'm extremely stressed this year with regard to COVID, and continue to be. My family and I have essentially not left our home since March, as I did not have COVID and my illness did not prevent me from voting in the past, I was worried that if I used it as an excuse, I could be prosecuted for lying.

Likewise, my husband was petrified about going out to vote and getting sick, because he definitely did not want to get me sick and he was worried about qualifying under my illness. So it was really not an option until new legislation was passed, the Executive Order.

Representative Mastrofrancesco implied that no one got sick from voting. She does not know that for sure and many of the most vulnerable people voted from home, thanks to no-excuse absentee ballot voting, which meant less crowding at the polls. My parents, who are seniors and also have compromised health, loved being able to vote from home and drop their ballots in the boxes. I've spoken to many people who are shocked to discover that they will not be able to vote by no-excuse absentee ballot in the future if HJ 58 does not pass with at least 75% majority, they might actually have to wait until 2026, which people have not been really clear about, but it's true for the choice to vote in the future that way. This is unacceptable. 192 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

One final thing, I have a child with special needs, and given that we have ended up in the ER in crisis many times, for many hours over the last few years and sometimes people get sick, knowing that I would be able to vote by either early or by no-excuse absentee ballot is very comforting, because for me voting is a civic duty and it's extremely important.

Let's bring Connecticut in line with other states and give voters the choice to vote in person on more than one a day or by absentee ballot from home. Thank you. Sorry for going so fast.

REP. FOX (148TH): No problem. Thank you, for your testimony. Seeing no questions, I want to thank you for being here and I wish you good health in the future. Thanks for your time and testimony. Next up, Molly Norris followed by No. 29, George Wood, followed by No. 30, Rhonda Caldwell. Molly Norris.

MOLLY NORRIS: Thank you. My name is Molly Norris and I am the field and community engagement coordinator for the Western Connecticut Area Labor Federation and I live in New Haven. Connecticut's voting system is overdue for upgrade. I grew up and became a voter in the state of Oregon where we vote early and we vote by mail. In Oregon, my voting experience was always seamless. I never had to worry. I filled out my ballot in the comfort of my home and either mailed it back or dropped it on my own time without disrupting my productivity or my work day. Because I did a job with an unpredictable schedule and long hours, this ease of access was the only thing that meant I was able to develop the habit of voting at a young age and voted in 100% of elections that occurred.

I was still living in Oregon when the pandemic hit this past spring and my voting process for the primary in May didn't change from the original plan. The state was able to pivot easily, and I was able to vote on schedule. In June, I relocated across 193 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE country to Connecticut. Here I found I had to jump through many additional hoops to vote by mail in the general election and keep my high-risk household safe from COVID-19. That included acquiring a home printer, filling out multiple forms and hoping they were received.

I'm a highly organized person and I almost didn't get it done in time. I was shocked to find out that prior to the pandemic, the criteria for receiving an absentee ballot was strict and that Connecticut offered no options for early voting. If I had spent my earlier voting years in Connecticut, I can't imagine how many elections I would have missed or how many I might miss moving forward if these rules aren't changed. What if somebody has a restricted job, a complicated schedule, parenting duties, limited access to transportation or other limitations not currently accepted? Not everyone has the privilege of flexibility. I believe voting early and no-excuse absentee voting are essential to making elections accessible, equitable and safe.

Speaking of safe, in October 2020 the Oregon Legislative Fiscal Office released data that it concluded the voter fraud rate in the state is about 0.00000006% over the past 19 years. There is no question that mail-in ballots are safe and secure. This isn't about simple convenience, it's about basic access to democracy. HJ 58 and HJ 59 are two important steps forward for Connecticut. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Molly, for your testimony. Seeing no questions, I thank you for your patience and your advocacy and say thank you very much. Next, George Wood, followed by No. 30 Rhonda Caldwell, followed by Paul Bluestein. Is George Wood here? I do not see Mr. Wood at the moment, so we'll move on to Rhonda Caldwell, followed by Paul Bluestein. Good evening, Ms. Caldwell.

RHONDA CALDWELL: Hi, how are you. 194 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. FOX (148TH): Doing well, how are you?

RHONDA CALDWELL: I just wanted to say just for the record, too, that I heard earlier, this remote public hearing process is the most awesome thing ever. Again, I would have had to take my child at a school and travel to Hartford and then put myself at risk with preexisting health conditions to COVID- 19's variants which are present here in Connecticut, so I do disagree. I think that this is a great venue and a way for us to be able to participate in this public hearing.

So, to the esteemed Members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, I'm Rhonda Caldwell, the lead organizer. of Hamden Action Now, of the town of Hamden and a registered voter in the town of Hamden, and I'm demanding equity to the Black and Brown community. I'm writing in full support and in favor of HJ 58, the Resolution proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to permit no-excuse absentee voting, and HJ 59, the Resolution proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to permit early voting.

The state of Connecticut is one of the most voter- suppressed in the nation. According to the Secretary of State in the 2020 presidential election, out of the 2,000,330 Connecticut citizens who were eligible to vote, only 79% of those actually participated in the polls, even with the expanded options. Or, they actually mailed them in. In fact, that was up from 76% in 2016.

Everyone in America, whether you are a Democrat or a Republican, or even unaffiliated with a party, were fully aware of the stakes in the 2020 presidential election. Our communities were in the middle of a pandemic and an economic crisis, the likes we haven't seen in 100 years, yet 20% of Connecticut's registered voters still did not cast their vote. And that's an astounding 474,000 eligible voters did 195 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE not participate in our presidential election. And that was down from 502,000 eligible voters, that's over a half-a-million people didn't vote.

This is not okay, okay? So in a Blue state like Connecticut, which is a state that proclaims to be a banner example of democratic values, which voter inclusion and expanding the tent of voters as a central pillar of the Democratic Party, it's an absolute travesty that nearly half-a-million voters did not participate in our election process. Many of these nearly half-a-million voters did not participate in these past two presidential elections were for various reasons that everyone in the Connecticut General Assembly is fully aware of.

Standing in long lines at polling stations around the state in bad weather. The times in which from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., only making the polls available on Election Day during peak working hours for members of the Black and Brown community is not acceptable. Polls throughout Connecticut are not staffed with bilingual workers, which makes asking questions are getting voting assistance, or getting same-day registration event information is making voting for them nearly impossible.

And lastly, our current process completely disenfranchises disabled Connecticut voters or those who are positive with COVID-19 who just were not physically able to make it out to the polls and did not have any other way to physically submit their ballot.

In closing, I know I'm over my three minutes, but I just wanted to say that, you know, we wanted to talk about earlier and I heard earlier about people talking about the Constitution of the State of Connecticut and it should just be what it is. You know, we have to understand that this document was approved in December 30th of 1865 and it was written by owners of slaves. And I don't think at this particular time in our state's history and the 196 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE country that we live in now, especially after January 6th, that we need to continue to stick by provisions of a document of that age.

The choice is clear. Choose democracy over voter suppression in the state of Connecticut. Thank you for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Caldwell. I really appreciate your opinion and value your insight here today. Representative Palm, your hand is raised.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Ms. Caldwell, I just want to thank you very much for your testimony and add only that while we should all know the reasons for the disenfranchisement, I respectfully disagree with you, reluctantly, because we don't all know it. We should, but we don't. So I hear what you're saying and I hope that these remedies will change that. But what is very clear to you and me is not clear to everybody about the absolute inability for many, many people to vote, who desperately want to. So thank you very much for what you said. I couldn't agree more.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Seeing no further questions, thank you for your time and your patience with us today, Ms. Caldwell. Thank you for being here. Next up, Paul Bluestein, followed by No. 32 Chris Affie, followed by Erin Domenech, No. 33. Paul Bluestein.

PAUL BLUESTEIN: Good afternoon. Can you hear me?

REP. FOX (148TH): Good evening sir, thank you for being here. Yes, sir, we can hear you just fine.

PAUL BLUESTEIN: Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Members of the Committee, my name is Paul Bluestein, I live in Bridgeport and I'm speaking in support of HJ 58. I thought our democracy was built on a foundation of the people expressing their will by voting, and that 197 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE making it easier to vote encourage participation in our democratic system and would be seen as a good thing. But apparently, not every member of the community wants to make it easier to vote. They warn us about the lack of signature verification, wandering bags of ballots, and the specter of widespread voter fraud, while claiming they're not against expanding absentee voting.

I understand. Endless debate, delay and obstruction are always favorite tactics of those who want to stop change. A majority of states allow no excuse mail-in voting, and five states conduct elections entirely by mail. It makes me wonder if there's something especially untrustworthy about Connecticut citizens or political candidates that I should know about.

The recent election which allowed early and no- excuse absentee voting was the most participative and safest election in history, and provided all the evidence needed to change our Constitution for the better. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Thank you again for taking the time to talk with us today. Thank you for your testimony.

PAUL BLUESTEIN: You're welcome.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Christopher Affie, followed by Erin Domenech, who will be followed by Taylor Tucker.

CHRISTOPHER AFFIE: Good evening, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Vice Chairs, Ranking Members and the entire GAE Committee. Thank you for allowing me to testify by Zoom. In the future, I think both options should be available. As a teacher, I could never take an entire day to travel to Hartford to testify. I do not like being out of class. 198 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I am speaking to express my support of all the Bills and Resolutions being discussed to extend no-excuse absentee ballots and early voting. In Cheshire, the use of in-person and mail-in balloting was a huge success with minimal issues, as over 88% of Cheshire voters cast their legal ballots. In fact, the only issue in Cheshire was the misreporting of in-person votes in the 98th District race, at a location, in- person location, in Wallingford. After a recount, there were still no issues with mail-in ballots, only the in-person votes and the proper candidate was declared as the winner.

As stated earlier by Denise Merrill, many typical Blue and Red states use early and absentee balloting without any major issues. Most notably, no issues were brought up in places like Utah and Idaho and in other Blue states, only Georgia, Pennsylvania and other battleground states. This early balloting could be the same in Connecticut. We should always look to improve the process and make sure that all ballots are valid.

In truth, the only made-up issues of widespread election fraud was with some politicians nationwide perpetuating the false narratives of our former president. In fact, a Senator from Cheshire said in a Facebook post, and I quote, "Elections across the country including our own are riddled with errors, disputed results, shocking examples of fraud." This statement is contrary actually to what he said this morning to Denise Merrill, saying that there was not widespread fraud and error. It seems like there's two messages. One for the voters that follow him and one for this public hearing.

Are there are zero errors, disputes and fraud? No, but there is no evidence of widespread fraud that changed any election results. These lies have perpetuated the attempt to suppress voting all over the country and in Connecticut by those that oppose expanding voting. Please move all these Resolutions 199 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and Bills forward. I know the residents of Cheshire want no-excuse absentee ballots and early voting. Thank you very much.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Thank you for your time today.

CHRISTOPHER AFFIE: Thank you. Have a good day.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): You too. Next is Erin Domenech who will be followed by Taylor Tucker, who will be followed by Meg Wolfe. Welcome, Erin.

ERIN DOMENECH: Thank you, Senator Flexer and thank you Rep. Fox and all Chairs for the opportunity to speak today. I was on the hearing for July 21st, 2020 when the Connecticut Legislature held the hearing to allow COVID as a legitimate reason for obtaining an absentee ballot, after it was determined the Governor's Executive Action was not the proper method for enacting this change, and that legislative approval was indeed required.

My testimony during this hearing reflected my concerns regarding potential voter fraud. I have attached the written testimony provided for that hearing for reference. I am speaking today with the same level of concern and for many of the same reasons. It was not difficult for me to foresee that voter fraud will play a part in our election outcomes. This is now the second time I am bringing it to your attention. Your failure to act to protect the integrity of our elections is now no longer an oversight or a mistake. It is intentional and blatant disregard for the integrity and validity of future elections within Connecticut.

If there is no fraud to be had, then you would not be opposed to verifying the truthfulness behind the frequently parroted statement that no voter fraud 200 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE exists. And you would enjoy the "I told you so" moment, proving those of us who speak of voter fraud wrong. The lack of action tells me that it does exist, but that out of sight, out of mind is how you wish to proceed.

The residents of Connecticut deserve transparency. You were elected to provide that transparency. It is well passed time that you do so. The residents of Connecticut also deserve to know the following pertaining to Connecticut's elections process. Connecticut is one of seven states that does not allow recounts. And by that I mean that voters cannot request recounts. Certain machines are randomly selected for a hand count audit, but we have no way of knowing which machines are used, or if the same ones are audited each election.

The only way in which an election can be recounted is if a candidate has lost within a designated percentage, and if that candidate wins a court case within 15 days of that election where a court order is issued stating that a recount is necessary. If more voter fraud exists than just what has been seen on the surface, the residents of Connecticut would never know.

Revisions on the recount law should be the first change, well before adding no-excuse absentee ballots or early voting. Contract awards supplement to, within the original bid, listed Premier Election Services as the contractor. Premier Election Services is a known subsidiary of Dominion Voting Systems, listed within publicly available corporate records. Dominion made headlines across the country and continues to do so. Discovery during their upcoming lawsuits should provide to be very interesting.

Within Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 147 Voting Methods, Section 9-241 references an agreement with you UConn --

201 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

In closing, I would just like to say, would you be inclined to purchase a vehicle from a manufacturer that had known engine and transmission problems if they didn't fix it? But instead sold you the same vehicles with bells and whistles? Or would you want to know that that issue was fixed?

This is one of the most sacred rights that we have, and I hope that before we proceed any further, we will address and make sure that our elections are indeed secure. Thank you for your time.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you for your time and your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Sorry, Madam Chair. I had my hand raised.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Oh I did not even see that. Wait, hold on, just to be clear, people are only to speak at the hearing, no matter what your comment is, when you are recognized by the Chair of the hearing. That includes people from the public who are testifying. Thank you. Representative Thomas, the floors yours.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Hi, thank you so much. Hi, Erin. I just have one question. I just had an epiphany after sitting here for six-and-a-half hours, so I want to -- so you just happen to be the lucky recipient. I guess I'm trying to understand, is your position that we should not expand voter access until we have zero voter fraud ever?

ERIN DOMENECH: That is correct, if we cannot button up voter fraud from top to bottom, then we're doing something wrong, and we need to look into that process to determine what's going wrong and it may not be one thing, it could be a multitude of things, and it could definitely take a lot of legwork to get 202 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE it done. But given that it's so sacred, is it not worth it?

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Yeah, like everything is worth it, but I know there are so many institutions who spend probably billions of dollars to make sure everything goes right, and no matter what the system is -- a corporation, the government, I'm sure United Airlines had wished their engine didn't explode, but I just find it hard to believe that any system could be 100% effective every single time. But you're saying that you think it can be?

ERIN DOMENECH: I believe it can. Look at India. They have voter IDs. That is the one guaranteed thing that they have. It can take them up to five years to get a parking permit, but they all have voter ID cards. That is probably the best way to ensure it, or thumbprint. There are different ways that it can be approached and solutions can be found, and I think it's going to be a combination of solutions. I don't think it's just any one answer.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I would love to unpack India but we're only on No. 33 so I'm just going to let you go. And thank you so much.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Are there any other questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Next is Taylor Tucker, followed by Meg Wolfe, followed by Erica Lavoie. Taylor, the floor is yours, welcome.

TAYLOR TUCKER: Thank you. Hello Co-Chair Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Vice Chairs, Ranking Members and the honorable Members of the GAE Committee. My name is Taylor Tucker and I'm here on public record today to state my support for both proposed constitutional amendments regarding voting access, but will be focusing my testimony today on supporting House Joint Resolution 59, A RESOLUTION 203 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

APPROVING AN AMENDMENT TO THE STATE CONSTITUTION TO ALLOW FOR EARLY VOTING.

I am an able veteran, a current graduate student at the UConn School of Social Work and one of the student leaders of the UConn Hartford Voting Power Corps, which aims to increase the voting power and civic knowledge of UConn Hartford students and our surrounding communities. I was born and raised in Connecticut and I currently reside in West Hartford.

Voting is one of the core foundations of a strong democracy that supports, and in theory, is supposed to represent the voices and needs of all citizens. Yet at the moment, Connecticut is one of only six states that does not allow early voting. Enacting early voting would show every Connecticut citizen that their voice truly matters. Early voting is a simple step that can make a massive impact, centering the working class citizens of our state for the first time in regards to voting.

By allowing people to vote early, it would eliminate the long Election Day lines and allow people to participate in our democracy without having to choose between childcare, work obligations and physically getting to the polls on time. Our state has one of the largest income inequalities in the nation where we have many Connecticut citizens who have immense privilege and have never witnessed long lines to vote, who have never been forced to choose between voting and their economic security.

Yet I can speak for myself from experience that it is not the same for others. This past Election Day, myself and members of the UHVPC supported and celebrated voters at the Grace Lutheran Church in Hartford. If you recall, that polling location was highlighted on the news for having one of the longest lines in the state due to lack of polling place resources. There were multiple people in line that were forced to leave and not cast their vote because they did not have the privilege to simply 204 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE call out of work or have access to immediate family support networks. As an elected official, I believe that it is your duty to enact policies that uplifts and supports all of your constituents, by working to close the voting privilege gap.

In closing again I want to urge you to support HJ 69, A RESOLUTION APPROVING AN AMENDMENT TO THE STATE CONSTITUTION TO ALLOW FOR EARLY VOTING, and HJ 58. Eliminating barriers to voting is the only way in which our state will truly support all of its citizens in their rights to vote. I thank you for your time and consideration and for allowing me to speak publicly today.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and thank you for your time today.

TAYLOR TUCKER: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Meg Wolfe, who will be followed by Erica Lavoie, who will be followed by Fizza Alam. Welcome, Meg, the floor is yours.

MEG WOLFE: Hello, Co-Chairs Senator Flexer and Representative Fox, Vice Chairs, Ranking Members and honorable Members of the GAE Committee. My name is Meg Wolfe and I am here today to state my support for both proposed constitutional amendments regarding voting access. I will be focusing my testimony on supporting HJ 58, A RESOLUTION PROPOSING A STATE CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT TO ALLOW NO-EXCUSE ABSENTEE VOTING.

I am a current graduate student at the UConn School of Social Work and one of the student leaders of the UConn Hartford Voting Power Corps, which aims to increase the voting power and civic knowledge of the UConn Hartford students and surrounding communities. I'm also a resident of Hartford's West End. 205 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Connecticut currently lags behind the majority of states and its neighbors in allowing no-excuse absentee voting as one of only 16 states to still prohibit it. This past fall, the emergency procedures as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which allowed for no-excuse absentee voting, led to a nearly 80% voter turnout with close to 700,000 votes cast via absentee ballots. It is time to make this commonsense step permanent and increase access to voting for all of Connecticut citizens.

Allowing for no-excuse absentee voting would make it easier for thousands of people to vote without needing to worry about taking time off of work or finding care for children. No excuse absentee voting would also lessen lines at the polls, making it a quick and easier process for all voters to cast a ballot in the best way that works for them.

Many of your constituents are caretakers for others, have a disability, or lack access to transportation that make it difficult to physically get to the polls. People shouldn't have to worry or stress about how and when they will cast their vote or being forced to choose between voting and living. No-excuse absentee voting would take away that undue stress and empower even more people to vote in future elections.

This past election was proof that Connecticut has the ability and infrastructure to make this change permanent. Thanks to the use of secure drop boxes and allowing of preprocessing of absentee ballots, there was no period of uncertainty as seen in other states, and the strength of our democratic process was upheld.

I believe it is the responsibility of the Legislature to protect everyone's right to vote, and that includes making voting easily accessible to everyone. Allowing no-excuse absentee voting would do just that, and I believe it would be 206 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE irresponsible to not permit it after seeing the tremendous results from this previous election cycle.

Again, I urge you to support both HJ 58 and HJ 59 to increase voter access for all Connecticut residents. Thank you for your time and consideration in allowing me to speak to you today.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and thanks for your time.

MEG WOLFE: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Erica Lavoie, who will be followed by Fizza Alam, who will be followed by Josh Mears. Is Erica here? I don't see Erica. Is Fizza here? Fizza is here. We will give Erica one more chance. Is Erica here? Okay, Fizza, welcome. The floor is yours. I hope I'm saying your name right.

FIZZA ALAM: Yes, yes. Thank you, everybody for being here. I initially wrote good morning, but now it's good evening. Before I say my statement, I want to acknowledge the Native Peoples whose land we are on, the stewards of this land for centuries before Connecticut was created.

Thank you for your time. My name is Fizza. I am a senior at the University of Connecticut. I study economics, political science and human rights. I am here to testify that I support HJ 58 and HJ 59. I also would recommend that we be more progressive than these Bills in that we include absentee balloting as an option at the time of registration on that forum, and that we also modernize our technology.

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Unlike other speakers, I do not consider myself an expert. I am here to speak from my experience, my life experience, and that is of a first generation immigrant from a low income background. I'm a resident of Waterbury, if that would give some context. Before I move forward, I want to say that I like the Zoom platform. I'm currently studying for an exam and if I was in Hartford for seven hours, I would not be speaking here today.

As a young person I am shocked that it took a global pandemic for us to revisit this conversation in a robust manner. For young people, mail-in voting is commonsense; voting early is commonsense. And then some of the speakers before were talking about costs. I also want to talk about cost. Imagine a world where everyone took off time from work to go and vote. That is a loss of wages, that's tangibly food, childcare and rent for those who are part of working people.

As an immigrant, and the people close to me work from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. They don't vote. And this last fall, they were able to, and that was really rewarding for us as immigrants, and I think voting should be -- is not a privilege and should be a right.

I just want to talk to some comments made by others today. One comment concerning voter ID laws that they are more secure but they also disproportionately affect older citizens, Black and Latino voters who don't have ID.

Also the opposition, I oppose recounts as they're inefficient and they will be frivolous and they won't accomplish anything.

And then one of the Members of this Committee said that the Constitution of Connecticut is sacred and that is why we should be more careful in approaching this situation. I would counter that, saying that since the Constitution was created, people of color 208 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE are now enfranchised, women are now enfranchised, and nothing is more sacred than letting people vote.

Thank you for your time. I will take any questions.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony this evening. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Up next is Josh Mears if Erica has still not appeared, and I don't see -- up next will be Josh, followed by Valerie Horsley.

JOSH MEARS: Hi, members of the board. I am Josh Mears, People First of Connecticut Vice President. I am here on behalf of all the Bills and some of the advocates that have been through or are watching have a hard time with the voting -- some of them are non-verbal, some of them have communications, they can't talk. Some of them requested a sign language interpreter, and they didn't get it. They asked for one and they have a hard time at the polls and stuff.

I wish people can get more help for individuals who have communication problems. Maybe on like an iPad at the voting polls for people to help them out an iPad or something, like more technologies for people, individuals with disabilities who are all over the state of Connecticut, can have access to. Which some of them can't get in there, or some of them can't be out of their houses due to transportation issues. They have iPads. They could log in through some kind of a web thing or something or get on and, you know, vote that way. That way people could have more confidence, you know, because some of them have a hard time with the voting at the polls.

And I really hope we get all this to help them someday.

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SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Next will be Valerie Horsley followed by Caprice Peterson, followed by Ann Gadwah.

VALERIE HORSLEY: Hi, can you guys hear me? I'm just dropping off my daughter at gymnastics. Thank you for making this a possibility for us to testify via Zoom.

Today, Members of the Government Administration and Election Committee, I'm happy to stand in support of HJ 58 and HJ 59. I am an elected legislative councilperson in Hamden and I'm also a voter in Hamden, Connecticut and I believe that we should be making it easier and more convenient for folks to vote.

There are many people that for various reasons for work or other reasons cannot vote on a specific day, and our current absentee ballot rules do not allow voters to make it to the election to use absentee voting as a way to vote if they can't make it for a specific work-related reason.

The COVID-19 pandemic gave us a test case for expanding absentee ballot use, allowing early voting. It was so nice to fill out my primary ballot on my dining room table with my husband and kids. We then walked a few miles away to put the ballot in the mailbox on Whitney Avenue.

For the November election, we decided to make use of the drop box located at our town hall. And I met another woman there who was walking from work and dropping off her ballot. She and I talked about how nice and convenient this option is for us. And for both elections, it was great to be able to check that our ballot was received online.

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I enjoyed going and filling out my ballot at the local polling location, but the convenience of early voting and absentee ballots makes it less stressful and more possible for more of our communities to vote. I really hope that we can make voting more accessible for all Connecticut voters, and thank you so much for your service to Connecticut.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you for your testimony, and this may seem redundant, but I'm not sure that you said your name, so if you wouldn't mind just saying your name for the record. I think the old rules still apply even though we can clearly see your name.

VALERIE HORSLEY: I'm Valerie Horsley.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Valerie, thank you for your time and testimony. Are there any questions from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again. Next we will hear from Patrice Peterson, who will be followed by Anne Gadwah, who will be followed by Martin Cobern.

PATRICE PETERSON: Good evening, Senator Flexer and Representative Fox, members of the GAE Committee, and a special shout-out to my personal, my State Senator the extraordinary Derek Slap. My name is Patrice Peterson and I offer the following testimony in support of HJ 58 and HJ 59. And I speak in support of these Bills as both a chapter officer for CSEA/SEIU Retiree Council 400 and as the past registrar of voters in West Hartford.

The Retiree Council 400 represents over 12,000 retired state employees, over 10,000 of which live in Connecticut. CSEA recently conducted a survey -- well we conducted two, one in June of 2020 and one in February 2021, for retirees concerning the issue of voting and no-excuse absentee voting, and here's what we found.

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In a survey of our membership which finished up last week, 81% of our membership voted -- I'm sorry 81% of our membership supported no-excuse absentee voting. In our June survey, 65.2% of those responding said they were highly likely to vote no- excuse absentee, and 13.2% said somewhat likely to vote absentee. In our most recent survey, 66% did vote absentee, so it's safe to say that of our 10,000 Connecticut-based retirees, about 6,500 did vote absentee.

In a statistical analysis of the surveys, the margin of error has a 95% confidence level with a 3% plus- or-minus margin of error for both surveys. As a result, we're confident in the conclusion that this is a critically important issue for Connecticut seniors. Results of both surveys indicated there was support from Republicans, Democrats and Independents, showing us this is not a political issue. It is well accepted that this demographic of older citizens take their responsibility to vote very seriously and we vote in large numbers. 95% who answered our survey voted in the November election.

This group should not be and will not be ignored. This is an issue of safety and accessibility for Connecticut's older citizens. As registrar of voters, I had the experience of seeing the full impact of the no-excuse absentee voting in last year's primary and general election. In my hometown of West Hartford, we had almost 50% of total electors vote absentee. That translated to over 19,000 people in our town who cast their vote by absentee. We had about an 87% turnout rate.

We heard from thousands of citizens between June and November that talked to us about the importance of them being able to not have severe limitations on voting on one day for certain hours for many of the reasons that you've already heard today. They had multiple jobs. They work overtime shifts. We heard a lot from doctors and other healthcare workers. 212 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

On behalf of the retired and older voters, I asked you to support both HJ 58 and 59. Do not continue to limit our ability to cast a ballot just due to being the land of steady habits. Thank you for listening and I'm happy to answer any questions.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee. Seeing none, thank you again for your time and thanks for your testimony. Next we will hear from Ann Gadwah who will be followed by Martin Cobern, who will be followed by Anson Smith.

ANN GADWAH: Good evening. Thank you, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox and all the Members of the Committee for the opportunity to testify here today. My name is Anne Gadwah and I'm speaking here on behalf of Sierra Club Connecticut.

Sierra Club Connecticut strongly supports House Resolution 58 and 59. We believe in a vibrant and robust democracy where all citizens are able to easily vote and elect people that truly represent them. Voting is the number one way Americans can use their voice to create a government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

All too often, folks are left out of this election process by circumstances beyond their control. It is our duty as American citizens to ensure that all people have the ability to cast their votes. It is an essential way to ensuring proper representation in a just and equitable society.

We support no-excuse absentee voting. They are a safe and cost-effective and efficient way to expand voting rights. All registered voters should have the freedom to vote in a way that works for their schedule and for their life. We also support amending the Constitution to allow early voting. It is unfair to have voting restricted to one day in 213 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the middle of the week. Many voters want to participate in the election process but find it difficult to miss class or to miss work. Voters that are working hard to keep their family afloat need more than a single day to go vote. They deserve to have options that work for them.

Connecticut had a record-breaking 80% voter turnout in the 2020 general election. This is undisputed proof that when people are given options to vote without fear of risking their health or their employment, they participate in the election process. Isn't a high voter turnout the point of elections? Isn't it the point of a representative democracy?

The polling numbers show that people want more options to vote than they currently have. They deserve the opportunity to vote to amend the State Constitution to do so. Our Constitution was written at a time when voting was limited to a very specific segment of society. This is no longer the case. Modern Connecticut voters have the right to weigh in on how they would like to vote and seeing as how the statewide vote wouldn't even happen until November of 2022, it would seem to be plenty of time to get any pertinent information out to the electorate. Forty-three other states offer in-person early voting options, including six states with all mail- in elections. Connecticut is behind the rest of the country on both these issues. It's time for us to catch up.

Thank you for your time and I'm happy to answer any questions.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony. Next is Martin Cobern who will be followed by Anson Smith, who will be followed by Jan Hochadel.

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MARTIN COBERN: Thank you to the Members of the Committee. Who, by the way, include two of my Representatives, Senator Sampson and Representative Fishbein. While I have never voted for either of them, I recognize and appreciate their service to our community, and because that is one of the joys of being in a representative democracy republic.

The founders recognized the right to vote as being the essential tool of our republic. It lets us choose our Legislators and, in many cases, choose the laws. When they wrote the Constitution, however, that right was limited to White male property holders. It has since been broadened by the 15th, 19th, and 26th Amendments.

Several speakers seem to have confused the role of a Constitution with that particular of legislation. The role of the Constitution is merely to provide a framework for the Legislature to enact laws. The original Constitution consisted only of 4,500 words. The 26th Amendment, which gave the right to vote 18- year-olds, was one sentence long. There was no and is no need for all these details in a constitutional amendment.

As many others have noted, Connecticut is far behind other states in allowing access to voting either early or by mailed ballot. I would like to address the claims that some people made that somehow this would increase voter fraud.

The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, has done an exhaustive study of voter fraud, for the last 42 years. Out of the billions -- literally billions of ballots cast in these 42 elections, they found a total of 971 cases of voter fraud that went to trial and 820 convictions. And of those, only 213 involved absentee ballots, with 148 convictions. So clearly, voter fraud is by no means the problem that some could have us believe.

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Given these miniscule percentages, particularly when compared to the tens of thousands who are unable to vote and lose their franchise by restrictive and sometimes discriminatory election laws, I think it's incumbent on the Members to put politics aside and improve the franchise as our Constitution demands. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony.

MARTIN COBERN: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Anson Smith, who will be followed by Jan Hochadel, who will be followed by Win Evarts. Anson, I know that you're here. I'll ask you to unmute yourself.

ANSON SMITH: Okay, can you hear me now?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes, I can hear you now and I will also send you a request to start your video.

ANSON SMITH: Okay, there you go.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Does that work? There you go.

ANSON SMITH: Yeah, there we are. Okay. I'll give you just a replay of my first comments. My name is Anson Smith and I live in Wallingford. I offer the following testimony in support of House Joint Resolution 58 and 59.

My wife and I have used absentee ballots frequently. Like many other people, we're not always able to be in Wallingford on Election Day. However, we managed to vote anyway. We learned the absentee voting rules and regulations. We learned where to go to get the applications we need, how to fill them out and what to do with them. 216 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

But this hasn't always been the case. Many years ago, because of a job change, I missed a crucial deadline that caused me to miss a critical election. I found myself registered in one state, temporarily living in another, with no way to get back to the first state to vote because I had to work.

In another case, I was sick with the flu on Election Day, too sick to get out of bed, let alone drive to the polls. Since then, I've met many people who have had similar experiences and missed the opportunities to vote. To us, one missed election is too many. Last year, the states allowing a pandemic to be a valid reason for absentee voting was a Godsend. It allowed high-risk people and others who may not have ventured out, to cast their vote safely. Many residents of other states, including my son, took advantage of early voting to ensure their safety.

The value of early voting is recognized widely. Already, 43 states often in-person early voting. Connecticut is amenable to early voting. As Common Cause points out, nearly 70% of Republicans, 90% of Democrats and 80% of unaffiliated Connecticut voters support early voting. No-excuse absentee voting and early voting gives the opportunity to vote to people who have no other option.

Beyond this, having their freedom to vote by absentee ballot or early voting gets to the heart of what democracy is all about. The current system is open to all sorts of political chicanery and voter suppression. We've all heard stories about changing poll locations, disappearing polls, names mysteriously disappearing from the voter rolls on Election Day, all of which thwart the spirit of American democracy.

For these reasons, let me encourage you to support both measures. They will bring democracy to people's doorsteps, and help America remain the 217 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE beacon of democracy for the rest of the world. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and thank you for your time.

ANSON SMITH: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Up next is Jan Hochadel, who will be followed by Win Evarts who will be followed by Vicki Volper.

JAN HOCHADEL: Good evening, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox and Members of the Government Admissions (sic) and Elections Committee. My name is Jan Hochadel. I am the President of AFT Connecticut, a union representing 30,000 educators, healthcare workers and public employees, and I'm honored to speak on their behalf today.

I provided written testimony but wanted to add some additional thoughts. A little over 100 years ago when my grandparents were a little younger than my son is today, I would not have been able to testify before you because I wouldn't have had the right to vote. And while it does not seem as though Legislators in Connecticut are passing laws that amount to voter suppression, we can clearly do more to increase voter access to our population.

Let's face it, there's not much value in a right that cannot be exercised. I assume Members of this Committee probably vote on Election Day, much like I do. Like you, I understand voting is a civic duty and I accept the mild inconvenience it causes. In reality, what we are experiencing is privilege. Many of our residents and my members cannot vote before work because of childcare or their work schedules are inflexible. After work, they may have to pick up their children or go to a second job. 218 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

They might not own a car and might be dependent on public transportation. Even if they can get there, the wait to vote in our urban areas is often far longer than it is in the suburbs, they have the right to vote. But unless everything falls in place, they don't have the opportunity to vote. These are issues you and I do not deal with. Connecticut does less to help these residents than almost any other state. Forty-four states allow in- person early voting, 29 no-excuse absentee voting. Connecticut, neither.

These measures are overwhelmingly popular, as has been said with our residents, regardless of party. And as others have said, in the most recent election when COVID made us expand voting access, we had our largest turnout on record, over 80%. We saw that when people who cannot completely rearrange their schedules on the first Tuesday in November have more opportunities to cast their ballot, they do. And when we expand voting access, more of our citizens and more of our communities participate. We know what happens when we increase opportunities to vote. Whether those opportunities are restricted out of malice, bypassing new voter suppression laws, or out of omission, by failing to take steps to increase opportunities, the result is the same.

We deny our most fundamental political right to many of our citizens. We silence people whose social or personal or economic struggles keep them from being able to change their schedule on one specific date. By silencing them, we give more weight to the privilege who do not have those struggles, and that distorts our government.

Connecticut must do better. I urge you to pass HJ 58 and 59. Thank you for your time and your service.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Hochadel, for your testimony. I appreciate you being here today. Any questions for the witness? Seeing none, thank you 219 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE for your patience with the Committee today, I appreciate your input. Thank you.

Up next, Win Evarts, followed by No. 48, Vicki Volper, followed by No. 49, Melissa Shein. Mr. Evarts. Mr. Evarts, I see you're with us, I just can't hear you or see you at moment. Okay, Kimberly, we'll pass Mr. Evarts, and we'll move on to Vicki Volper, No. 48, followed by Melissa Shein. And I don't seem Ms. Volper here is on the line either. Melissa Shein, followed by Barbara Crouch. We'll move over to 51, Joan Mahoney. I see Ms. Volker. Ms. Volker, are you present to testify? I can see Ms. Volker, but I can't hear her. I can see her. Let's see, James Murray? Stephen Wanczyk- Karp, No. 53.

BARBARA CROUCH: I'm here, Barbara Crouch.

REP. FOX (148TH): There you are. Ms. Crouch, thank you very much. I apologize about that.

BARBARA CROUCH: Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): The floor is yours.

BARBARA CROUCH: I received an email that says I was removed from this, but I stayed on, so I don't know if that's a mistake and that may be happening to other people. I just wanted to let you know of that technical difficulty.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much. The floor is yours, Ms. Crouch. Please proceed.

BARBARA CROUCH: I am Barbara Crouch, I'm a registrar of voters in Sprague, Connecticut. I am here to speak about HJ 58 and HJ 59. If HJ 58 on removing the restrictions on absentee ballot passes, there is no need for HJ 59. One of the things, and I have lived in several states, including Idaho and many other states, the number one issue that we have in Connecticut is we do not have a county 220 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE government. That makes it much more difficult to do elections. We also have referendum which run like elections but are not.

I know dealing with the public and voters every day, and I am from a small town, so I kind of know my voters, that things confuse them very easily. Because of COVID we move from where we normally vote to the school. We sent out numerous letters, put ads in the paper, Facebook, everything we could get do and we still have people showing up at the old polling location.

Voting is both a right and a privilege. I will explain to you something that most people didn't see because the registrars and the town clerks were like ducks; above water for this election, we looked smooth, below water we did not. If we're going to do unrestricted absentee ballots that should be moved from the clerk to the registrar. Currently, the only part of voting that does not have at least two parties present is the absentee ballot process. So if you're going to do that, then the legislation needs to take that to the registrars in its entirety.

Number two, July 21st, 2020 we were given instructions by the Secretary of State that if people had not completed their absentee ballot application correctly, it was to be denied and it was considered cast. On September 30th, we were told -- which remember the election was November 3rd -- that that was not the case, and if they cast their ballot, if we could see that something was wrong, we would call them, email them or whatever, and let them vote in person.

So my biggest issue is when we don't have this in stone things change, things move, people move. And I will say I am a big proponent of voting, I have always been. I was born and raised in Mississippi. My mother couldn't vote for years, my grandparents couldn't vote for years -- 221 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

BARBARA CROUCH: But what I want to say, and I will conclude, the Secretary herself said that moderators and election workers did not allow people to vote because they didn't have the proper ID. Wrong. She never followed up on that, so people are disenfranchised with whatever system we have. If an election is viewed by a great percentage of the people as not being fair and equitable, people won't vote. Thank you very much and I'm willing to answer any follow-up questions.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Crouch. Appreciate you being here. Any questions? Representative Thomas, your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you so much, Mr. Chair and thank you, Ms. Crouch for being here. I appreciate your comments. I'm going to ask you something that I've asked a lot of people, because I think you're right. Like, I don't think anyone has argued that there are people who are being disenfranchised, that there are problems with the system and it needs to be tightened up, et cetera. And I guess where I struggle, I really feel like we're putting the cart before the horse to solve those issues for voters, without even asking voters if they want a change at all.

They may say we're happy with the system as it is, we don't want early voting or no-excuse absentee. We don't want to change the Constitution. But aren't we putting our will on the people by denying them that opportunity?

BARBARA CROUCH: I don't think we're putting the cart before the horse. I work in this system every day. It went down 20 or 30 times the week before elections. We were giving alternate things. You had a person testify that doesn't realize there are touchpad both for hearing impaired and visually 222 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE impaired people at every election site. That was cost to the cost of millions of dollars to the taxpayers, but you still have voters that don't know that's available to them.

So what I'm saying is lots of people are disenfranchised in the system we have now. We have begged for better training. We have begged for other things that's not available. This is adding another layer. And you don't know, which you didn't know, the Secretary is talking about scrapping the system we have now and instituting another system. That's great, except we're not at the table. And I feel that I am a partner. The worst thing that has ever happened to me as a registrar happened at this election. A person drove from Willimantic to Baltic to vote. She had moved to Willimantic. She was supposed to go to their town hall and do EDR. Legally, the only thing I could do for her was let her vote for presidential and senatorial. That broke my heart, I reported it. It will never be investigated because it was a mistake. But for that voter, that is what's going to make her not come out and vote next time.

We can't just keep air-quoting mistakes. If I'm not allowed to vote, then I have been disenfranchised. So we need to make sure that the systems work as well as they can. Yes, you will have human error. Those people that turned people away can be fined. Why are they not fined? There should be a consequence if, Representative Thomas, you go to vote and you cannot vote, whether I made a mistake or not, there should be a consequence to me.

I take an oath and I take it seriously. So that is what I'm saying. We have problems, major problems. We have system problems that adding this on, it took us almost eight-and-a-half years to get EDR, and today I moved from Idaho 20 years ago. I walked into a polling place with my driver's license, with a telephone bill registered and voted in my polling location. There was no going to town hall and going 223 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE back to my polling place. So there are little things we can do in Connecticut to make this so much better. And until we do those, you're adding problem on problem on problem on problem.

So the Committee to me, as a citizen, I don't want one person to not be able to vote that was supposed to vote. That to me is a travesty.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): We are agreed there, because I know we could trade stories all day of all the people who are unable to vote because of the law being the way it is, and we heard from many of them today. But I would just raise a suggestion that I think we have a great opportunity here because by putting this to a constitutional amendment, it ensures that every voter who votes will actually think about this issue, and they will have the time to consider what they think is valid and fair and accessible. And I think it could actually raise the discourse and allow us to perhaps reform our voter laws in ways that we haven't even yet considered. But I think it really could elevate the conversation. So I'll leave it there. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Ms. Crouch.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Up next, Representative Mastrofrancesco, I see your hand is raised.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Barbara. I appreciate you sticking it out today and coming here to testify and give us your testimony. You had mentioned something in your testimony about those people voting with no ID. Were they turned away or what was the process there?

BARBARA CROUCH: Even using the terminology ID is misleading. I can sign an affidavit. When you say ID to most people, they think driver's license or governmental issued ID. That's not what the law says in Connecticut. You can actually have another 224 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE electorate swear that you're who you are and you live where you live. We have a convent in my town. We've had nuns walk to vote and forgot their driver's license or their ID. We don't make them walk back to the convent. They sign an affidavit. So those are the things, people still in Connecticut think they need a driver's license and a government ID. That is the education that the Secretary of State should be doing.

So there are a lot of people being disenfranchised under the current system that can legally vote. That's what I mean by the cart before the horse. So even if you do all of this, people are still going to think they need a level of identification that the law says they don't need.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Do you believe that they should have some sort of level of ID to vote?

BARBARA CROUCH: I like what Virginia did. Virginia gives you a card from the registrar that is your ID. So you get a voter registration card that is a governmental ID that you can use, just like a driver's license, just like any other governmental ID.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Is it a photo ID?

BARBARA CROUCH: Excuse me?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Is it a photo ID?

BARBARA CROUCH: It is a photo ID. So for me, like I said, I know my voters. I have a lot of 85-year- old people. Why are they getting a new driver's license when they haven't driven in 20 years?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, right.

BARBARA CROUCH: So that's what I'm saying. Also, I deal in human services. Do you know what it costs to get a certified birth certificate from the state 225 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE of Connecticut? If you want to get an ID in Connecticut, you have to take a day off work to go to DMV to get an ID. So that to me is cost prohibitive. So identification is your telephone bill, your bank statement, all of those things are legal ID in Connecticut. I don't have a problem with that. I do not have a problem because you're proving I live here, and this is my name. I don't necessarily think we need to go to photo ID, but that is my opinion. It's just my opinion I don't think photo ID.

I think getting our lists cleaned up is number one. Because I live in a town with no retirement homes, so if somebody dies in Norwich, that death certificate isn't always sent to Baltic for me to take them off. The state has it. I don't understand. They send me a list of every [inaudible], why wouldn't they send me a list of every death?

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Do you get a lot of people coming in and voting without an ID at all, with no paperwork at all? I'm assuming it's not a lot.

BARBARA CROUCH: The only people we have is occasionally we will have elderly people who don't - - who will bring in like their bank statements, which is an ID. Sometimes they won't have that. So we may get one or two per cycle, and we're always at about 75% to 82% turnout, and we have about 2,100 voters, registered voters.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): And during the last election with the mass mailing of the applications, was your department overwhelmed?

BARBARA CROUCH: Remember, registrars didn't do it, clerks did it. And the clerks basically did nothing but absentee ballots, even though they have a lot of other duties. That's what I'm saying. If you do this, it needs to be moved to the registrars. 226 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Absentee ballots need to be moved to the registrars from the town clerks.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, thank you very much for answering my questions and for your testimony today. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

BARBARA CROUCH: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Seeing no further questions, Ms. Crouch, thank you for your time and your attention today. I appreciate you being here. We're going to circle back real quick just to kind of get a better sense of where we are with witnesses. Vicki Volper followed by Melissa Shein, I believe you're still here, I'm just not sure she's responded.

VICKI VOLPER: I'm here.

REP. FOX (148TH): I see you Ms. Volper, one second. Ms. Volper, you're up, followed by Melissa Shein, followed by Joan Mahoney. Ms. Volper, you're No. 48, you're next. Please proceed.

VICKI VOLPER: Committee Chairs and Members, thank you for letting me testify in support of HJ 58 and HJ 59. My name is Vicki Volper, I am a Westport resident and I am delighted to be testifying by Zoom. We do everything else by Zoom, so why not? It is clear to me that the more people vote, the stronger our democracy. Participation is the name of the game, and that starts right here in Connecticut.

Unfortunately, Connecticut is one of the minority of states that does not have early voting or no-excuse absentee voting. This year, at least in part, because we were allowed to vote by absentee ballot, we had an extremely large voter turnout, and about 35% of voters participated by absentee ballot. Moreover, polls show that there is wide bipartisan support for no-excuse absentee voting. I personally 227 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE loved the convenience of dropping my ballot securely in the drop box at town hall. I didn't have to worry about fitting a trip to the polls into my schedule of work and family obligations, not knowing what kind of lines to expect. I would like to have the choice of absentee voting and every election. I would also like the option of voting in person early.

Please let all Connecticut voters decide what they want. I am dismayed by the obfuscation of the issues and circular reasoning of the opponents of these Bills. Asking for the Bills to set forth the specifics of the new voting rules such as how many days of early voting will be permitted is disingenuous and misses the point. We are asking to allow the Legislature to make the rules that make sense in the particular moment in time. The Legislature can be trusted to vote on behalf of their constituents. If they do not, they will not be reelected.

The current constitutional provision ties the hands of our Legislators and binds us to inflexible outdated rules. And once again, HJ 58 and 59 simply allow for a voter referendum. Please let the people decide. Thank you very much for your time and consideration.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, for your testimony. Senator Haskell, your hand is raised.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair, and great to see you, Vicki. Thank you so much for your patience today. I'm thrilled that you are able to make your voice heard over this virtual public hearing. I just wanted to get your opinion as somebody who has -- and I'm thrilled too that you're a constituent of mine. And as somebody who worked in our community during the last election, when 26 districts saw the highest voter turnout of any State Senate seat in the state; 66,000 people voted, thousands more than participated in the last 228 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE presidential election. Some of them voted for Democrats, some of them voted for Republicans, but surely we can all celebrate the fact that they voted.

Do you think that that high turnout was driven, at least in part, by the ease of access to the ballot this year?

VICKI VOLPER: Absolutely. Absolutely. It just made it convenient for everyone who had whatever reason, they had, that's all. Whether it was health concerns, work obligations, lack of child care, whatever it is, we want to get people to vote. That favors our democracy and absentee balloting, which is available this year, was really helpful.

And when I've spoken to people around the state, because I do do some political activism, many people were unaware that this was a temporary measure. People are shocked to hear that in November they will not be able to vote by absentee unless they lie and say they're out of town.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you so much. Vicki. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

VICKI VOLPER: Thank you, Will.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator. Ms. Volper, seeing no more questions, I appreciate you having patience with us today. Thank you for being here. Up next I'm going to go, I think a few people have been missed, so we're going to go over the list and see who's here. Melissa Shein, No. 49, followed by Joan Mahoney, No. 51, followed by James Murray, No. 52, followed by Stephen Wanczyk-Karp, No. 53. The only one I see here at the moment is No. 53, Stephen Wanczyk-Karp. I apologize if I am mispronouncing your last name, sir. Following Mr. Wanczyk, we'll have No. 54, Christina Cowan, followed by Tanya Carver, followed by David Walsh. Stephen, please proceed, sir, the floor is yours. 229 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

STEPHEN WANCZYK-KARP: Good afternoon. My name is Stephen Wanczyk-Karp. I'm the executive director of the Connecticut Chapter of National Association of Social Workers. We represent over 2,300 members throughout the state and we're here today and supportive HJ 59. There's been lots already discussed about this. I'll just very briefly, I mean 43 states already do this. There's really no reason that Connecticut should not be one of those, other than the fact that our Constitution is so restrictive.

This would have a number of advantages. First of all, additional days before Election Day will give greater number of voters ample time to get to the polls. Polling places will have shorter lines on Election Day. Parents of pre-voter age children would have greater opportunity to take their children with them to vote, modeling and instilling the importance of voting, something my parents did with me. Individuals who may have difficulty getting to the polls due to health or transportation issues would have greater opportunity to arrange the vote.

Voters who are caregivers would have greater opportunity to schedule time to vote. Individuals who commute out of state will have greater opportunity to get to vote. Increasing access to voting will strengthen voting turnout and covers greater participation of democratic processes. We know that from polling that nearly 80% of Connecticut residents indicate that they support early voting. I have to also say that this year, being able to use a ballot box outside of town hall made it extremely easy to vote, and I think that's what we'd love to do.

We shouldn't be putting up restrictions and barriers, we should be taking them down and easing the way so that we can have everyone who wants to 230 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE vote has the opportunity and time to vote, so we urge you to support early voting.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you. Any questions? Seeing none, I appreciate your insight. I noticed James Murray is now with us. Mr. Murray will be next followed by Christina Cowan, followed by No. 55, Tanya Carver, followed by No. 56, David Walsh. Mr. Murray, are you with us?

JAMES MURRAY: Yes. Thank you very much for the opportunity to testify here and I apologize for what you may have been hearing, I'm in the car right now. But I would like to voice my support for House Joint Resolution 58 and 59. And I don't have much to add in terms of specific insight, but I would also like to note that it is critical that limitations placed on the State Elections Enforcement Commission be lifted, given the potential increase for issues having to do with both fundraising, voting and all such. So in addition to all the other points that have been stated prior and earlier testimony, I just want to state that, again, I support both Resolutions. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Mr. Murray, thank you for your testimony. I appreciate you taking the time to be with us tonight, even the unusual circumstance we find ourselves in, I thank you for taking the effort to stay in the process, as all the other Members have as well. Thank you. Next up, Christina Cowan followed by No. 55, Tanya Carver, followed by No. 56 David Walsh, followed by No. 57 John Murphy. Christina Cowan.

CHRISTINA COWAN: Hi, good evening.

REP. FOX (148TH): Good evening.

CHRISTINA COWAN: My name is Christina Cowan. I am from Killingworth, Connecticut and I am a master of social work student at Quinnipiac University, as well as an intern with National Association of 231 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Social Workers Connecticut Chapter. And I will be presenting testimonies in support of HJ 58 on behalf of NASW Connecticut. I believe that the Connecticut government handled the election in light of the COVID-19 pandemic in a smooth manner that truly helped keep the Connecticut voters safe, while being able to execute their rights. It is imperative that this freedom be continued in future elections, as long as the Connecticut voters approve of this.

Connecticut voters should have the right to determine if they support no-excuse absentee voting. At this time, 73% of Connecticut voters support no- excuse absentee voting. The government should listen to the needs of their citizens and grant them this freedom to vote on their own rights. Shouldn't the government want their citizens to be able to vote without barriers in whichever way is easiest for them? And shouldn't the voters have a right to determine their own rights through democracy?

NASW Connecticut strongly believes that no-excuse absentee voting is beneficial for everyone. It is beneficial to the immune compromised, people with disabilities, college students, those who work out of state and travel out of state frequently, those with multiple jobs, those with children, those without reliable transportation and many more.

Most importantly, it is beneficial to all of our residents, as it ensures that every voice is heard. Thank you for your time tonight.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much for your testimony. Are there any questions for Ms. Cowan? Seeing none, thank you for your patience with us today and appreciate you being here very much. Up next, No. 55, Tanya Carver, who is not here, followed by No. 56 David Walsh, John Murphy followed by No. 58 Phyllis Nauts. David Walsh. Is he here in the room? Mr. Walsh, are you with us? John Murphy, followed by Phyllis Nauts, followed by Batya Diamond. No. 57, John Murphy. There he 232 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE goes. Mr. Murphy, how are you, sir? Good to see you.

JOHN MURPHY: Good, how are you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Doing well. Thank you for being with us tonight. The floor is yours.

JOHN MURPHY: All right. Representative Fox, Senator Flexer, Ranking Members Sampson and Mastrofrancesco, -- I lost my place in my script here, I'm sorry. Anyways, Members of the Committee, I'm here to testify on Joint Resolution, the House Resolution 58 and 59. I'm testifying reluctantly in favor of them because I don't believe that we should have anything to do with our voting encased in our State Constitution unless it just guarantees that we have a right to vote. The General Assembly needs to have the flexibility to make the election laws fit what is going on in our lives today.

As people said earlier, the COVID pandemic gave us a chance to work on this and experiment with this, and it came off really well. We had, again, over 650,000 people vote by absentee ballot and they could use the COVID excuse. We need to let people be able to vote in a way, that fits their lifestyle and their work schedules.

People have brought up costs before about doing this and, you know, we have five states in this country that vote exclusively by mail, Oregon being one of them. My son lived there for 12 years, he voted every year. He received his ballot in the mail. He dropped it off in the drop box. They've had no instance of, you know, voter fraud out there, so that's something we should look at as well once we get past this, you know, the constitutional amendment.

But I don't -- again, I would rather see us take care of it all in the statues, rather than in the Constitution. That said, I don't want to keep 233 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE reiterating what other people have said all day, but we're in favor of, we need to let people have better options to vote.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mr. Murphy, appreciate your testimony. Any questions or comments for Mr. Murphy? Seeing none, thank you for your patience. Thank you for being here.

JOHN MURPHY: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next David Walsh, I see, David Walsh, if you're there, you're up next. If not, we'll move on. No response from Mr. David Walsh. No. 58 Phyllis Nauts, followed by Batya Diamond, followed by No. 60, Sue Larsen. I have been told Phyllis and Batya are both not here. I see Ms. Larsen. Ms. Larsen, you're going to be followed by No. 61, David Roberts, No. 62 Alex Harris, No. 63 Helen Humphries. Ms. Larsen, No. 60, the floor is yours. Thank you for being here.

SUE LARSEN: Thank you, and I wanted to thank the Members of the GAE for recognizing all the hard work that was done by the registrars during the August primaries and the November election. We worked really hard with [inaudible] and the town clerks and I think everything came out really well, considering that we were dealing with COVID, which was a total unknown, and other issues going on during that whole election season. So again, thank you so much for recognizing the hard work.

So having said that, in terms of HJ 58 and 59, the registrars feel we deserve a seat at the table when it starts to come to the point where we're actually putting together the process in which will go through for either early voting or the no-excuse absentee balloting. We have a lot to offer, a lot of innovative ideas and we just want to make sure that we're included when it comes time to make the decisions on the process.

234 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

So having said that, I'll go on to SB 901, and that's an extension of the COVID rules through the end of June. And of course, we're in favor of that. You know, it's been said earlier how there were very, very few if any at all of the voters that got COVID during the pandemic and during the elections and primary, and we feel that COVID is still an issue now, and so we definitely want it expanded to make sure it covers all of the upcoming elections and referenda special elections.

The one thing that's missing in the Bill is the supervised absentee balloting, and we hope someone, one of you on the Committee will add supervised absentee balloting to that. That is where we go to the assisted living facilities and we work with the individual residents of the assisted living facility to help them fill out the absentee ballot application, and then the ballot.

Under COVID, many of us are not going to have the vaccinations in time, possibly, at least the double shots, and so we don't want to take the risk for ourselves and our families and also possibly bringing the COVID into the assisted living facilities. So we're hoping that the assisted living facilities, the supervised absentee ballot gets included in either one of the Bills, either 6464 or SB 901.

SB 901 also includes an absentee ballot process that we did back for the November election. We don't feel it's necessary. The amount of ballots that are usually absentee ballots during the

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

SUE LARSEN: I'll finish real quick. The number of ballots will not warrant all the special attention that we did during the presidential election.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Larsen. First of all, before I open to questions, I just want to 235 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE again acknowledge the efforts that ROVAC and all the registrars for the State of Connecticut made and took on behalf of our residents. Literally without your efforts and those of your colleagues, we could not have had a successful election. So I thank you very much for what you did for the state residents and great really appreciate all your efforts on the process, thus far.

SUE LARSEN: Thank you so much. We're proud, I'm very proud to be a member of ROVAC.

REP. FOX (148TH): As you should be. Representative Thomas, your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Ms. Larsen, for being here. I also just want to echo the thank you. I know the registrars in my town worked so hard and they did such an amazing job, heroes, frontline all of it and things went so well in my district.

I know there are a lot of people not used to this process watching. Can you just remind us what ROVAC is and who you represent and what you do?

SUE LARSEN: Okay. And I apologize. I should have just started by introducing myself. I'm Sue Larsen, I'm the Democratic registrar in South Windsor and currently the President of ROVAC. ROVAC is the Registrars of Voters Association of Connecticut, and we have two major functions. One is the education of our registrars. We have two conferences every year, a spring and a fall conference, in which we offer education to the registrars. And then our other function is again like here with making sure that the legislation part that affects registrars, that we're a part of, and that you understand where we're coming from when we say this may be an issue or, can we work this out in a different way because of such and such?

236 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

So we're here to help you put the legislation together to make it work for the voters of Connecticut.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I know I for one as a Member of this Committee would appreciate your expertise. I have one other question that we alluded to, it seems like yesterday, but early this morning. But just to make sure I'm crystal clear, as well as the public. Every town, as I understand it, has a Democratic and a Republican registrar. Is that correct?

SUE LARSEN: That is correct. And there were some towns that according to the way the statute is written, if an Independent person gets more than a Republican or a Democrat, you end up with a third registrar and there were I think two towns with that situation.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Great. Thank you so much for the information and thank you again for everything that was done in 2020, and hopefully will be done shaping new legislation once we can send this Constitution to the public.

SUE LARSEN: And we'll work with you the whole way to make sure that, you know, whatever process is done it's for the good of the state.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Larsen, again for your efforts, your advocacy. Seeing no further questions, I want to thank you for your patience today. Thank you very much.

SUE LARSEN: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): I now move to, David Walsh was here, but I think he's now left us again, so if you can rejoin us, we will jump back to him. Up next, No. 62, Alex Harris, followed by No. 63, Helen Humphreys, followed by No. 64, Lynda Shannon Bluestein. No. 62, Alex Harris. 237 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Alex Harris: Good evening, sir. I'm Alex Harris and I live in Richfield, Connecticut. Thank you for this opportunity. I urge the General Assembly to enact HJ 58 and HJ 59, permitting voters to amend the state Constitution. A key lesson of United States history, indeed all of human history, is that universal suffrage is the sole, long-term, sustainable guarantee of a rights-based participatory democratic republic. Universal suffrage requires comprehensive universal access.

The two proposed amendments will safely and securely enhance the universal access. Objections to these amendments are red herrings. Most objections amount to claims that Connecticut cannot implement the proven, safe and secure voting mechanisms that other states have successfully operated for decades. Claiming that a thing is impossible when in fact that very thing has uniformly functioned successfully among our sister states is pure sophistry. Such objections must be disregarded, as a matter of basic logic and reason.

Additionally, the demand that implementing legislation be composed before the proposed constitutional amendments even go before voters is a procedural smoke screen knitted from whole cloth and wholly counter the history, precedent and law. By definition, each voter-approved constitutional amendment, upon becoming effective, comprehensively authorizes and constrains all subsequent action by the Legislature and Executive and courts.

The Legislature is not permitted to take action in anticipation of potential future constitutional requirements, nor may this Legislative Session bind any future Legislature. Demands that implementing legislation be composed before voters amend the Constitution is simply a transparent effort to create new and extreme obstacles that have no valid or rational basis of purpose.

238 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Finally, the objections based on the various unsupported claims of widespread, undetected, uncorrected and outcome-impacting voter fraud have been thoroughly and repeatedly debunked nationally across the states by Republicans, Democrats and unaffiliated commissions alike. As such, they should be given no weight. As uniformly demonstrated by the decades-long experiences of our sister states, expanded early voting and no-excuse absentee mail-in voting will have no materially deleterious impact on the security and integrity of our elections.

Limited, constrained access to voting is by far the more widespread material and outcome-impacting danger. For all these reasons, I urge the Legislature to pass these Bills and send the amendments to the voters for their consideration.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Thank you very much. Your three minutes is now over.

REP. FOX (148TH): Perfectly timed, Mr. Harris. Any questions for Mr. Harris? Seeing none, thank you for your testimony today, sir, I really appreciate your advocacy in being here and your patience with the Committee. Thank you. Up next, No. 63, Helen Humphreys, followed by No. 64, Lynda Shannon Bluestein, followed by No. 65, Erin Chang, followed by No. 66, Beth MacGillivray. Ms. Humphreys, good evening.

HELEN HUMPHREYS: Good evening. Thank you all so much, and thank you to the members of the Government Administration and Election Committee. My name is Helen Humphreys and I'm the communications coordinator for Connecticut Citizen Action Group. I feel very privileged to be here this evening, in order to talk about passing both and allowing Connecticut residents to have a voice in HJ 58 and HJ 59, to allow no-excuse absentee voting and in- person early voting.

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CCAG, in coalition with our state and national partners and Connecticut citizens, continue to take action on a number of initiatives to protect our democracy, including the subject of today's hearing. The issue at hand today is about modernizing election laws and encouraging civic engagement. Upholding current voting barriers in place is plain and simple voter suppression.

Previous to my time at CCAG, I worked for a few years as a bipartisan national democracy reform organizer around the country, working with both sides of the aisle to make elections more accessible and democratic for all elections. Those experiences bring me hope for today and in the future that we can put people over partisan politics in order to expand election access.

My coworkers, friends and family all over Connecticut were worried this year during the election that they would have to put themselves and their loved ones at risk in order to practice their right as a citizen to vote. Outside of the context of COVID pandemic, Connecticut has some of the most restrictive voting laws in the country. Forty-three states offer in-person early voting options, which restricts Connecticut's residents' abilities to participate in elections. Many voters work two to three jobs just to keep their families afloat and need more options just than a single day, to get out and vote.

As mentioned before, more than 650,000 voters voted securely by absentee ballot in the Connecticut general election, which means they voted on their own schedules and it led to a record-breaking voter turnout. Voter disenfranchisement will always be a painful part of our nation's history, but if we take action this Legislative Session it doesn't have to be a part of our future. We can create a fair and secure system through this initiative that allows for a more inclusive democracy.

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CCAG is urging Legislators not only to listen to their constituents, but be an advocate for those who struggle to participate in our current election process. Help make their voices heard and put citizens voting rights at the forefront of this conversation. Again CCAG and our Members urge you to protect the democratic process for all Connecticut residents. Please choose to pass HJ 58 and 59 to let Connecticut residents have their voice in this process. Thank you very much for your time. I'm open to any questions.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Humphreys. Any questions or comments for Humphreys? Seeing none, thank you for your time today, I appreciate you being here. Up next, No. 64, Lynda Shannon Bluestein, followed by No. 65, Erin Chang, followed by No. 66, Beth MacGillivray. Ms. Bluestein, good evening. Thank you for being here. You're on mute, ma'am. You're still on mute. There you go. Perfect, thank you very much.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: I thought you were going to unmute me. My name is Lynda Shannon Bluestein. I live in Bridgeport and I speak today in supportive of HJ 58 and HJ 59. First of all, thank you all on the Committee for your attention all these hours. I've been online since 10:30 a.m. and I do honor your persistence and commitment to giving us all the opportunity to be heard today.

In March of 2018, my name was on a ballot in a Bridgeport primary election. I was the chair of a nine-member challenge slate running for nine open seats on Bridgeport's Democratic Town Committee. How audacious of us to think we could go up against the party-endorsed slate.

But we did, and we did well. We won five of the nine open seats based on voting machine tallies, but in the end, when the harvested absentee ballots were counted, we won only one of those seats. Absentee ballots commanded 80% for the DTC endorsed slate, 241 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE but in-person voters split roughly 50/50 with a slight edge to our slate. Two different kinds of voters, or was the act of absentee ballot harvesting that made the difference?

This small and some would say a trifling primary election was just one more instance of how effective the machinery of absentee ballot harvesting is in Bridgeport. That means paid operatives going door to door, and at least in one instance that I witnessed myself, they were hosting a big pizza party for residents of a housing complex and they were pressuring residents to request absentee ballots to vote in an election they had no interest in and they didn't even know what a primary was for a seat on a Democratic Town Committee, how small can you get?

So some operatives, they stopped by in those apartments, which I also witnessed, to collect the ballots and offered to help residents fill them out, and then they offered three postage stamps so they could mail them in. The no-excuse absentee voting and early voting Bill before this Committee would make absentee ballots readily available to all voters and take those political operative middleman out of the equation.

I voted by absentee ballot this past November, using the no-excuse ballot, the COVID exception, and I'm grateful to Members of the House and Senate for making this possible. I'm a recent cancer survivor and, well, I'm old. I echo the sentiments of comments of others today that I'm really unconvinced that Connecticut's current absentee ballot restrictions serve any purpose at all directly related to either the security or the integrity of voting in our state. In my experience, these restrictions create a place for political operatives in Bridgeport to harvest selective ballots from people who otherwise would not vote.

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I recently moved to Bridgeport from Fairfield. I ran for office in Fairfield as well and I've been running for office for years and working on elections. I've never seen anything like this that I'm experiencing as a Bridgeport resident. Restricting absentee voting access the way Connecticut does, in my opinion, is the real slippery slope to abuse and fraud. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much for your testimony today. Any questions? Representative Mastrofrancesco, your hand is raised.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Lynda, thank you very much for sticking it out all day. You've been online since 10:30 so we appreciate that.

So it's very interesting, you're the second person today that testified about the issues that went on in Bridgeport and feeling that if we allow no-excuse absentee voting that that would curb the fraud or I don't know the right -- but so it's a very interesting concept. Do you think that if there was no-excuse absentee voting that people can just actually go around and collect those applications and send them back? Do you think, you were talking about political operatives. Do you think that the side that you were going against would completely stop going out and trying to harvest ballots or collect them, or applications? Do you think that will completely stop? Do you trust that that will happen?

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: It makes it much more difficult. Many of the voters that I talked to, I went door to door and that's how we did so well in a couple of the housing projects and what we found is that they wouldn't vote at all. This was a primary. This was a party primary. There were no votes cast. We're talking hundreds of ballots, not thousands, and yet I had for my name, I had more absentee ballots cast against me than were cast when Obama 243 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE was on the ticket running in a presidential election. This was a party primary. These people would never vote in a primary. I mean, really.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Did you know any of the strategies that were used for that?

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Sure I do. I watched it.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Can you tell me?

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Pounding on the doors and saying open up, open up. You know, we know you. You've got to come here, come answer this phone, or answer this door. Come right now. They were beating on windows to get people to come to -- and then they forced the absentee ballot on them, even after I had met with the voters and talked about why I wanted to be part of this challenge slate and try to clean up the Democratic Town Committee. And they said yeah, yeah, yeah but then in the end, they were scared to vote for us.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): So your belief is that they will stop knocking on doors and just let the process happen?

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Well, there's no reason for them to knock on doors if everybody gets a ballot already. They knock on doors and say, oh, I can make it possible for you to vote. And there's always, you know, a little bit of money involved and other perks of voting in some Bridgeport elections.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, okay.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: I've been involved in elections since 1972. I was one of the last people who believed that my government was actually going to win that year in Kentucky.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Yeah, well, you know, elections can get pretty divisive and you know me as 244 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE a candidate, I go out and knock on doors. You know, we want to introduce ourselves and explain to people what we're all about and hoping to get their support. And there are some people out there that go around with applications. You know, they'll say I can't vote, I need an application for an absentee ballot, and you can get them from the town clerk. And a candidate can go out there and, you know, here you go. Here's your application and they'll number them and so forth. So my point is that that could still happen. I don't believe a no-excuse absentee is going to solve your problem, but that's --

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: [Inaudible] this year, so they didn't have -- there was no reason for them to go door to door and say I have one. You could go door to door and meet the voters, which I did. And when I was out knocking on doors, did I have some absentee ballot applications with me, yes, I did. When my friend said, oh, I'm going to be Florida, I said here. You know, fill it out, but I didn't fill it out for them.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): No, I understand that, but don't you think if they wanted to vote, they would still just call the town clerks or go online and print the ballot application right there? That they're still -- that is still going to be the process. Unless you're saying that you would favor the Secretary of State mailing out applications to everyone.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: I do. I don't know anybody in these particular areas where I was working going door to door that had access to a computer or a printer. That wasn't easy. You could go to the library, but it was a very difficult, many obstacles in the way of them having access other than the way it was handled this year.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): All right. Well, thank you. It's just interesting. I don't, I honestly don't believe that that will solve your 245 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE problems and help in your town. I know there's a lot of issues going on there, but interesting perspective. Thank you, Madam, for your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, I appreciate it.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Senator Sampson, your hand is raised. Senator Sampson, the floor is yours.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, Lynda for being here. Just to follow up on my great colleague, Representative Mastrofrancesco, I'm just confused listening. And it's very important to me that I understand and I get to the bottom of this. So you're the second person today and this is, everyone knows about this. I mean, I served with a number of Bridgeport Legislators, I've had conversations with them. I understand how the world works in some of our major cities as far as how the machine, as you refer to it, can operate.

I don't understand, however, how expanding absentee ballot, so that there are no excuses actually eliminates the problem, unless, of course, what you were referring to is in fact having the Secretary of State mail out ballot applications to every person.

But I'll just tell you, I don't think that's likely to happen. It happened in this one recent election because there was a mountain of money, essentially, given to the Secretary of State by the federal government. I think going forward what's going to happen is we will have no-excuse absentee if the constitutional amendment happens, but it will still be a matter of having to request one, and I think you're left with the same problem that you were referring to. Am I understanding it incorrectly?

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Let me break it down for you. I had to see this with my own eyes. This operative, in my mind, was doing -- was saying, "I've got a little perk for you." You know, I'm 246 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE going to bring you that right to your door, isn't that cool?" And "You know me and I know you." And, you know, "I bet you've got a problem with your sink, don't you? I know someone who can get that fixed." I couldn't do that. Come on. It was like we don't want you to show up, God forbid you show up to the polling place. We want you to vote absentee because we want to have all those ballots in our hands and know how they're going to be cast.

Now when I left an absentee ballot for someone, I just said you're going to be away? Here, take it. And I hope I have your vote, but that was the end of it. But not with the folks that I saw on the payroll for the city, who were walking the same hallways I was walking, and riding the same elevators I was riding. I just didn't own a pizza restaurant where I could have a big party. But I'm learning. I'm learning my way around Bridgeport, but believe that -- and that's why Callie -- Callie's my neighbor. That we really want open access because we don't want people to keep thinking this is some kind of a special privilege that, oh my gosh, because you're our good buddy-buddy, and you're going to vote the way we want, we will get you a ballot and you don't even have to show up.

So that's a whole different kind of equation, and of course I appreciated no-excuse absentee ballot because I'm old and have some complicating situations, and I wanted to vote that way and I loved it and I loved having that sense of freedom and comfort this particular year, but years.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): So, Lynda, first off, thank you very much for being an honest politician. There are a few of us. Everybody on this screen of course qualifies. And I thank you very much for trying to do the right thing, for sure. I have so much to say about this whole thing. And I completely understand where you're coming from, and this is the reason why some of us have concerns about this exact issue.

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We have just as much desire to make it easier for people to have access to voting. This is the thing, I want to see that too. But I have this great fear that what we're doing is essentially giving that machine even more ability to cheat, and I don't see how you don't see that.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Because I've been there on the streets, I walked, I knocked every damn door. We worked so hard to get those votes to run up against the party machine. Do you know who's on the ballot over Bea? Danny Rose who owns the bar in town, you know? And they were telling people how to vote, that you can only vote for one line.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): But that's what will happen with no-excuse absentee voting and, in fact, the people will not even have to lie. The problem there that they have now is that they have to ask someone to lie to say that they are ill or they're going to be out of town or something like that.

If you have no excuse, then it's a perfectly lawful process and those folks will be able to canvas neighborhoods, towns, apartment buildings and be able to go and tell people completely legitimately to vote absentee. That's the concern.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: That didn't happen with the Secretary of State mailing out the ballot.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well, no, but that's not -- again, but Lynda, I don't think that's going to happen going forward. The constitutional amendment we have before us does not contemplate any mailing of anything. It just allows no excuse.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: One of the things that we can hope for is that if you get a broader turnout, we will have a better chance of beating the machine too. That's why Callie from Bridgeport Generation Now is looking at and what I'm looking at having, as a recent resident of Bridgeport, yeah I want to see 248 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE our voting percentages go up. Nobody turns out in Bridgeport because they don't think it matters.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Well, thank you very much for your comments today. They're very, very informative. I will take it to heart and know that there are people, good people both Republicans and Democrats who want to make sure that those Bridgeport elections are fair in the future and that people have access to them. We're working very hard. We've got to continue this debate and we have to be fair to one another about what our intentions really are. So thank you very much, Lynda. I appreciate it.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator Sampson. Senator Flexer.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Mr. Chairman, you can call on me when the discussion with Lynda is finished. Thank you, Representative Fox.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Carpino, your hand is raised.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Lynda, thank you for your public service, particularly over the last few decades, and in both of your communities. I'm going to ask an uncomfortable question and you can answer or not, and I respect your position, but you made a comment about perks and money, I think, or that is what you called it being associated with the votes in Bridgeport. Can you elaborate? Because those are serious allegations and I would love to hear more.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Some of the voters, I talked to -- and I talked to a lot of them because they sit outside the polling place all day long. They said I need that sticker, I need to get in and vote. And I said, do you know who you're voting for? No. But I have to vote the top line. And I said, why do you have to vote just the top line? 249 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

I'm online B. They said no, because if I vote the top line and I bring a sticker over To Maddie's Corner I get a drink, free drink from the top line, top shelf. I'll leave it at that.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you for being honest with. That is disheartening, is the kindest word I can think of. I could go on and on, with all of the other words I would like to use. Is there anything else? You've got an open forum here.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: We certainly do have some photographs of money being handed out at the polling places. We have we tried so hard to get videos of one of the mayor's people driving voters out past the barrier, that 50-foot barrier to drop people off and then drive them back so there was a constant run of cars taking people in. And they would -- they collected their people. They certainly have more -- my challenge slate, we were all except for one woman, we were all newbies and she was a Republican who became a Democrat because why try to run as a Republican in Bridgeport? But she was reelected because people voted for her. But the rest of us, we don't have that kind of an infrastructure to have that kind of service, you know door to door service, between the PTA and the housing projects in the twin towers and the voting place.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): I thank you for your courage and your honesty, and I hope we are not the first ones that you have shared that discouraging and potentially illegal information with. And as we told earlier a guest with us, I hope that you reported those in a timely basis.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Thank you for many years.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you.

LYNDA SHANNON BLUESTEIN: Lots of letters.

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REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you, Mr. Chairman, or Madam Chairman, I'm not sure who is on here.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Next I would like to acknowledge Senator Flexer.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair and thank you for the intelligence. I asked for a brief segue away from our Public Hearing Agenda for a moment. Just a few moments ago, our President asked for, had a moment of silence to honor the 500,000 Americans who passed away in the COVID-19 pandemic, and so out of respect for our friends and family and neighbors who have lost their lives over this last year, I would asked this Committee to take a moment to honor those folks in the same way. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator, I appreciate that. Thank you for your time and I appreciate you being here. Thank you. Next, No. 64 Erin Chang, followed by No. 66, Beth MacGillivray, followed by No. 69, Stacey Zimmerman. Ms. Chang, are you with us still?

ERIN CHANG: Yes, hold on just one moment.

REP. FOX (148TH): Great, there you are.

ERIN CHANG: Okay, terrific. Thank you. Thank you, Chairman Flexer, Fox and other Members of the Committee for allowing me to speak. My name is Erin Chang and listening to everyone here on the panel today, it seems that everyone here is in favor of making our votes heard and having more people, giving more people the ability to vote. And I fully support that right of every American. However, I don't agree that enacting the House Joint Resolutions 58 and 59 will accomplish this in a way that protects the integrity of our election process.

Before considering enacting these Resolutions, we should ensure the necessary safeguards are in place 251 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE on absentee ballots, like witness signatures, official postmarks, cleaned up voter rolls and necessary training, and not doing so puts the integrity of the election process in jeopardy.

Further to Barbara, the registrar that spoke earlier, I also had the occasion to speak with an official in the Town of Greenwich, which is where I'm from, earlier as to whether her input was requested after the election. And she said that her input was not asked. I did see the town clerk doing an awful lot of work in compiling all of the absentee votes that were a part of this last election.

And also, there was a question, I don't recall from which Representative was asked earlier on the panel as to how many individuals had checked off COVID as the reason for absentee ballots, and she replied that most everyone had in the town of Greenwich. While it's hopefully true that this past election will not be like any other, I don't feel that we should let this pandemic negatively impact our freedoms any more than it already has. In removing safeguards from our elections, the right to vote is one of our most sacred rights as Americans and is fundamental to our democracy. And while a right, I also consider it a privilege and a responsibility and I feel that people should recognize and prioritize the importance of voting on Election Day and the symbolism of this act, and not detract from it. Personally bringing my son to vote for the very first time was momentous for him to instill the importance of this as an occasion in his life, the first time that he ever voted.

With all that's happened in this election, I contend that our youth are more aware of this right than ever, certainly more aware than I ever was at that age. I think we need to be careful to not dilute the vote by just making it another task on one's to- do list. I value the opportunity that we have. In some countries around the world, people are 252 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE persecuted for voting, yet they go ahead and they continue to do so, to let their voices being heard. Fear of persecution is not the only way to disenfranchise people, certainly voter fraud will do the same, and I thank you very much for your time and the opportunity to speak.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Chang. Senator Sampson, your hand is raised.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Erin, I just want to thank you for your very concise and very clear testimony. I could not agree more with your comments voting is indeed a right and also a privilege.

You know, I contemplate the issue of elections all the time, and I wonder if somehow making in states where they have early voting and things like that where it goes on for weeks, almost as if it is a casual second thought to people rather than a very important single day every couple of years that people should focus on where we make important decisions about our future.

So I just wanted to run something by you really quick. Are you completely opposed to any sort of early voting whatsoever? Or is it more a concern of yours that if we are going to expand elections that we maintain the safeguards that are necessary?

ERIN CHANG: I'm not opposed to any early voting. I do think that there needs to be a framework. You know, like companies, like families, like buildings, there's a foundation upon which decisions, and you know rules, laws are enacted, and it seems to me that there could be so much more that could be a part of this process and putting together a Resolution going forward with the proper structure and framework that would have some of those safeguards in place.

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SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you. That's kind of my thought too. It seems to me that you have, on the pro side, people are willing to expand voting with very little concerned about the things that you and I are bringing up, which are making sure that we are eliminating any opportunities for fraud and maintaining that integrity is paramount.

And on our side, you have kind of some people which I think might be more traditionalist who think that elections should be the way they've always been, which is one day a year, in person, that's just the way it is. And then, but there's also some other people, which I think I fall into the category of well, I see the need to have some sort of expansion of voting access, but I'm not willing to do that without doing the other things at the same time. And my frustration just between you and me, since we're talking here, is that over the years I keep proposing these protections for voting and those are overlooked in exchange for expansions in voting. And I would be like well, you know, guys I would be a lot more on board with your expansions if you were on board with my protections.

And I hope that this hearing today has brought a lot of that out and my colleagues and I can work together. I mean, I think the people want us to work together to find a solution to do both things. So thank you for just doing a great job of putting the issue in a clear way for us. Thank you, Madam Chair or Mr. Chairman.

ERIN CHANG: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you. Representative Thomas, your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Oh, thank you and hi, Erin. Thank you so much for your patience today. I applaud -- I feel like you're open to pursuing something that makes sense for the voters. So I 254 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE would love to, recognizing you're one person, but I would love to get your feedback.

Part of my frustration is the process we have because some of these things are baked into our Constitution. So even if someone like you agree that we should make some sort of early voting available, like I'm sure most people would say hey, if we could open it for 24 hours instead of 14, that might be acceptable. But we can't make any of those changes until our Constitution is changed.

And my frustration is that even if we decided today to vote to change the Constitution, it still has to go to the voters so that's another year; and then we couldn't vote on what those changes were for yet another year. So it's a very slow process because of this constitutional piece of it.

So the reason it gives me grave concern about setting these things in the Constitution is because like we saw with COVID, things change quickly and I hate to admit it, COVID made me realize that my imagination is perhaps not up to the task of predicting the worst-case scenario. I failed in that because I never saw that coming to this extent. So it just makes me think what if something else happened five years, ten years hence? And then we need a two, four, to six-year process just to adjust to the reality, which is why I'm so much in favor of passing the constitutional amendment and then we can figure out what those tweaks are.

I would love to have your reaction to that. Like can we really wait four to six years to react?

ERIN CHANG: You know, it's interesting because I heard you say that earlier in response to someone else that had spoken and I'm not educated well enough in terms of making the laws in the state as to when input from people, you know, from individuals is applicable. And I also heard it in another hearing that I participated in that if our 255 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE constituents could be a part of the lawmaking process that that would be more beneficial.

I don't know, I would take you at your word. I've heard what you've said, you know, that the voters can't opine and give their input, unless this change is made. It seems a little odd to me, I suppose, that in putting together the Resolution that the voters opinions couldn't be put in when that is proposed, without the Constitution changing. But I don't know enough on that procedure, and wouldn't say to your other point about waiting.

I guess I think that's what COVID has shown us, that we don't know what can happen. This is unlike anything that we were not prepared for. I have never been one in my life to look negatively on anything, just positively optimistic, so hopeful that this situation wouldn't happen in future. And I wouldn't want to rush anything if the proper safeguards were not around there, just in the interest of time.

I mean, I'm the kind of person that I would move into a house and live there for a while before I would do a renovation on it, because I would want to know, for example, as my -- I'm a real estate attorney so that's why I use that example, but I would want to ;live it and experience it first. And I like that you said that about me, thank you very much for being open, because I do feel as though I'm open, even on positions that I've had politically. If someone makes sense on the other side, I'm willing to listen. I think as we get older, right, what are we worried about? Getting stuck in our ways and not being flexible.

So I think being flexible, I'm impressed by all of you during the hearing that you're listening to one another, and I just think people do want their voices to be heard and I appreciate that the Representatives in our area, you know, let us know that this was going on. And this is really so 256 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE important, and thank you all for all the work. I hope that I sort of answered your question, at least a little bit.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Absolutely. Thank you and I would love to connect with you offline anytime you ever have interest. I won't try to outline the process here but you represent the reason I ran for office in the first place, which is people who want to get engaged in the process and are open to all sides of any issue. So thank you for your willingness to engage.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Are there any further questions or comments. Seeing none, thank you for your time and thank you for your testimony. Next, we will hear from Beth best MacGillivray followed by Michael Early fall by Jennifer Sylvia. Welcome Beth, the floor is yours.

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Thank you. Good evening. Thank you, Mr. Chair and Madam Chair and Committee Members. I am Beth MacGillivray, an 18-year resident of Greenwich Connecticut and elected representative at the town meeting and mother of four children, and I'm here to testify today as a legal American citizen who greatly values my civil right to vote. I appreciate that voting in America requires identification, and signature verification when you register. I disagree with the narrative claiming the election was fine and without issues.

In Stamford, at the Roxbury Elementary School, I experienced firsthand a situation when I was campaigning outside. I had a married couple confront me. His Latino wife received an incorrect ballot. The names were wrong on her ballot. I learned from the election officials the batches of ballots were incorrectly sent to the wrong location. This mistake is a bit horrifying, and imagine all the checks these bundles of ballots passed and missed? If you cannot perform a basic duty of getting the correct ballots to the correct location 257 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and, furthermore, in the hands of an eligible voter with a correct ballot, this is a problem.

We need to get the basics correct before we add multiple days, expansion of absentee ballots and other changes affecting verification. For years and years, we have learned the outcome of an election the same evening after polls closed. This year in Greenwich and Stamford, it took one week for a final designation of the newly elected officials. Really, a week? Think about that. How many contests have you competed in that take an extended amount of time to tell the outcome?

One cannot help but have some misgivings about the process if it takes that long for a determination. Despite all the planning in Stamford and Greenwich, it took a week. This speaks volumes about the inefficiencies and inabilities now with increased absentee balloting. I am not confident Connecticut can handle this at this point, at this juncture.

In-person voting is a civic responsibility that many citizens value. They are proud to wear "I voted" sticker. They are proud to bring their children and walk through the process of standing in line, showing ID, filling out the form and handing in the ballot. This is so exciting for all involved. I know my sister-in-law, who became a legal citizen about 10 years ago, enjoys her ability to vote in person, as do my 90 and 93-year-old parents.

There are so many organizations, charities and philanthropic organizations that promote get out the vote and help all individuals through the process. This process has been ongoing for so many years. Please do not underestimate or patronize Connecticut voters. Typically, you only register once --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Okay. I think you're doing a disservice. The need for identifying the eligible 258 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE voter is a disservice to our Constitution and our rights as a legal citizen. In conclusion, I am opposed to HJ 58 and 59. Thank you very much for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, for your testimony. Any questions or comments? Representative Thomas, your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I am sorry, everyone. Hi, Beth. I so appreciate this dialogue and I'm sorry to ask so many questions, but it's an opportunity to push my understanding, further and hopefully people watching and people on the Committee. There's just two things I wanted to get your reaction on that you mentioned. One is the length of time it takes to count ballots and get elections. I would just posit, I always try to be careful in my business, for example, people say how do we do this? Or they always did it this way and I always ask them, you know, let's not just rest on how it's been done or what's been done, but is it still the best way to do it going forward? And the time, the era in which election results were available same day, the world was very different and I understand it's been a historic precedent, but I just would love your feedback. Like things change, things evolve. Is it so bad or would it just require a shift in our cultural norm that results are not ratified the same day?

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Well, I think -- I would like to say that a week, there were ballots that were randomly found, like 500 ballots in Stamford and Greenwich that were found, and so that changed it, and then they had to redo it and redo it. The reason that it took, you know, an extensive amount of time is because there's some problems in the system that currently is in place, and then complicated by the fact that there was an abundance of absentee ballots, and they didn't know how to handle it. So yeah, we have to move forward. There's technology. I get that, but I think the 259 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE important part is that there needs to be some integrity in the system so that -- and efficiencies so that it isn't that extended.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I do think sometimes there are slowdowns for other reasons. For example, in 2018 I did not know my election results for many days because it rained all day and the dampness of the paper when they ran it through the machines, it didn't give the count. So I was very frustrated as a candidate not to know if I had won or lost. But, so I guess, I would just say there are many reasons for slowdowns, and maybe we should consider shifting our norm from this immediate gratification.

And then just the only other thing I would mention, you mentioned the "I voted today" stickers which I have always loved getting, like that is my thing. But in my district, in the town of Wilton, for example, because of COVID, they knew people might be missing that sticker so they did a digital version, so that you could download it and post it on your social media once you submitted your absentee ballot. So again, it's just this idea that historic precedent takes on outsized influence over future possibilities. Do you think people who could not vote in person would mind getting a digital "I voted" sticker versus getting something at the poll?

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Well, I think you -- it cannot cover everybody, so little kids like the little sticker on. They like that. The parents like to give it to them. And the older generation, do they do social media and that type of thing? No. I think there is pockets of people it will work for and there's plenty of pockets that it won't work for.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I will say that 70-year-olds rocked that download, they are so good on social media now. But thank you so much, I appreciate the dialogue. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Senator Sampson, your hand is raised.

SENATOR SAMPSON (16TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Beth, I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to join us tonight and make your comments heard. You did a great job of making it clear that it's very important that we maintain the integrity of our election process. I also wanted to tell you you've got a great living room I like your style. So, good job. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator. Thank you madam for your testimony. I appreciate you being here and I appreciate your patience with us today.

BETH MACGILLIVRAY: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next is number 69, Stacey Zimmerman, followed by 71, Joelle Berger, followed by 72, Linda Pryde, followed by 73 Betty Walker. Stacey Zimmerman, you're up next.

STACEY ZIMMERMAN: Good evening.

REP. FOX (148TH): Good evening, thank you for being here.

STACEY ZIMMERMAN: Chairman Fox, Chairman Flexer, thank you guys for sticking around so long, and thank you for having me this evening. My name is Stacey Zimmerman I'm with the Service Employees International Union Connecticut State Council, we have over 65,000 members in both public and private sector, and over 2 million members in the United States and Canada.

First, I really want to commend the election officials, both state and local. They pulled off a fair, free and healthy balloting operation. Was it perfect? No. But in the year of unknowns they did 261 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE an excellent job, so I think we really need to hold them up high as far as public service goes, and the fact that we made this through.

You know, SEIU supports both HJ 58 and 59, you've heard a lot about it today. I don't have to go through the rigmarole of telling you what's in it, because you know. But I've done this sort of business for a long time I've worked in electoral politics for over 20 years and I've never had a member or a voter say boy, we should make this harder to vote. I've had people ask me, why do we only get to vote on one day? Why can't we do mail- in ballots like Oregon? You know, don't people understand that our lives have changed and we all work out of town, and getting back to vote or voting before is not always possible?

And yes, there is the absentee ballot, I'll be out of town, but for childcare workers or healthcare professionals that don't necessarily work on a schedule, or the fact that they work on other people's schedule, they may not have the option, they will lose their enfranchisement. So this spreading it out with mail is just, you know, it's the next step forward. We want to expand the enfranchisement of our citizens, not derail it.

I've heard a lot of people talk about how voting is a privilege. It's not a privilege, it's a right. It may be a duty but it's not a privilege. If you're a citizen, you can vote. We can't look at it as something we can put barriers in front of. And you know, protections people talk about, we need protections. I mean it's really not much different than Jim Crow. I mean, they needed protections to make sure folks could read. They needed protections to make sure folks could afford to vote. I mean this is ridiculous and you know, these are code words and nobody's called it out, so I'm going to call it out right now.

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We have to move these processes forward, we have to give the ability of people to vote, we have to let them be able to vote in a manner that suits the 21st century. I mean, this is ridiculous, and I commend this Committee for bringing these issues forward and I really hope you support HJ 58 and 59. Thank you so much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Thank you so much. I appreciate your patience with the Committee today. Any questions or comments for Mr. Zimmerman? Seeing none, thank you for being here, sir. Appreciate your advocacy and your participation in our hearing today.

STACEY ZIMMERMAN: Thank you much.

REP. FOX (148TH): UP next, I have Joelle Berger followed by Linda Pryde followed by Karin Layton. Joelle Berger, the floor is yours.

JOELLE BERGER: Good evening, Madam Co-Chair Flexer, Mr. Co-Chair Fox and Members of the GAE Committee. My name is Joelle Berger. I'm a senior citizen living in Westport and I'm here today to strongly support HJ 68 and HJ 59. I'm very grateful to be able to join in on Zoom. There's no way I would have spent that much time going to Hartford and spending the day there, so I hope this is going to become a best practice.

When I moved to Connecticut a few years ago, I was encouraged by the state's policies towards voting rights, such as same-day voter registration, automatic registration through the DMV, among others. Given the state's seeming commitment to voter rights, I was and remain shocked to learn that early voting and no-excuse absentee voting is still banned in the state of Connecticut. This has the effect of disenfranchising thousands of voters who may not be able to find time and access to polling places just on Election Day.

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It also makes Connecticut look very backwards. In 2020 and thanks to the actions taken by you, by our Governor and by the Secretary of the State, I was able to vote by mail and did not have to choose between my health and my vote. This should no longer be an exception, just because of a global pandemic. So I ask you please, make voting easy, convenient and accessible for all Connecticut voters. Thank you for listening and for protecting our right to vote.

REP. FOX (148TH): Any comments for Ms. Berger? Seeing none, thank you for your testimony. Up next, Linda Pryde followed by Betty Walker, followed by [inaudible]. No. 72, Ms. Pryde, how are you?

LINDA PRYDE: I'm fine, thank you very much. Thank you Chairman Fox, thank you Madam Chair Flexer and the Members of the GAE Committee for your stamina. I support HJ 58 and HJ 59 wholeheartedly. I forgot to mention I'm a Westport Connecticut resident as well, and a senior citizen. And I loved the safety and convenience of no-excuse absentee voting in the 2020 election. I'm glad that that opportunity was available to all voters. I salute the state local officials who made the process safe and secure, despite a national campaign of lies about election fraud and mail-in voting by the former president.

Listening to the testimony today, I heard anecdotes and some vague accusations about out-of-date voter rolls and voter fraud. This talk attempts to obscure the truth, the simple truth. Connecticut is out of step with other states with respect to allowing voters access to voting. It's time for Connecticut to reject its place among the seven states that make voting and thereby participation in our democracy difficult. Frankly it's embarrassing, and at worst, our voting laws just discriminate against young people, poor people, working people and disabled people.

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A recent report by the Brennan Center for Justice highlighted efforts made by State Legislatures in 2021 to make voting more challenging. So far, 33 states have introduced or carried over 165 restrictive Bills this year. I am alarmed by this development, and you should be too. I call upon Legislators to ask yourself how you can justify opposing these Bills? Voters should be able to decide if they want to make voting more convenient for all Connecticut registered voters. To do otherwise is to send the message that Connecticut Legislators don't want to hear from the people they represent.

So please vote in support of HJ 58 and 59, and once the voters have decided to expand access in 2022, I have faith that the Legislature can work together to implement their wishes, while maximizing voter security and voter roll accuracy. Thank you for your attention.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for being here. I appreciate your patience. It's greatly appreciated.

LINDA PRYDE: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Have a nice evening. Next No. [inaudible] followed by Katharine Graves followed by George Gould. Ms. Karin Layton, how are you? You're on mute, ma'am. Ms. Layton, you're on mute.

KARIN LAYTON: There we go, thank you. Yes. Are we freezing? I'm ready if you are. My name is Karin Stemberg Layton. I'm a resident of Fairfield, Connecticut. I was born and raised in Connecticut. I've lived outside of the country, so I've seen the US from the perspective of a few other countries, but I also have seen it from the perspective of some other states. And I'm in support of the HJ 58 and the HJ 59. I would like to see the no-excuse absentee voting and also the amendment to allow early voting, and this is why.

265 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

My husband and I requested and received absentee ballots through the mail this past election. This allowed us to vote several weeks early. We chose a day and a time at our convenience and then we socially distanced at the collection box in front of our town hall in Fairfield. It was an easier and more pleasant experience to complete our forms at home, and we took photos to commemorate that moment.

The benefits of early to no-excuse absentee voting have proven successful in 43 other states. Even here in Connecticut this year, when given the option, residents were able to socially distance, not have to take time off from work and they could drop their ballot in a convenient location. We have the collection boxes, the transition has begun, prompted by a pandemic, but proven practical.

Earlier today, and I've been on since 10:30 and I've learned a great deal and I admire the process of having an opportunity to speak. But we mentioned earlier that Connecticut was one of only seven states that didn't allow voters to cast a ballot prior to Election Day without an excuse. The other states are Alabama, Kentucky, South Carolina, Missouri, Mississippi and New Hampshire. The State of Washington, where I have a good friend who's been texting me today just to confirm this information, they've had early voting by mail at least ten years ago.

All Washington residents automatically receive ballots by mail. No in-person voting and no fraud. The operation there is world class, literally people from all over the globe visit their operations. They have trained experts to verify every signature and banks of computer monitors manned to validate. It's a multistep process which my friend observed as a ballot processing watcher. We suggest Connecticut send folks to King County in Washington and observe how smooth this process runs.

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We learned earlier today from a young mother that it's also done in Oregon, and I also heard that it's also offered in three other states. So I was proud of Connecticut when I read that they were one of the first seven states to vaccinate 10% of their residents, along with Alaska, West Virginia, New Mexico, North and South Dakota and Oklahoma. Why can't we take action on --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

KARIN LAYTON: -- voting and early voting? I thank you for listening to me, and we have all eyes on the states now, because victory is going to hinge on these absentee ballots, at least the outcome does. Thank you for your time and good luck.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for your testimony. I appreciate your patience today with us. Seeing no questions or comments, thanks again for your time. Thanks for being here today. I appreciate it.

KARIN LAYTON: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Next up Barbara Heimlich, No. 75, followed by I am told No. 76 and 77 are not here, followed by Peter Spain, followed by Paula Bacolini. No. 75, Barbara Heimlich.

BARBARA HEIMLICH: Good evening.

REP. FOX (148TH): Good evening, ma'am.

BARBARA HEIMLICH: Can you hear me?

REP. FOX (148TH): We can, yes.

BARBARA HEIMLICH: Great. My name is Barbara Heimlich. I am from Stratford and I am speaking today as the editor of the Stratford Crier and as a passionate voter. I am speaking regarding HJ 58 and HJ 59, both of which I am in favor of and encourage 267 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Members to endorse and go forward with the implementation.

I am extremely concerned about the widespread media reports of states scrambling after the 2020 election to impose voting restrictions as well as the well- documented false narrative of a stolen election and voter fraud. False narratives that I was surprisingly heard voiced during this hearing today. Having firsthand experience as a monitor in Stratford for the counting and accounting of absentee ballots, I can assure those who are being labeling out absentee ballots as ripe for voter fraud are misguided and ill informed.

I believe Connecticut's current voting laws take away -- sorry about that. And have not and does not address technology advances that have occurred internationally. I also believe our current voting laws disenfranchise many of our citizens, the elderly, handicapped, people of color, commuters, those not having stable and available transportation, residents unable to take time off work without having your wages impacted, as well as the formerly incarcerated.

I have been on this Zoom meeting since 10:30 this morning, which is probably why I can't speak anymore. And many of my reasons for moving Connecticut into a more inclusive voter law, so I will not restate what many people who have gone before me have said.

I would be remiss as a journalist if I did not point out that I also heard testimony today that I believed lacked verifiable facts. Though some of the speakers did quote sources, many did not. I implore all Legislators, as well as those who are following this Zoom meeting, to research and look into any statement today that you felt was not backed up by sources and facts. Thank you very much.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Barbara, for your comments this evening. Seeing no questions, I appreciate you being here, I appreciate your patience with us today, and thank you for being here, ma'am, we appreciate your commentary.

BARBARA HEIMLICH: You're welcome.

REP. FOX (148TH): Next up, 79 Paula Bacolini, followed by No. 80, Brittany Yancy, followed by No. 81, Edward Boughton. Paula, good to see you again.

PAULA BACOLINI: Hello, how are you? It's nice to see you. Good evening Representative Fox and Senator Flexer and all the Members of the GAE Committee. I'm so grateful that you are holding this hearing tonight on Zoom, and I want to thank you. I've been watching all day since 10:30 this morning on YouTube Live. It's been extremely enlightening and very interesting.

I just want to -- I won't go through every little last detail of all the things that are in my testimony but I did want to let you know that I am so grateful and appreciative of the Members of the Committee, and all of the Members of the Connecticut General Assembly that voted to allow us to have absentee ballots and vote safely during the COVID pandemic in the 2020 season.

And I'm hoping that you will continue to support that legislation 901, SB 901 and HB 6464, to be sure that we are continuing to be safe as we go forward. We don't know where we will be this November, either. So thank you so much for that.

And I want to let you know -- I didn't say, my name is Paula Bacolini, and I am representing a group of over 1,000 residents of Connecticut who belong to Make Voting Easy. We've been working very hard for the last five years for early voting, and also this past year for absentee voting.

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So I'm here to urge you to please vote both of these Bills, HJ 58, to allow for no-excuse absentee voting and HJ 59 to allow for early voting, to vote these Bills out of the Committee and to allow Connecticut to join the 21st Century and be like the rest of America, and have the opportunity to have choice in how we vote. I think that's really important and that's kind of like what I'm hearing from everybody today, is that they really appreciated all the choice that they had.

And really, my -- I really believe that in a democracy, voting is the sacred right of every single American and as such, this constitutional right must be easy and accessible to all eligible voters. And that's what you proved this past 2020 election where people were able to get in line and vote carefully on Election Day. But had we had early voting, we would have had a much easier time of everybody who wanted to vote in person be able to do that in a safe manner, because there would be a few days of early voting.

But the other thing that was excellent was to have absentee voting and I would like to very much see that go forward without an excuse.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes are now over.

PAULA BACOLINI: Okay. As a senior citizen, I just want you to know that this is very important to me as well. Thank you and stay safe.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Paula. Again, I appreciate your advocacy here today, and your patience with the Committee to go through the process. Seeing no questions, thank you for your time and I appreciate you being here today. Thank you very much.

PAULA BACOLINI: Thank you very much.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Before we continue on, there's lots of names of people who I am told are not with us, just to make sure that they're not here. Catharine Graves, George Gould and Peter Spain from the list? I don't believe they're with us currently. I just wanted you to know that they were given the opportunity. Seeing no reactions, we will have Brittney Yancy, No. 80 is next, followed by Jeff Ellington, followed by Judy Villa. No. 80, Brittney Yancy.

BRITTNEY YANCY: Good evening. To Representative Fox, Senator Flexer and to the distinguished Members of this Committee, thank you for allowing me the opportunity to provide this statement. My name is Brittany Yancy, I'm a registered voter in Vernon, Connecticut. And I submit this testimony in support of HJ 58 and HJ 59. I have provided this testimony so I won't read all the way through it, but I do want to highlight that in the past year, COVID-19 has only exacerbated the existing inequities and has made voting even more difficult for the most vulnerable in our communities.

While Connecticut provided every opportunity and took every step to try to provide safe and secure elections, and we had the highest turnout, we know that not everyone voted safely and securely in this past election. And the no early voting and the conditional absentee voting really are barriers, and these obstacles are part of what I feel belongs to a long history of voter suppression addressed in the landmark Voting Rights Act of 1965.

And while this VRA is currently under attack, we know that these two reforms will present a critical opportunity for Connecticut to confront head on its own voter suppression brought on by the pandemic and more broadly addressed in the existing legacy of voter discrimination in our state.

While Connecticut did take every step, the fact remains that these were temporary statutes and 271 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE citizens are still very vulnerable. According to Brookings, Connecticut received a C rating in the vote by mail pandemic preparedness report that was based on the election data. This rating proves that Connecticut still lags behind states across the country in providing voter access.

And so it's necessary that this Committee expands voter protections in the following ways. Providing early voting, providing absentee ballot voting without excuse, providing an amendment that allows for voter registration that restores voting rights to individuals on parole, and provides accounting of the absentee ballots in secured boxes. And I stress that last point, because I live in Vernon, and Vernon was the last town to comply with providing a secured ballot box. We literally got it a week before the Primary.

So in closing, I just ask that you pass HJ 58 and HJ 59, and give Connecticut the chance to close the gaps in our electoral process and restore integrity to the voting process in the state. I urge you to support these Bills and expand voter protections in Connecticut. Thank you for your time.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Thank you again for your testimony and thanks for your patience today.

BRITTNEY YANCY: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next is Jeff Ellington followed by Judy Villa followed by Nancy Sehur. Welcome Jeff, the floor is yours.

JEFF ELLINGTON: Thank you. Thank you, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Senator Sampson and Representative Mastrofrancesco. I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you today, and I applaud you on your stamina. It's been a long day for you folks. My name is Jeff Ellington and I am president 272 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and chief executive officer at Runbeck Election Services. Runbeck was founded in 1972 and I personally have been in the election industry for about 18 years.

Runbeck's core competency is election technology. We provide secure voter registration systems, inbound mail processing and software solutions, and we take that technology and apply it for accuracy and security for absentee voting or vote by mail. In 2020, we produced over 80 million ballots for all forms of voting, early voting vote centers, as well as Election Day voting. In addition to that, we also produce 30 million absentee mail packages for voters across the country. Many of these mail packs included the "I voted" sticker as well.

We supported vote by mail elections in the states of Washington, California, Arizona and Utah, Colorado, Florida, Georgia and many others. Our total footprint across the US covers 22 states plus the District of Columbia. Our tagline is American's Election Partner, and we pride ourselves in establishing these public and private partnerships with our peers on the government side.

As you know, there are many components to the mail ballot process to ensure accuracy, transparency, chain of custody and security. Processes implemented and followed are critical to ensure the electorate has confidence in the outcome of the election. Elections are part of the critical infrastructure of this country, and we take that seriously.

We are corporate affiliates of the National Association of Secretaries of State. We are members of the Subsector Coordinating Council, and part of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency under DHS, as well as many other state and federal level organizations.

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I applaud you on your efforts today to get feedback and create a great process to vote for the state of Connecticut. If you choose to pursue absentee voting at a larger scale, this thoughtful approach will reduce your risk and prove to be successful. Myself and my entire organization at Runbeck will strive to be a trusted resource for this body, and at that, I would be happy to answer any questions, if there are any.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, I just have one very quick question. Where is Runbeck Election Services headquartered?

JEFF ELLINGTON: We are located in Phoenix, Arizona.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): And are you located in Phoenix, Arizona?

JEFF ELLINGTON: I am.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Okay, just interesting to know. You probably wouldn't have been able to participate if we weren't doing it this way.

JEFF ELLINGTON: We would not have been there if it wasn't for Zoom, most likely you're right.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Okay, thank you. Thank you very much, and thanks again for your testimony. Next we will hear from Judy Villa followed by Nancy Schur, followed by Anna Posniak. Welcome, Judy, the floor is yours.

JUDY VILLA: Thank you, Senator Flexer, thank you Chairperson Fox and Members of the GAE. I too have been on since 10:30 this morning and been very educated by all of the comments. I do offer my support for Resolution 58 and 59, and I also want to report that as Secretary of the Connecticut 274 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Federation of Democratic Women, we recently voted to support those Resolutions as well.

I've been living in Connecticut my entire life I'm a senior citizen. I do live in Cheshire and right now, for the last five years actually, I've been serving as Resolutions chairperson for the National Federation of Democratic Women and also as an editor of the National Federation of Democratic Women's Legislative Committees position papers which we present to our Congresspersons and State Legislators in our Women in Blue in DC or virtually, and to our State Legislators across the country.

One of the position papers that I have just finished editing has been signed on by states all across the country in National Federation of Democratic Women, and it is regarding the right to vote.

We've heard so much today and learned a great deal about people's positions and I'm not going to repeat all of the things that I wrote in my written testimony that I submitted to this Committee. I do appreciate that there are different ways of looking at this situation, but as I've been tracking the pros and cons, there is an overwhelming support for going forward with these Resolutions.

What we need to remember and to explain to people in the future who are going to be voting on this, is that we're voting to remove the constitutional barriers that insist that we have one vote, one day, and no other opportunity. I think that that's a cavalier attitude and many speakers have discussed the issues of people who don't have access. Yes, it's a privilege, it's a right, it's our duty, but there are some people that have extraordinary duties that prohibit them from voting on one day.

I think the expansion of absentee balloting can be handled by legislation after we unlock the Constitution. It's a two-part process, policy and then legislative procedures that are going to be put 275 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE in place. And so I would encourage our support and our promise that we trust people of Connecticut to vote on whether to unlock this constitutional barrier. Thank you very much and thank you for a long, long day.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you for your time and patience, and thank you again for your testimony.

JUDY VILLA: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next, we will hear from Nancy Schur, who will be followed by Anna Posniak, who will be followed by Michael Fappiano. Welcome Nancy, the floor is yours.

NANCY SCHUR: Hi, do you hear me?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Yes, I can.

NANCY SCHUR: Great. Well, first of all, I've been here most of the day too on YouTube, watching YouTube and thank you Senator Flexer and Representative Fox and all the Members of the Committee, you know, for supporting this and us. You know, this whole society.

Anyway, I really am in favor of supporting House Joint Resolution 58 and House Joint Resolution 59. You know, as a yoga practitioner and educator for the past 22 years -- yeah, it's 22 years, I've worked with lots of people who had a wide range of issues that affect them mentally and physically. And the ease of voting this past election was incredibly empowering for them, because despite life's daily challenges, voting was manageable.

And in my family, my stepmother, she has trouble standing for long periods of time, so her not having to worry and accrue more stress and instability 276 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE during this past election really promoted, you know, a deep sense of peace for her, which is exactly what this population, the United States, needs. We need less stress. These Bills support that. So tense, stressed anxious people, you know, they have the capacity to prosper because when they're overstressed, they don't, and therefore they're counterproductive to society.

They're struggling to meet the demands of work and a family, and so the underlying thread for most people is this undue stress that limits their ability to manifest their potential. This contributes to societal dysfunction. And there's been much talk today about election integrity. We devalue people's integrity when we cast aspirations on the credibility of their honor to vote responsibly and fairly. Morality needs to be bolstered, not undermined. This is why, now more than ever, we have educational programs that are increasing awareness, to promote social, ethic and civic dispositions, to advance inclusion and collective consciousness.

So I think being in favor of HJ 58 and HJ 59 is imperative to the continued progress of society steps towards a functional democracy. Therefore I'm pleading to the Members to help continue to promote things that are most important for people, which is the empowerment, peace and prosperity that they deserve. Thanks.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, Nancy I just have one comment. Since you said you've been here since the beginning, perhaps you can stick around and at the end, those of us who have been sitting for so long, you could do a little yoga destress routine at the end, so we can all be ready for bed.

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NANCY SCHUR: I've been doing yoga practice during this whole thing.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): But that would be really cool.

NANCY SCHUR: If only. It depends how long this is.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you again. Thank you very much for your time and your testimony. Next, we will hear from Anna Posniak, who will be followed by Michael Fappiano, who will be followed by Beverley Brakeman. Welcome, Anna.

ANNA POSNIAK: Thank you for having me here and I absolutely agree with the yoga, so let's do it. Good evening Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Senator Sampson Representative Mastrofrancesco and the distinguished Members of the GAE Committee. My name is Anna Posniak, and I am the Windsor town clerk and president of the Connecticut Town Clerks Association.

I first want to address our support for HJ 58 and 59. The town clerk's role in ensuring the integrity, fairness and transparency of all elections is vital to us. For years, the CTCA has supported modernizing our state's election system with early, in-person voting by tabulator as a means to give voters more flexibility and convenience in casting their ballot.

Town clerks issued over 665,000 no-excuse absentee ballots in this past presidential election. Ironically, COVID was the key factor that led to our success. We had first-time access to federal and private grant funds to administer the elections. Town halls were closed to the public, which allowed us to utilize unused meeting rooms and our vault to safely process and store the numerous absentee ballots.

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We had a large pool of volunteers and part-time workers, as our residents found themselves with more free time due to COVID. Technology, as the Secretary of the State issued absentee ballots to the voters with their personal information on them and barcodes that we could then process the applications very quickly, with scanning those barcodes.

Unfortunately, the much-needed funds, staff, technology and physical office space will present a serious dilemma for cities and towns as they administer no-excuse absentee voting in a post-COVID world. We strongly support a constitutional amendment that will expand both absentee voting in conjunction with early in-person voting on designated days during the week that leads up to the election.

With this, no one method would be overly stressed as we would spread the voting over the three different methods, including Election Day voting. It is also for that reason we strongly recommend the creation of a legislative task force that would include many of the concerned interest groups that we heard from today. to examine the statutes, the procedures, funding and technology upgrades necessary to implement no-excuse absentee voting and early in- person voting collectively.

This task force needs to be approved this Legislative Session as to allow for a proactive, intensive review of the election process. In order to promote successful elections, we need to plan for the future of our elections, rather than react. This will ensure voters rights and the integrity of the election process collectively. With COVID still a concern for our voters, the CTCA supports any measures to allow for absentee voting in elections this spring.

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In both HB 6464 and SB 901, we do not believe that a police escort is needed to retrieve absentee ballots from any drop box --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

ANNA POSNIAK: As the police departments are very stressed with emergency calls. We fully support maintaining the integrity of the election by simply having a second impartial election official present while we gather those ballots from those boxes. Thank you for this opportunity to provide this testimony, and I would be glad to answer any questions you may have at this time.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Senator Haskell.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you so much, Madam Chair. And Ms. Posniak, I just wanted to take a very brief moment to thank you for the exceptional work that you and the other town clerks have done throughout this pandemic to make sure our democracy run smoothly. It is very greatly appreciated and I think it adds tremendous weight to your testimony today.

We've heard over the course of many, many hours that we can't possibly bring early voting or no-excuse absentee ballot into Connecticut because it would overwhelm the folks at town hall, and here we have the head of the town clerks in the state of Connecticut saying that it would not overwhelm the system. In fact, it could be beneficial to our democracy if, of course, the appropriate resources are made available and the system is set up in a way that takes all stakeholder concerns into account. So I just wanted to say that I appreciate your testimony today. I think it ought to bear tremendous weight and I appreciate all the work that you've done to make this most recent election run smoothly. 280 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

ANNA POSNIAK: Thank you for that recognition and the town clerks across the state worked very hard to be certain that voters had the right to vote, and it was a privilege for us to be able to be there for our voters.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Representative Carpino, the floor is yours.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Anna, just a few questions for you. You know I'm pretty partial to my two town clerks, they are tremendous individuals and thank you for your leadership to them. But I do have a few specific questions for you. Have the town clerks as a whole come up with any estimated or recommended early voting period? This is my first question, because we talked about early voting in this ambiguous sense and different people have different perspectives or opinions. And I'm curious to see if the voting professionals in the state, if you folks have had that conversation amongst yourselves?

ANNA POSNIAK: Well, leading up to the election, we started hearing about two weeks prior to the election from many voters who wanted to have early voting. They would contact our office and say, where can I early vote? When we explained to them that we didn't have early voting but only absentee ballot and that involved an envelope and that the envelope would be opened for them, there were many voters who were disappointed with that, because they felt that they wanted to see their ballot go into the actual tabulator. And there's a very large section of our electorate that doesn't feel comfortable with just putting it in an envelope, and wants to see it go in there.

So the CTCA is endorsing at least one week prior to the election, and it could be for several days, and it must include at least one weekend day to accommodate those people who work during the week. 281 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you. And you mentioned the needed resources and I respect that. Have there been any discussion about what the additional resources would need to be to the individual towns or cities, in order to accommodate this and be sure that it is done well? That you have the appropriate resources should these prove to come to fruition?

ANNA POSNIAK: Obviously, we always need funds. The funds would be needed for hiring staff. For instance, I have three people in my office, I had to bring on four additional people on the day of the election with counting the absentee ballots. We typically have six poll workers. We had brought in 21 people that day to count the ballots, which was a challenge, because we had to socially separate those people. So funds are always needed, technology.

The technology that we're working with currently our tabulators are based on technology from 1994. The company, Diebold, stopped producing those machines in 2007 and in 2010 they stopped making parts for those machines. And so right now, what the company does that provides us with maintenance is they're buying machines and then using parts from those other machines to keep our machines functioning. And these machines are also operating on Microsoft XP, which Microsoft hasn't support since 2014.

So it's evident that we need to purchase new tabulators. The tabulators that we are working are safe and secure, but there are technology out there that is just as safe and secure that have much larger memory that will allow us to facilitate early voting in advance of the election. We wouldn't have to turn -- the machines would just simply be turned off, there would be no results that came out.

I placed a call to the President of LHS, the company that we buy our machines from, and he explained the whole process, that it's been safely done in many states in this country already. 282 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

REP. CARPINO (32ND): And thank you, and I'm asking these specific questions because I really want to know the answer. Do you think your capital for individual help, the bodies that we -- all those friendly faces we saw who got us our successful results, do you think that's additional or do you think that'll be shifting as more people are voting early or absentee, if these go forward, less will be showing up on Election Day? I'm curious if it's additional human resources, or if it's a shifting of human resources.

ANNA POSNIAK: It would be a shifting of human resources. We are hoping that if you have three different methods of voting, absentee voting, early voting and Election Day voting, that no one system would be overly stressed.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thanks. And my final question, Madam Chairman, I don't want to prolong this. There were hiccups and I'll be kind, there were hiccups. And I know in my own district batches of official documents came to one town that belonged in another town that simply started with the same letter resulted. Do you think that those hiccups have been resolved? Or do you believe that there are issues that we need to work through in conjunction with discussing early voting and additional absentee voting?

ANNA POSNIAK: Those are issues that we need to work on in conjunction. You know, this past election we were building a plane while we were flying it, and we were trying to find ways to administer the election. You know, forms were coming from the Secretary of the State's Office, like you said, that were going -- they went to the wrong towns simply because it was the same letter of the alphabet. And not that I want to lay blame on the Secretary of the State's Office, but they were coming from her printer, so you know, there was human error involved, you know, from the printer as well. But 283 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE we need to start looking at ways to make this process more efficient and try to prevent this from happening.

Our current system has many checks and balances that are already built into it, to prevent any kind of fraud. And it's these kinds of measures that has made us successful in the past. That if we have a legislative task force to review this, we can continue to be successful in the future.

REP. CARPINO (32ND): Thank you. Thank you for your answers and your details. Thank you to the Chair, folks who are on, thanks.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative McCarthy Vahey, the floor is yours.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you so much, Madam Chair and thank you, Ms. Posniak. I would like to echo the thanks that Senator Haskell expressed to you and all the clerks. And I very much appreciate what you said about needing to fly the plane, to build the plane, as you were flying it, as I think happened at so many levels of government and the success that you've had is tremendous.

When the Secretary of the State was with us earlier today, one of the questions that I asked her was about how she used the other state Secretaries of State as a resource and what kind of information she was able to gather from them. And I was impressed with your comments about reaching out about the voting machines, because that had come up earlier today, a concern that someone would know what the results were if we were using voting machines with early voting.

So my question to you is, are you in touch also with other state chapters of town clerks to talk with them about some of the things that have worked? I know we're a little bit unique in Connecticut, or 284 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE sometimes a lot. We have 169 municipalities, but are there other resources and other places in the country that you have found helpful as we look at these initiatives going forward?

ANNA POSNIAK: That's a great question. So in New England we have a New England Association of City and Town Clerks that we have been in constant contact with the fellow New England states to ask them what they've been doing, what's been working, what hasn't been working. So in Massachusetts, for instance, they have absentee voting for those people who are outside of the state and need to have their ballot mailed to them, but I think it was two weeks leading up to the election is when there's no-fault absentee voting. And then the voters would then insert their ballot into an envelope.

And that turned into, you know, the same as with us, it turned into a very arduous task on Election Day and after the election to be able to count those ballots. In Connecticut, our tabulators, we put one ballot in at a time, you have to wait for like a second or two before you can put the next ballot in. Some of the other New England states have moved on to newer technology and have the ability to put like a bundle of 100 ballots onto the tabulator, and it will feed like 80 at a time.

Even with that, I understand that the City of Boston, it took them four full days to be able to count all those no-excuse absentee ballots. So, you know, without having early voting, you know, as an option could that have made it easier for them? I don't really know, but I would like to believe it would have.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you so much for that answer. I really appreciate the insight and experience that you've gained from talking with them. I think that's really instructive for us, and thanks again for everything you've done. Thank you Madam Chair. 285 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Representative. Are there other questions or comments? Well, thank you again for your testimony and I too would like to echo the thanks to you and all the amazing clerks all across the state and all of our registrars for your tremendous work under such pressure, and making sure that everyone in our state got to exercise that basic fundamental right last year. So, thank you and we look forward to working with you going forward.

ANNA POSNIAK: Thank you and thank you for your commitment to allow the civil discourse today, so that we can all have the ability to discuss how important elections are to our whole state. Thank you very much.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Next we will hear from Michael Fappiano, followed by Beverley Brakeman, who will be followed by Ethan Book. Michael. Is Michael here? All right if -- oh, Michael is here. We encourage him to unmute himself. Michael does not seem to be answering, so I'm going to call on Beverley, and if Michael should turn his camera and microphone on while Beverley is talking, we will call on him next. Beverley Brakeman, the floor is yours. Thank you for being here.

BEVERLEY BRAKEMAN: Hi. Thank you, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Ranking Members Sampson and Mastrofrancesco and Members of the Committee. My name is Beverley Brakeman. I live in West Hartford and I'm the director of UAW Region 9a. And I'm here to support HJ 58 and 59. I think probably much of what I'm going to say is what you've heard before so I'm going to lend UAW Region 9a's support to this. We have, on behalf of 34,000 members across our region and about 7,000 in Connecticut.

These Bills will strengthen our democracy. You know, the COVID-19 pandemic was something that's not 286 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE over and something that none of us will ever forget, but in terms of voting, some really good things did come out of voting. No-excuse absentee ballot voting, being able to vote by mail increased the numbers of people who voted in Connecticut by about 700,000, with only about a 1% error rate. This is good for our democracy.

You know, both of these things before you, these Resolutions before you, increase participation, strengthen democracy, helps low wage workers and working families get to the polls, single-parent families, and allows more people to be able to vote. It also shortened lines, it reduces administrative burden, increases reliability, and gives election officials, as you saw by the person before me, more time to do what they need to do. And these are good things and we support these things.

And I think, you know, I would also be so bold as to say that these measures fight against the voter suppression that particularly communities of color have experienced for decades and decades and decades, and doing things like no-excuse absentee voting and early voting and voting by mail helps everyone, but it also disproportionately will help communities of color, and that is a good thing that more people exercise their right to vote, and we move away from traditional voter suppression tactics that we've seen so much across this country.

And I think, you know, Stacy Abrams is somebody who I certainly admire, maybe many people in this room do, but she really, she made a difference in terms of this and I think it's interesting that after January 5th, six weeks later, after 3 million people who voted in Georgia, many of them Black and people of color, we're seeing legislation in their Legislature that would restrict absentee voting, early voting and Sunday voting where black churchgoers have a well-known tradition of Souls to the Polls. So I would argue that these measures 287 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE also fight systemic racism in our voter electoral system. Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you for your time and your patience today.

BEVERLEY BRAKEMAN: Thank you all.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Next, we will hear from Ethan Book if Michael Fappiano is still not here. I still don't see Michael Fappiano, but I do see Ethan Book, so after we hear from Ethan we will hear from Janet Clayman, Matthew Schlager if they're here. Ethan, the floor is yours. Welcome.

ETHAN BOOK: Thank you, good evening. Can you hear me? Good evening, Chairman and Members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee. I'm Ethan Book, speaking from Bridgeport in opposition to HJ 58 and 59. In 2020, I was the Republican candidate for State Rep. for the 128th district, the central portion of Bridgeport, the largest municipality by population in the state.

My team ran a very active candidacy. That was my most recent run as a serious candidate in the state. My experience, coupled with many yet unaddressed questions about the 2020 election processes nationwide have left me with concerns. These concerns I've reported on social media. I have raised them with several unanswered requests for public information and others I raised in a lawsuit against the Secretary of the State and the Bridgeport Registrars of Voters.

It is well known that mail in -- that absentee balloting voting gives greater opportunity for voting fraud and vote harvesting. We already know that there have been major problems of voter fraud in Bridgeport, as was confirmed in 2019 Superior Court decision of Lazar v. Ganim. 288 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Also, the no-excuse mail-in voting tends to give focus on vote quantity, often at the expense of vote quality. In fact, higher interest in voting last year was likely due in part to biased mainstream and social media.

Both proposals would allow for early voting even before candidates such as Republican candidates or Independent or other minor party candidates in this Blue state have a complete opportunity to campaign, to meet the voters and get out our messages. This becomes a distinct advantage for the establishment Democrat majority candidates. It is illogical that the state would even consider these constitutional changes before there is reasonable attention to registrars purging the lists of inactive voters, which in the 128th District, is a very high 40%. Of checking citizenship and of poll workers verifying voter identification and verifying signatures of absentee voters.

It would also be wrong to consider such changes before the recent election has been fully reviewed. I have had pending for three months unanswered Freedom of Information Act requests regarding the voting that is seeking access to votes to verify a count, access to rejected votes, voter checkoff lists, et cetera.

Also, my lawsuit against the Secretary of State and the Registrars of Voters hasn't even gotten past the discovery stage. In addition, as we have heard, all heard about issues of the Postal Service, which in Bridgeport I saw 15% of mailed campaign materials lost or completely or incompletely delivered. Further, I have yet to see the results of the audits conducted by the Secretary of State of random selected voting precincts.

Thus, the promoters of these Bills who say that more than 650,000 voters voted securely by absentee 289 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE ballots in the 2020 election have absolutely no sound basis --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

ETHAN BOOK: For all, the consideration of these Bills is unfounded and very premature. These proposed steps are no good. Thank you for your attention, may God bless this Constitution state. I welcome questions.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Senator Haskell, the floor is yours.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you so much, Madam Chair and thank you, Mr. Book, for your time and your patience before our Committee. You mentioned that you reported some incidents of voter fraud on social media and perhaps elsewhere, in a lawsuit. I didn't quite understand that bit, but perhaps most importantly, I'm sure you're aware that any instance of voter fraud in Connecticut is punishable by up to five years in prison, in addition to fines. Have you filed a complaint with SEEC, the State Elections Enforcement Commission?

ETHAN BOOK: Okay, I didn't say that I found examples of fraud that I posted on social media. What I have posted are issues of questions about the voting processes. Issues that are described somewhat in my request for information, pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, and several specific areas that I've raised.

There are six points that I raised in my lawsuit against the Secretary of the State. I call it issues of negligence. I'm not seeking compensation, I'm seeking rulings, declaratory rulings, on six points which I see as being defective issues.

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SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Understood, Mr. Book and in the interest of time and out of respect for all those on both sides waiting to testify, I'll just ask a few more yes or no questions. If you were aware of a specific instance of voter fraud, would you report said instance to the State Election and Enforcement Commission? I'm on their website now, they have a file a complaint link very readily available for anyone who actually has reason to believe that there has been an instance of voter fraud. Is that a process you would you would pursue if you --

ETHAN BOOK: Absolutely. Absolutely. Now, as has been reported in other matters earlier, there are some things about, like irregularities that are difficult to report. For example, one voter told me that she could not vote for me because if she voted for a Democrat President, then she couldn't vote for anyone online in the rest of the ballot. And she told me that an election worker told her that. I said what was the name? She couldn't tell me. Not a whole lot that I can do about things like that.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Well, I would be interested in what precinct that the election worker was serving when they offered that misinformation, but we'll put that instance aside and move on to just one more question I have. Which is, you mentioned and I feel a need to speak up here because given recent events, I find it dangerous to suggest that the election results in Connecticut are anything but certified and finalized. And I want to make sure that you're aware, just yes or no if you will, that the Secretary of State statutorily is required to conduct an audit, a randomized audit, of elections following the November results, to make sure that the results were in fact accurate. And that happens sometime after they are initially reported on election night. Is that a process of which you're aware?

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ETHAN BOOK: Yes, I am, yes. Yes, I'm aware of that and I am interested in seeing the results of that, and that's part of some of the items that I'm pursuing.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Understood. Well, I have no further questions, Madam Chair. Thank you for the time.

ETHAN BOOK: And by the way, Senator Haskell, it's a pleasure.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): It's a pleasure to see you as well.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you, Senator. Are there other questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your testimony and your time.

ETHAN BOOK: Thank you.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): I believe the next person who is here on our list is Peegen Rubenstein, and I will call on Peegen in just a moment, but if Janet Clayman, Matthew Schlager, Martey Rhine or M. Gustaf, Nos. 90 through 93 are here, please let us know. Otherwise, Pegeen Rubenstein will be next, who will be followed by Jeffrey Caggiano. Pegeen, the floor is yours. I hope I'm saying your name correctly.

PEGEEN RUBINSTEIN: That's all right, it happens a lot. Hold on one second. So, good evening, everybody. I know it's been a long day for you. So Co-Chairs Flexer and Fox and Members of the Committee, my name is Pegeen Rubenstein. I live in Westport. I vote in Connecticut and I'm here this evening to speak in support of HJ 58 and HJ 59. In the midst of a pandemic, thanks to actions that I'm sure this Committee took and our Governor, I was so grateful to be able to vote by mail. But what I learned in this election cycle was how antiquated my 292 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE state is in terms of making voting easy for all citizens. We need to make voting easy convenient and accessible to all Connecticut voters. I support HJ 58 and HJ 59, and I ask that you support improved voting access. Thank you for listening.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony and thanks for correcting me.

PEGEEN RUBINSTEIN: You're mute.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): I don't think I'm on mute, can you hear me? Okay. Thank you for your testimony, thank you for your time today. Are there any questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your patience and for your testimony. I don't think she can hear me, but thank you again for your testimony today. Okay. Thank you. Okay, next on our list is Jeffrey Caggiano. Is Jeffrey here? John Farrell, No. 96? Colin Adams, Ralph Levy, Richard Hill, Karen Edwards, Jennifer Kohl. Is Jennifer Kohl here? I see Jennifer Kohl is here. Jennifer Kohl, welcome, the floor is yours.

JENNIFER KOHL: Awesome. Hi, thank you, everybody. Good evening Chair Flexer, Chair Fox and honorable Members of the Committee. My name is Jennifer Kohl, I'm a registered voter in Waterford, Connecticut. Thank you all for the opportunity to testify. I am here in support of both HJ 58 and HJ 59. I registered to vote the day after my 18th birthday. As a political enthusiast, this was a monumental occasion for me. Going off to college that same year, however, I soon realized that voting is not as simple as simply filling in [inaudible]. My passion for civic engagement never subsided, there have certainly been many multiple calls to my wonderful town clerk.

This begs the question, though, why is voting so hard? Now, as a full-time graduate student, many of my colleagues can attest that every year, I ask them 293 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE if they have a plan to vote, and the answer that I come across frequently, is that although someone is interested in civic engagement, they are unable to prioritize voting due to their work schedule, commute, family lives, and other matters.

In a democratic society, however, we should not have to choose between our lives and voting. This issue is much larger than a college student bumbling through the absentee ballot process. Connecticut voters who are working full time, working multiple jobs to make ends meet, supporting families, attending higher education and so many more are being disenfranchised by Connecticut's archaic single day voting.

These two Resolutions are a step in substantially addressing this issue. I was among the record- breaking nearly 30% of registered voters here in Connecticut to cast a ballot in the 2020 general election. I was also among the 650,000 voters in Connecticut who chose to vote via absentee ballot. I voted for the President of the United States on a Thursday night at 11:30 p.m. after a very long [inaudible], put my ballot in my town's drop box the next morning.

So my answer to the question, why is voting so hard? Is that it really doesn't need to be. We saw in the 2020 general election that no-excuse absentee ballots are effective and secure. We also saw 43 other states successfully administer voting in a well-functioning democracy, high voter turnout should be the goal. We should be celebrating, protecting and enacting mechanisms that enable more people to participate in elections.

I encourage you all to support these two incredibly important pieces of legislation, because I believe in Connecticut we should prioritize and protect the democratic system. Thank you all for your hard work and thank you for your time.

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SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you for your testimony. Are there questions or comments from Members of the Committee? Seeing none, thank you again for your patience today, and thank you for your testimony. Next we will hear from Aaron Goode, who will be followed by Robert P. Blank who will be followed by Carol Goldberg. Aaron. Is Aaron here? Aaron Goode. All right, Aaron, I see that you are here but you are not responding. Oh, there you go. Aaron. Your camera was -- Aaron, the floor will be yours in a minute. Again, Aaron will be followed by Robert P. Blank will be followed by Carol Goldberg.

AARON GOODE: Hi, can you hear me?

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): We can hear you, we cannot see you. There you go.

AARON GOODE: Thank you Chairs Flexer and Fox, and Ranking Members and distinguished Members of the Committee. My name is Aaron Goode, I'm on the Executive Committee of the League of Women Voters, New Haven Chapter. I'm founder of the New Haven Votes Coalition, which is a nonpartisan alliance that fosters voter participation and civic engagement in New Haven.

And in that capacity, this is now my eighth or ninth time testifying in favor of early and/or no-excuse absentee voting at the GAE Committee. Apart from my enjoyment at participating in these hearings, I have persisted in this effort because I continue to believe it's extremely unfortunate and contrary to common sense that Connecticut residents are not afforded the same basic voting opportunities and conveniences the residents of all but a handful of other states already enjoy.

I won't belabor all the arguments that you've already heard today, but just make a couple points about our experience in New Haven. Over the last ten years, New Haven has suffered from significant problems with election administration. In the 2018 295 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE election, we experienced widespread equipment failures with optical scan machines rejecting wet ballots, voters going to the wrong polling places because of misprinted postcards from the registrar's office, and chaos with same-day voter registration EDR that made the DMV look like a model of user friendliness and convenience.

And these problems were, in the words of Yogi Berra, deja vu all over again. In the 2014 general election, and again in the 2016 election, multiple polling places in New Haven ran out of ballots, moderators overslept and arrived late to their stations, the Hall of Records polling place experienced wait times exceeding three hours. More than 200 people wanting to vote were tragically turned away at City Hall because of lines for EDR that exceeded five hours.

Last fall we experienced none of these problems. The 2020 general election was the first time in a decade that we did not have significant problems in a high turnout election. It was the first time since 2014 that we did not have to turn people away from EDR. It was the smoothest Election Day that I have ever seen in two decades of closely observing elections in New Haven. And our turnout was 66.28%, not 47% as a previous witness falsely stated.

But this miraculously non-chaotic election would not have been possible without the extensive opportunities for early and absentee voting that were afforded to voters as a result of COVID-19 emergency protocols, which took the pressure off Election Day itself, and made it possible for election officials to avoid becoming overwhelmed, to quickly identify and troubleshoot problems that arose. And, above all, to give EDR the attention and resources that it needs.

Thanks to the heroic efforts of our poll workers, town clerks, staff and others who have put one of the most chaotic and stressful election ever, became 296 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE one of the smoothest in recent memory. We do not want to go back to the old way of doing things.

To be sure, there were and are some issues with absentee ballots. We need to improve ballot tracking and the CDR database, and as Luther Weeks has pointed out, ABs need to be part of the post- election audit program, which they currently are not. There may be absentee ballot integrity issues in Bridgeport and elsewhere, but the more we expand access to absentee ballots, the easier these problems will be solved, not the harder.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

AARON GOODE: Yeah, just to conclude, while the referendum in 2014 failed statewide, it succeeded overwhelmingly in New Haven. It got 70% support in New Haven. I think that's because we actually did a good job of doing an education outreach campaign in New Haven. When people understood, were able to see the confusing language and understand what the referendum would actually do, they wanted to vote yes. If they were confused about it, they voted no.

But I think if we put it on the ballot again, when we do an education outreach campaign that's adequate, I think voters will overwhelmingly approve it this time. That's all. I just want to strongly urge you to remove these antiquated restrictions from our Constitution and permit voters in the Legislature to decide if we need long-overdue voting reforms.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, very much, Mr. Goode. I appreciate your testimony this evening. Representative Thomas, the floor is yours. Your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Hi, thank you so much. Hi, Aaron, and thank you. You sound so educated about this, I just want to ask you a question you may not know. You raised an interesting point about the 297 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

2014 ballot referendum, and how well it did in New Haven. And we've talked a lot today about how it failed. I don't remember the percentages offhand. Do you remember the pass/fail statewide? I thought it was something like 48-52, you know, not like an overwhelming failure.

AARON GOODE: Yeah, I think it was about five points, percentage points.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Any further comments or questions for Mr. Goode? Seeing none, thank you very much for being here, sir. We appreciate your patience today. Next, Robert Blank followed by Carol Goldberg followed by Jonathan Perloe, No. 103.

ROBERT P. BLANK: Thank you, Senator Flexer -- I'm sorry, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Ranking Member Sampson and Mastrofrancesco, distinguished Members of the GAE, especially Representative Thomas and Senator Haskell. My name is Robert Blank. I live in Norwalk. I submitted my testimony such as it was. I won't read it.

I will make just one point that several other people have made, but one that has always struck me as particularly problematic. In the United States, therefore in Connecticut, elections are held on a weekday by law, a weekday, and they are held in a month where the weather is often very chilly. It's seven weeks, give or take, short of the solstice so it's a day with relatively little daylight. It's difficult, therefore, to vote for many people, working people. Others who simply can't take time off. So the ability to exercise a right which really can't be exercised is no right at all.

So the ability to vote early and to be able to vote by. mail and not be limited to what can be a cold rainy day in the middle of the week ordinarily strikes me as eminently fair and reasonable. So I strongly support both of the measures and I hope 298 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Members of the Committee will support it as well. That's all I have to say. It's been a long day.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mr. Blank, appreciate your testifying today and for your patience with the Committee thus far. Any questions or comments? Seeing none, thank you again, sir, for your testimony. I appreciate your advocacy on these issues. Thank you very much.

ROBERT P. BLANK: Thank you all very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next No. 104, Carol Goldberg, followed by John Perloe, followed by Mark McKinney. Ms. Goldberg, the floor is yours.

CAROL GOLDBERG: Thank you, Senator Flexer, Representative Fox and Members of this distinguished Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to come before you to testify via Zoom in favor of allowing no-excuse voting due to COVID-19, specifically Senate Bill 901 and House Bill 6464.

I also support submitting to the people of Connecticut a state constitutional amendment to allow no-excuse voting and early voting. My name is Carol Goldberg. I live in Bethany, Connecticut, one of a handful of towns and boroughs that actually holds its municipal elections in May. Voting, as we've heard all day today, is critical to a thriving democracy. Certainly the more people that can exercise that right to vote, the better.

My town of Bethany understood that long ago. That is why, in part, our municipal elections are in May. Bethany, when it was formed, it was an agrarian town. Farmers in November were spending their time harvesting their crops and absolutely could not take time to go into town to vote. As a result, municipal elections were held in May, before planting began, rather than when harvest came, to make voting more accessible. This Legislature has 299 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the ability, through these Bills, to make voting accessible once again.

You know, regarding COVID in the time we're living in now, not everybody has been inoculated thus far from COVID we don't all have immunity or herd immunity yet from COVID. There are many people who are still fearful of leaving their houses due to COVID, and those that just choose not to be in crowds, we have the ability to accommodate them, just as we did during the primary and general elections last year.

Some numbers from Bethany I think are important for you to know. During the 2020 presidential election, so in November, 1,067 people voted by absentee ballot. In 2016 in the presidential election, 257 voted by absentee ballot. 257 to 1,067, that is a significant difference and yet Bethany had no trouble at all handling the increase.

In our presidential primary, 467 people voted by absentee ballot last August, and as the municipal election is coming forward, in 2019 we had 61 people vote by absentee ballot. I anticipate if these Bills passed, we will have more voting this year. But even if the numbers quadruple, you can see that this is a number that can easily be handled.

Absentee ballots, I know because I worked at the polls this year, were counted on Election Day without any difficulty whatsoever. All absentee ballots were fed into a separate voting machine and results were available that evening. This is not an arduous task and did not put an undue burden upon elected officials.

We need to open voting to as many people as possible. We cannot do this without reauthorizing the use of the ballot boxes. So I just ask you to make sure that there is a provision in a Bill if these Bills allow no-excuse absentee voting pass, to please make sure there's a provision reauthorizing 300 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE the use of the ballot boxes. People came up to us and told us how wonderful it was and how safe voting was because of those ballot boxes --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

CAROL GOLDBERG: So, to conclude, if I may, I just have to tell you this. My 94-year-old mother has been sitting with me all day listening to this. She's a trooper, and she is -- would never have been able to vote without no-excuse absentee voting. And this is a woman who would crawl to a poll to vote, she would never not vote. So, having this where she could go to vote without being afraid to get sick was incredible.

And, finally, I just want to say, I think it was Senator Haskell I heard ask someone before whether or not voter turnout the person thought was as a result of absentee ballots, and I have to say it has to be, just because there's so many comments we've received after the election. So I thank you very much, and I really appreciate your time today.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you Ms. Goldberg. I appreciate your persistence today, and I appreciate your mother's as well, and thank you. We value your opinion as always. Thank you for staying the day with us. Greatly appreciated. Any questions or comments? Senator Flexer.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Carol for your testimony this evening. Just real quick, you mentioned your mother. If we don't change the law to allow for Bethany's election to be held with similar circumstances as what we did last year, do you think that will cause difficulties, perhaps not for someone like your mother if she's been able to get the vaccine, but other people who might be concerned for their health when May rolls around?

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CAROL GOLDBERG: Absolutely, without a doubt. 100% yes. I've had this very conversation with people on my street, letting them know that I was going to testify today. And there's someone down the street, who said to me, she's about 80, she said I can't vote. I cannot vote unless we have no-excuse absentee ballots. There's other people I know who are in their 60s who haven't yet been able to get the shot, who have told me they're very uncomfortable. They just don't want to go and stand in line. So absolutely. They absolutely will not be able to vote, and it would be very difficult. Because you don't want to lie on the form that says that you're home sick. You're not home sick with COVID, you just don't want to go out and get it.

SENATOR FLEXER (29TH): Thank you. Thank you very much, and thanks for your testimony. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator Flexer. Any further comments or questions? Thank you for your advocacy today, thanks for being here. I appreciate your time with our Committee. Thank you very much. Up next, No. 105 Jonathan Perloe, followed by 106, Mark McKinney, followed by 107, Kyle Knickerbocker. Mr. Perloe, how are you? Good to see you again.

JONATHAN PERLOE: Good, good to see you. Hello Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Ranking Members and other distinguished Members of the general Government Administration and Elections Committee. My name is Jonathan Perloe. I live in [inaudible] and I'm one of the leaders of Voter Choice Connecticut, the all-volunteer citizen's movement working to bring ranked choice voting to Connecticut.

Thank you for hearing my testimony in favor of HJ 58 and HJ 59. On a side note, I really appreciate the opportunity to have my voice heard, without having to take an entire day off from work or driving for hours to and from Hartford. In fact, I'm in 302 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Philadelphia right now, because I had to drive down here this evening. I hope the ability to testify virtually continues after the pandemic ends.

Quite simply, I believe we are not doing right by our voters by being one of only seven states that does not allow voting ahead of Election Day without one of very few reasons. I believe it's incumbent upon the Connecticut General Assembly to make it easier to vote. I applaud the near-unanimous vote by Legislators last year to temporarily allow all voters to vote absentee, and the measures the Secretary of State put in place to help them make the most of it, sending applications to all registered voters and providing secure drop boxes for the return of completed ballots. Absentee voting was wildly popular, as we've heard many times. It was about one-third of all ballots cast, or cast absentee, which is about five times higher than in 2016. And despite the logistical challenge state and local election officials made it work and they were really quite heroic in that matter.

None of the issues about fraudulent voting raised by some Members of your Committee came to pass. And I think that's for two simple reasons. One, it's very difficult to throw an election one vote at a time. And secondly, it's a felony and I don't think most people are going to risk becoming a felon just for the sake of impersonating someone else to vote.

Polls show that both early voting and no-excuse absentee voting enjoyed overwhelming public support, so it wasn't just the pandemic that drove one-third of voters to vote absentee.

Next what I would like to add that to strengthen our democracy, we need to do more than make it easier to vote. We need to ensure that winning candidates better reflect the will of the majority, and that's what I believe ranked choice voting offers, and it's why I'm also asking you to raise HB 5885, THE ACT ESTABLISHING A TASK FORCE TO STUDY RANKED CHOICE 303 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

VOTING that was introduced by ten Legislators and is now cosponsored by another 21.

In its report, Reinventing Democracy for the 21st Century, the respected and nonpartisan American Academy of Arts and Sciences recommended ranked choice voting as a way to achieve equality of voice and representation. Leading conservative voices like Norm Orenstein, the late Senator John McCain endorsed ranked choice voting. I appreciate the severe challenges of passing legislation this year, but when it comes to securing a truly representative democracy, we cannot wait. A similar study Bill was passed by the House in 2019. Your Committee commendably raised the Bill again last year. And in 2019, OFA reported no fiscal impact of the study Bill.

So thank you so much for hearing me on these important voting and election reforms and I really appreciate all the work this Committee has done in the past, over quite a few years. Your work is really invaluable and I thank you for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Jonathan, for your testimony. Any questions or comments for John? Representative Blumenthal, your hand is raised.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. I just wanted to say hi and thank you to John for being here today. I appreciate all your advocacy on issues related to voting and other issues, so thank you for sticking with us all day and for contributing your voice to the process, as always.

JONATHAN PERLOE: Thank you very much, Representative Blumenthal. I appreciate that.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Any further questions or comments? Seeing none, Jonathan, I echo the comments made by my colleague Representative Blumenthal. Thank you for your remarks and your advocacy on behalf of the residents 304 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE of Connecticut and I look forward to working with you in the future, so thanks.

JONATHAN PERLOE: My true pleasure, thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, I'm not sure they're here. Mark McKinney and Kyle Knickerbocker, 109 Anna Saras. I don't think any of them are present in the room. No. 109, David de Milhau, I believe I saw him. Mr. Milhau? He's here but his camera is off and the microphone is off. Number 110, Jackie Kaiko from Stamford, Connecticut. Good to see you, Jackie. You're on mute. Okay, there you go.

JACKIE KAIKO: Good evening. Thank you, Members of the GAE Committee for hosting this meeting and hosting it on Zoom. This isn't the written testimony I submitted, but I wanted to use my time to address some of the comments I heard earlier today. My name is Jackie Kaiko and I live in Stamford. I fully support HJ 58 and 59. This is based on not only a strong feeling of civic duty but also for personal reasons, as I'll explain.

When she spoke earlier today, Secretary Merrill reported that 73% of Connecticut voters want voting to be easy, convenient and accessible. I'm one of the 73%, but I also want, and I also need voting to be safe. I have a chronic health condition that makes me immunocompromised and susceptible to severe illness, and I'm not alone. This applies to the large number of Connecticut voters who have autoimmune diseases such as type one diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, lupus, transplant, cancer patients, and many others.

And by the way, immunocompromised people might be at greater risk for severe illness from COVID-19 and it's not known if a vaccine will be as effective for them. So I would like to present these facts, 305 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE particularly for the benefit of Representative Mastrofrancesco.

At the time of last year's general election, I was immunocompromised, as I have been every day for well over 30 years. But at that time, I wasn't sick. I was at a very high risk for infection, but I wasn't sick. And this would have been the same for the other Connecticut voters who have the immuno conditions I just cited, many of them. In the November general election, under our normal absentee voting regulations, I wouldn't have qualified to vote absentee unless I lied. I was at high risk for infection, but I wasn't sick. I wanted to be able to vote, but I didn't want to lie.

So I was thrilled last November to not have to choose between my vote and my health. I didn't have to lie then, and I hope I won't have to do so in the future. So I strongly urge you to vote for HR 58 and 59, so we can all vote, as so many other Americans already do conveniently, safely and honestly. Thank you for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Jackie. I really appreciate you being here today, your patience with the Committee today and your appearance. I greatly value your advocacy and your efforts on behalf of the residents of the state of Connecticut and thank you for being here. Representative Thomas, the floor is yours.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hi, Jackie, how are you? Good to see you. You just raised something that we also haven't touched on a lot today, but I've heard it a lot on the campaign trail. Which is, you know, there are a lot of people who lie casually, like people who commute who know like technically they won't definitely be out of town, but they fill out the absentee ballot. But I was surprised, frankly, how many people I ran into who said they were afraid of breaking the law, because it is breaking the law. And they went 306 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE through great effort, great physical pain sometimes, to go and vote, just so they didn't break the law. So I appreciate you sharing that story.

And I know you do a lot of volunteer work. How big of a problem do you think that is?

JACKIE KAIKO: Generally, for people with immuno?

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Yeah, yeah.

JACKIE KAIKO: It can be very difficult and I think the biggest issue that I wanted to address was that you don't know when you see people out in the street what kind of conditions they have. So, when you say that, well, somebody has to be sick to disqualify them from doing things. Well, there may be other reasons besides them being overtly sick. There are conditions that prevent them from wanting to put themselves at risk for certain things. And when there are ways to prevent you're putting yourself at risk, like something as easy as the kind of accommodation we had at the last election, it is just the kind of thing we need. And we needed it then, we really need it in the future. I don't think we have time to extensively go through the state and examine all of the voter rolls and everything.

When I heard all the statistics about how much fraud there appears to be, the cost benefit, it clearly indicates that we should move forward and make voting easier, more convenient and safer. We don't have the time to do all that investigation and I'm struck by how popular and how well it works in so many of these other states around the country but somehow Connecticut can't do that. It makes no sense.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Well, I thank you for sharing your story and elevating the voice of people that we may often forget about. So thank you for hanging in as well, have a good night. 307 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

JACKIE KAIKO: I've been sitting here listening. You all have been working and thinking and engaging with people, so I take my hat off to you. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Blumenthal, the floor is yours.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hi, Jackie. I just want to say hi and thank you for sticking with us all day. You know, you just barely dodged geographically being my constituent but I still can serve you anyway, so I hope you'll excuse that. I appreciate you being here. I appreciate you sharing your story with us, and I agree how important this issue is for many people, and I also agree that we should continue this Zoom option even after the pandemic.

JACKIE KAIKO: I just went outside a while ago and it's such a mess, and I can't imagine if I wouldn't be here talking to you now because if I had to go to Hartford and then drive back, I wouldn't be here now. I would have been on the road and at home long ago.

REP. BLUMENTHAL (147TH): I agree it's a big boon to especially folks from our part of the state.

JACKIE KAIKO: Absolutely.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Thank you, Jackie for your patience tonight. We really appreciate you being here and your advocacy on behalf of all the residents of Connecticut. Thank you very much.

JACKIE KAIKO: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, No. 111 Joanne Kelleher, followed by No. 112, Maria Alfonso, 113 Kathryn Farnsworth, 114, Maureen Blum, and 115, 308 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Cynthia Megyola. Joanne, I believe you're with us still. There you are. Thank you.

JOANNE KELLEHER: I am. Good evening. Thank you to the Members of the GAE Committee for allowing me to speak. My name is Joanne Kelleher and I am a voter from Southington, Connecticut. And voter rights and passing both HJ 58 and HJ 59 are important to me.

For four years, I've worked for the Town of Southington on Election Day as an assistant registrar at one of the town's polling locations. And, last year I was asked to become a moderator for both the primary and the presidential election, supervising all aspects of the polling site. And so I've seen firsthand people trying to get in and out of the polls early in the morning so they can make it to work on time. And voters literally running across the parking lot to get in the door before I close it at 8:00 p.m. Seniors and those with health issues, struggling to wait in long lines without a convenient place to sit, and parents trying to vote, while keeping an eye on their restless children.

I've also seen the joy of people of all ages, who are celebrating casting their ballot for the very first time. Professionally, I'm the director of the Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington. It's a nonprofit that supports parents, child care providers and other caregivers of young children. And at our January 2021 board of directors meeting, the ECCS board unanimously voted to sign on to a letter from Common Cause of Connecticut, a few legislative leaders supporting voter rights legislation, including the two topics covered by HJ 58 and 59.

One family childcare provider, they run their own childcare business out of their home, shared that on Election Day she would need to bring all six of the children in her care with her to the polling place in order to vote. Due to the long hours that she worked and the inconsistent times that children were 309 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE dropped off and picked up by their parents, she couldn't go to the polls early in the morning or at the end of the day. And as you can imagine, trying to vote with six children was difficult for her and she would have preferred to have voted by absentee ballot.

Parents may also need to bring their children with them to the poll sites. While this can be a great opportunity for older children to learn about the democratic process, it can also be stressful for parents to wait in long lines and then focus on filling out their ballot, while watching what their children are doing. Earlier today, one of the Committee Members said no one is preventing you from showing up to vote. But in reality, many voters, including parents and early childhood educators in Southington work long hours, hold multiple jobs, or have caregiving responsibilities and can't make it to a polling place on Election Day.

Having the flexibility to vote early or by absentee ballot would make their lives easier, which is why the Early Childhood Collaborative of Southington board of directors decided to support voter rights legislation. I know concerns about voter fraud were discussed earlier today, and as we've seen from our neighbors in other states, there are ways to set up a process with checks and balances to prevent people from voting twice or if they aren't eligible. The specific regulations are new. Connecticut's early voting absentee ballot law will need to give municipal officials, local registrars and election workers the time and resources --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

JOANNE KELLEHER: To ensure that the results will be tabulated quickly, accurately and transparently. I invite the two Ranking Members of this Committee from Southington to contact me if they'd like to talk more. And in conclusion, I ask to please make 310 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE it easier for all of our state's citizens to cast their votes and support HJ 58 and 59. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Joanne. A quick question for you if I can. Has your group [inaudible] before?

JOANNE KELLEHER: We have not.

REP. FOX (148TH): So then this is the first time your organization has come out on behalf of a proposal such as this?

JOANNE KELLEHER: Specifically for voting, yes. We have taken positions on other issues. One of our three goals is advocacy on behalf of childcare providers and parents in town.

REP. FOX (148TH): How many individuals do you have in your group?

JOANNE KELLEHER: Well, there were seven people on the board and one was absent that night.

REP. FOX (148TH): But the actual number of people you represent?

JOANNE KELLEHER: There's approximately 5,000 young children in town, so you know, the collaborative -- like I don't have numbers.

REP. FOX (148TH): That's all right.

JOANNE KELLEHER: But Southington is a town of 42,000 people, and so we represent all of the children from age birth through grade three and their families.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for being here. I appreciate your patience with us today, and I am always intrigued when I hear of groups like your own coming out for the first time in support of a piece of legislation. I find it very interesting, so I 311 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE thank you for being here and appreciate your endurance with us today.

JOANNE KELLEHER: Thanks to all of you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Do any Members of the Committee have questions. Seeing none, thank you for being here, ma'am. I appreciate it. Up next is No. 115, Cynthia Megyola, then we are going to return, I believe we had some technical difficulties earlier, to Karen Edwards, No. 100, I think they were kicked out by our mistake and is now back in the room, so Cynthia Megyola, you are up.

CYNTHIA MEGYOLA: Hi, I'm Cynthia Megyola. I am a registered voter in the town of Bethany. I'm very honored to be here tonight, and thank you all for sticking with us today. I had no idea you all worked such a long day. But I have the opportunity to speak, and I'd really like to take my opportunity now to tell you that I'm in support of the proposals HJ 58, HJ 59, SB No. 901 and HB 6464. This is to give flexibility to voters and to give wider access. You're likely to have fewer people voting if you have more restrictions on who can vote by mail, and who can't. People do want to vote by mail for whatever reason, and it's really unfortunate that you have states contemplating going backwards in terms of not having voting be more accessible. Because we can and we should.

And we look at other states who are doing it, and can do it, and it makes you wonder what's wrong with us? Why can't we do it? Well, we can do it and it's not going to be the easiest thing to do, there's going to be challenges along the way, but it's something that is eventually going to happen. I think we should be ready to make it happen, especially since it takes years to even open up the possibility of putting it to a vote, and I think people should vote on it. There's no reason not to.

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Whatever challenges that arise in having no-excuse absentee voting is something that other states have been able to deal with effectively, so Connecticut can do it. We just need the chance to have it on the board. It's just a disheartening way to look at things. To look at voting being the goal when you want to have less people be able to vote. That's not what we want. We want to have more people vote.

So if we want to fully utilize the right to vote for anyone, no-excuses absentee voting is it. It removes all the barriers to voting and it makes participation easier and I would encourage everyone to please vote in favor of these four proposals. Thank you so much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you Cynthia. I appreciate your advocacy of being here today. Any questions or comments? Thank you again for being here today. I appreciate you taking time out of your day to be with us. Thank you.

CYNTHIA MEGYOLA: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next Karen Edwards, she's still with us. Ms. Edwards, I apologize for the technical issue earlier.

KAREN EDWARDS: Oh no problem, no problem. Senator Flexer, Representative Fox, Co-Chairs, Ranking Members and all distinguished Members of the GAE Committee, my name is Karen Edwards. I live in Stamford. I'm a retired physician and a public health professional. I'm testifying in strong support of HJ 58 for no-excuse absentee voting, and HJ 59 for early voting. I strongly support these constitutional amendments that will allow for no- excuse absentee voting and early in-person voting.

Connecticut demonstrated in the 2020 elections that no-excuse absentee voting can be safely and efficiently carried out without risk of fraud. Connecticut is one of very few states that do not 313 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE allow early voting, and it's time we joined the ranks of the many states that permit and encourage it. As a parent physician and public health professional, I'm strongly in favor of making it easier and safer for all of us, especially working parents and senior citizens, to vote more conveniently. And even when the pandemic is no longer a threat, many of us have difficulties with health and getting around, and we need to have choices for voting dependably and safely.

My father, a Fairfield County disabled World War II vet who was a poll worker in every election, modeled for his family a lifelong dedication to exercising the right and duty to vote. I never miss voting in an election. I strongly support making voting as safe and as accessible as possible, and efforts to limit access to voting are really unpatriotic.

The right to vote is one of our country's most precious rights. I'm asking you to act to remove barriers to exercising that right. It's time for Connecticut to catch up with the rest of the country in adopting early voting and no-excuse voting by mail. Thanks very much for your attention to this important issue and for listening carefully over a very long day.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Dr. Edwards, I appreciate you being here and I appreciate you spending the day with us and your advocacy on this issue. Any questions or comments for Dr. Edwards? Seeing none, thank you again for being here today. I appreciate your comments. Thank you very much. Up next, No. 116, Stephanie Ross, I don't know if 116 is here, followed by No. 117 Claire Walsh. I believe Ms. Walsh is here. Good evening, Ms. Walsh.

CLAIRE WALSH: Yes, hello. Honorable Chairs and Committee Members, thank you for your service and your remarkable endurance. I really appreciate the opportunity to testify with you tonight. My name is Claire Walsh. I am a nurse educator and a clinical 314 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE social worker, a founding member of Democratic Women in Action, and an active member of Safe Vote Connecticut. I'm testifying today in support of early voting and no-excuse absentee ballot voting. Connecticut is called the Constitution state based on the adoption of the fundamental orders in 1639, but Connecticut did not adopt a true Constitution until 1818.

Our current Constitution was modified and implemented in 1965, almost 60 years ago. Since the inception of our Constitution in 1818 and certainly since 1965, we have experienced major social and cultural change. Just as our Constitution was modified to accommodate changes in 1965, we are being called to this legislative responsibility now. Recent surveys indicate that there is strong public support for voter reform in Connecticut, regardless of party affiliation. The people have spoken and are calling now for legislative action.

I am urging Members of this noble legislative body to take on the responsibility of expanding voting access for all our citizens. As a woman, I have experienced the personal hardship of voting within the scope of our current election laws. As a young mother of two children, I had a full0time job and childcare and household responsibilities without the benefit of extended family support. I also attended college and graduate school classes at night. Election Day posed additional challenges to my already demanding schedule.

Parents today are no less burdened by their circumstances. In many cases, they are working two jobs to support their families. Doing shift work, managing a household and raising their children, sometimes alone, all this and sometimes dependent on public transportation to get it done. Where is our compassion as a society when we don't provide more access to voting for the folks who need it the most?

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We hear opposition to opening up the Constitution to change voting laws, but it seems that the discussion is misguided. We should be asking how we can do more to make voting more accessible, so that everyone can participate more widely in our democracy. The Constitution is meant to be of and for the people it serves. As a citizen, we not only have a right to vote, but a responsibility. As a Legislator, the responsibility before you is to consider the social, economic and cultural changes in our society in recent decades.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

CLAIRE WALSH: I simply wanted to say that we change laws for education, to make adjustments for special needs. We modify environmental laws to protect our air and water, and we modify health care laws to improve access for all. There's no reason why we can't use simple common sense, the simple common sense approach to engage in a discussion about greater access to voting. I thank you so much, and I hope that you will support early voting and no- excuse absentee ballot voting. Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Walsh I appreciate your testimony. Representative Palm, the floor is yours.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hi Claire, it's good to see you.

CLAIRE WALSH: Thank you, Christine.

REP. PALM (36TH): I have a quick question for you. In your work with DWA and in your advocacy work in general, what is the impression that you get from people who -- do people understand the difference between our rules that are in the Constitution versus in statute in other states? Do they understand why this is so complicated?

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CLAIRE WALSH: I think the people whom I have worked with in this past year, and we did a great deal of postcarding to fight voter suppression, clearly understand the statute in Connecticut as being highly restrictive and the people who are most concerned about voting rights clearly want to see voter reform in Connecticut.

Unfortunately, I think that many people think voting in the 2020 election, that we will continue to have it in future elections. So part of the work that I am doing now and my organization is doing now is to educate the public about voter reform and the need for voter reform. And as a clinical social worker and a nurse, I'm just clearly aware of the hardships that people have in their daily lives, and it's only a compassionate way to govern, to try and modify the laws so that they can -- so that people have greater access to voting.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you.

CLAIRE WALSH: And that's the only way that they can be in --

REP. PALM (36TH): You're doing a wonderful job with the education.

CLAIRE WALSH: Thank you, Christine, so much.

REP. PALM (36TH): That's it, Mr. Chair, thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Palm. Any further question or comments? Seeing none, thank you for your time and testimony today, we appreciate you being here.

CLAIRE WALSH: Thank you so much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Have a nice evening. We're going to quickly go back, is Kathryn Farnsworth now present, I understand?

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KATHRYN FARNSWORTH: I'm here.

REP. FOX (148TH): Ms. Farnsworth, how are you?

KATHRYN FARNSWORTH: You can hear me, good. I've been kind of going crazy and I finally found my email now, at this hour. So thank you for everyone.

REP. FOX (148TH): Ma'am, can you please put your camera on? There you go.

KATHRYN FARNSWORTH: I can't put my camera on right now, because I'm dealing with glare because I have cataracts and I just had my eyes dilated today, so I was trying to keep that down. I just wanted to -- I'm opposed -- oh now I just lost something here. One second. I just wanted to say that I was opposed to the Bill. Wait one second. I'm having trouble seeing here, so could you come back to me and do someone else, or no?

REP. FOX (148TH): Of course. That's fine. Up next No. 118, Nerlyn Pierson. I think she's here. Nerlyn Pierson?

NERLYN PIERSON: Hi. Good evening GAE Committee Chairs, Ranking Members and Members of the GAE Committee. I want to thank you for your opportunity to testify this evening. My name is Nerlyn Pierson, I live in Greenwich, Connecticut and I'm one of the cofounders of Indivisible Greenwich. I'm here today to voice my support for House Joint Resolution 58 and 59.

The idea of amending the constitutions periodically and by the people dates back to Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson argued that each generation should have the solemn opportunity to update the Constitution every 19 or 20 years, thus allowing it to be handed on with periodical repairs from generation to generation to the end of time. HJ 59 and 58 grants the people of Connecticut with a solemn opportunity to update the Constitution should we, the people, 318 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE decide early voting and no-excuse absentee is a warranted amendment to our Constitution.

We have heard today many advocates for early voting and no-excuse absentee and advocates, even on this Committee, who do not believe it is necessary or appropriate. Although I believe early voting and no-excuse absentee voting is important and a boon to our democracy, I am not here to highlight the benefits of these two voting reforms. Rather, I'm here to advocate for the choice to vote on whether we, as a state, want early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. The people of Connecticut should be the ones who decide if the existing State Constitution drafted more than 50 years ago is outdated and whether the times require a new constitutional measure to meet our current world order and societal needs and demands. Which, given the current times, I would argue is necessary.

We the people should be given the opportunity to make this choice. This choice is what Thomas Jefferson advocated for and what the drafters of our State Constitution envisioned. It is explicit from Article 12, and especially Article 13 of the Connecticut Constitution that the drafters of the Connecticut Constitution anticipated periodic repairs to the Constitution, from time to time, by each generation.

As such, our Legislators should let the people of Connecticut decide if a constitutional amendment is warranted. Let's have the people's voice on the matter.

I also heard speakers say today that they are not in support of these Resolutions, because we have problems to our current voting system that needs to be addressed first. Let's be frank. Approving HJ 58 and 59 does not prohibit the Legislature from addressing the problems raised. It's not one or the other. If early voting Resolution is approved, this will not get on the ballot until 2022, and the 319 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE absentee voting Resolution, if approved, would either go in in 2022 or 2024. That is ample time to start addressing the issues raised and still give the people of Connecticut a voice on whether they want these voting reforms.

I heard Senator Sampson and others say numerous times that this is not a partisan issue. I agree. I don't believe letting the people of Connecticut decide whether they want --

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

NERLYN PIERSON: Our Constitution is partisan. As such, I urge each of the Committee Members and the State Legislature to vote in favor of HJ 58 and HJ 59. Thank you for your time.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Pierson. Any question or comments from the Members of the Committee. Thank you very much for your advocacy on behalf of the residents of Connecticut. We really appreciate your efforts. Thank you very much for being here. Up next, I don't believe they are here, but just to give them a fresh shot to testify. I'll read the names off. No. 119 Paul Farnsworth, 120 John Jensen, 121 Jane Sprung, 122 Liz Herman, 123 Jim Jinks, 124, Mary Doherty, No. 125, Arnold Goldman. No. 126, Tanya Rhodes Smith, I believe Ms. Smith is present. Good evening.

TANYA RHODES SMITH: I am. Thank you, good evening. Thank you Chairpersons Flexer and Fox and all the Members of the GAE Committee. It's been a long day and I appreciate your service very much. My name is Tanya Rhodes Smith and I'm an instructor in residence at the UConn School of Social Work and Director of the Humphreys Institute for Political Social Work, and I'm a resident of Fairfield. I'm here tonight in strong support of HJ 58 and 59, as well as SB 901 and HB 6464 to extend that changes for the 2020 election through the spring elections. 320 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Those municipalities deserve the same protections as voters did in November.

I won't repeat what has been said today, because it has been a long day, but I want to briefly focus on how our society loses when voters stay home, for any reason or barrier, particularly those who are underserved. At the Humphreys Institute, we examine voting as a social determinant of health, a human right and a powerful tool for shaping public policy. A strong democracy that responds to the needs of all citizens depends on broad participation from all citizens. The act of voting is actually good for people. Communities who vote in higher rates are better off in really important ways, including stronger social connections, higher employment, greater community wellbeing.

Individuals that vote are also better off, reporting higher levels of employment, wellness, mental health. And voting is an act of power and self- determination. So, one example is a 2018 study that came out that looked at adolescents and young adults that reported voting to be positively associated with higher income, educational achievement and mental health.

Additionally, voter turnout often tells a story of power and wellbeing. There's numerous studies showing the communities that vote in higher rates received more attention and more resources from elected officials. In other words, their policy needs are prioritized. I also want to point to the important testimony from Bridgeport and emphasize that low voter turnout, including primaries, concentrates power and I think that what they described is not voter fraud but election fraud, in my opinion, but turnout matters because low turnout leads to fewer candidates, concentrated power and that's what feeds voter apathy, which is one of the reasons people don't vote.

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So while we had early voting on the ballot before the 2020 elections raised awareness about the need to amend our Constitution, and I think that we should let voters decide whether or not we want to change the Constitution, and then get to work on how that should look. And I think it would be a great service to have both of these issues on the ballot in the same election. So I hope we can count on all Legislators to pass HJ 58 with a super majority.

I'm happy to provide additional details or research on these issues. I submitted my testimony with references, so thank you for your time and your service, and I'm happy to answer any questions.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Tanya, I read your testimony earlier today and I thought it was very, very powerful and I really appreciate the effort you put into preparing that for our Committee today.

TANYA RHODES SMITH: Thank you very much, and I hope you all have a great night.

REP. FOX (148TH): Quickly, Representative McCarthy Vahey has a question.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair, and I did hear that very quickly, I heard you. I want to just thank you, Tanya, so much for your thoroughness and perspective, and I think it's really powerful the kind of data that you are offering us and the sense of voting as power and voting as voice, and also the kind of health impacts, specifically. So I really appreciate the work that you're doing.

One quick question that I would have for you is, you kind of mentioned this in passing, voter fraud versus election fraud. Can you just talk a little bit more about that?

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TANYA RHODES SMITH: Well, I think there have been lots of people that have shown, I mean there's documented studies that the actual incidents of voter fraud is very rare. The penalty for voter fraud is severe and in many states, there are people locked up for years for voting incorrectly. For example, felons who voted while they were on parole incorrectly, thinking that they had the right to vote and just voted by provisional ballot. There was a woman sentenced to five years in prison for that. I do think the incidents of people intentionally voting twice and voter fraud is very rare.

I do think that there is election fraud, I mean we know that happens, and I think that's very different. I mean, to me, that's a completely different kind of perspective than to say that there's widespread voter fraud in our state. And I think that we probably need, you know, I think those issues raised in Bridgeport are important issues. But I also agree that part of that problem comes from this really low voter turnout, particularly in primaries where you have sometimes, you know, 15% to 20% of the population turning out for an election, and sometimes less than that in a primary.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Well, Tanya, thank you for that. I appreciate the distinction and again, the use of data and research with those specific examples is very appreciated. Also, we are extremely grateful for your work here in Connecticut and across the country. Thank you so much, Mr. Chair.

TANYA RHODES SMITH: Thank you very much. Any other questions for me?

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. I don't see any more. I appreciate your patience and your time with us today, and thank you for your advocacy. Thank you for being here.

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TANYA RHODES SMITH: Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Up next, Donald Gerarde, Elizabeth Deluca, 128, Elizabeth Deluca. I don't believe they're here. Try Gale Hartch, I believe she's still with us. Ms. Hartch, there you are. You're on mute.

GALE HARTCH: Let me unmute -- you just muted me. Okay, can you hear me?

REP. FOX (148TH): We can, yes ma'am, yeah.

GALE HARTCH: Okay, and then I'll put my video on.

REP. FOX (148TH): Okay, great. Thanks for being here tonight.

GALE HARTCH: It's been quite a day. Good evening, Mr. Chair, Committee Members, Representatives and voters. My name is Gale Hartch. I've been a resident of Greenwich for 55 years. I've never missed a vote. I'm almost 80 years old. During the 2020 election, I was distressed to hear reports of voter fraud, mail-in ballots with no signature verification, algorithms changing votes inside voting machines. I feel the four Bills, HJ 58, HJ 59, SB 901, HB 6464 would enable fraud. I recommend a no vote on all four.

In my view, the best way to preserve voter security is to have one day, in-person voting with voter ID cards. That would solve all the issues. Election Day should be a celebrated state national holiday. Put it on the calendar, make an effort. Don't dilute the significance of it by stretching it out for weeks. The only exception should be absentee ballots for medically verified ill people, and those over 80.

Before we change voting laws, we need to make sure dead people are removed from the voter rolls. We need to remove the names of people no longer living 324 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE in our state. Connecticut is in bad shape with bloated voter rolls. Since Connecticut has done an excellent job at getting the COVID-19 vaccination out to its citizens, the virus is being defeated. Laws that were changed because of the pandemic need to have an immediate sunset provision.

Please vote no on all four Bills. I respectively submit my ideas and I'm very grateful to have the opportunity to speak, and I thank you all for staying up, going through this whole process all these many hours. I take my hat off to you and I'm thrilled to learn a great deal more about the voting. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for your testimony today, ma'am. Representative McCarthy Vahey, the floor is yours.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and Ms. Hartch, I want to thank you, one for staying with us today, but two, for your impressive record of voting for all these years. It's a model for so many of us. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Any further questions or comments? Thank you for being here today, Ms. Hartch. I really appreciate your patience with the Committee. Thank you for your advocacy and your comments tonight. Thank you. Up next, 130, Mary Ellen Flaherty-Ludwig.

MARY ELLEN FLAHERTY-LUDWIG: Good evening. I am a rookie at this, so I had no idea that you had marathon testimonies, so I tuned in at 10:30 and I've been in and out.

REP. FOX (148TH): This is nothing, this is nothing. This is a short one for some Committees.

MARY ELLEN FLAHERTY-LUDWIG: But it's been a wonderful experience for me to hear so many views 325 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE and have such civil dialogue. I'm Mary Ellen Flaherty-Ludwig. I am a member of the Norwalk Democratic Town Committee. I'm a retired science teacher. I've been volunteering to greet voters very early this November Election Day. I was thrilled to see hundreds of voters lined up in the dark to vote. Democracy in action. We, the people, begins our United States Constitution. We vote for our Representatives and they share our voices. I am here to strongly support no-excuse absentee and early voting to expand voter rights for our citizens.

I would like to commend the NOA Election Registrars Ron Banks and Stuart Wells, Republican and Democrat respectively. They were great during this pandemic election. Accessible to the myriad questions and professional in daily monitoring the ballot boxes and in counting each vote.

In conclusion, I strongly support Resolutions No. 58 and 59 to amend our Connecticut Constitution by allowing no-excuse absentee voting and early voting. Thank you, and I thank you for staying up so late. I yield the rest of my time, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mary Ellen. I really appreciate you being here tonight and spending the day with us. Representative Thomas has her hand raised. The floor is yours, Representative Thomas.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hello, Mary Ellen, I really just wanted to applaud your first time effort. Thank you for participating in our democratic process. And a slight correction, Ron and Stuart, in case just for the record, they're both the Democratic registrars, but there is a Republican registrar in Norwalk who also works very hard to make sure everything goes off without a hitch. So thank you again. Have a good night. We still have a little ways to go.

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MARY ELLEN FLAHERTY-LUDWIG: Okay, great. Good night.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you for being here. Thank you. Up next, No. 131, Jim Townsley, followed by Maria Weingarten. Mr. Townsley, I believe you're with us still.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Yeah. Let's see, the picture. There we go.

REP. FOX (148TH): Great.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Thank you very much and to all the Committee Members, thank you for having the hearing. I appreciate very much. I moved here 1975, Ella Grasso had just become the new Governor. I lived in the Midwest, I lived in the South for a period of time and I've visited 30 countries. You know, I've had extensive friends in every continent except Antarctica.

There are places that do not have fair elections, we know that. We want that to be the case here, we want everyone who's a legal registered voter to be able to vote. One thing that I didn't quite understand, a lot of people gave the impression that if they had a handicap or illness, they weren't able to vote. As I understand, there are six or seven different reasons people can vote by absentee now, illness or disability being two of them, religious exemption, military, whatever.

This does seem to be a partisan issue. I've listened most of the day off and on and those that are conservative seem to be opposed to these Bills. Those that are liberal seem to be for them, whether it be on the Committee or whether it be the testimonies of others.

It should be an issue of how can we improve what we have? And I think one of the issues that's been discussed a little, there are some people who are 327 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE not familiar with what's going on, the politics of the state, and I think that's a systemic problem of our education system. We have a private Christian school, our young people are anxious to vote, they understand how to vote. But there's something about our system if they don't know how to do it and how to get involved, they're able to go vote. You know, there's no one keeping them from it, except maybe a lack of education about it. And perhaps we need more education to teach people.

And I think if you polled many people in each district, they don't even know who their Representative or State Senator is. I know that to be true. And what happened this last election at the night of the election, there were people, a couple of candidates that I know specifically that they were way ahead, and the only thing missing were absentee votes or the mail-in votes, I'm sorry. And suddenly, the whole thing turned. To me that's puzzling. I don't know why. I don't know that there was fraud. I don't know, but I do know it happened and you wonder why.

And I think one of the things that is important for the state to be able to make what we have work before they start changing everything else. If we can't make what we have work, do we trust the state? A few years ago they talked about having a lockbox which meant the State Legislature couldn't even trust itself. I mean that, to be honest with you, I have a hard time trusting what the state will do unless we see them get their act together. Do there need to be changes and upgrades? Absolutely.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

JIM TOWNSLEY: We want it to be fair, but I am concerned that honestly, I don't trust what is happening and we want to educate people. We're one of the only states that doesn't have a state history book. Why don't we? You know, we're behind on that 328 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE area and people need to be better educated, I think. Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, sir, for your testimony. Representative Mastrofrancesco, you have your hand raised. The floor is yours.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you, Jim for sticking it out all day. It's certainly been a long day but I appreciate you hanging in there to give us your feedback on it.

You said something that was pretty interesting, it was kind of puzzling to me as well, when you look at the election results. I don't know, it seems to me that the elector that chooses more to vote by absentee ballot is more from another one specific party. And it really is amazing when I looked at the election results coming in, how much of a swing in both there were, between Democrats and Republicans. Between the Democrat candidate and the Republican candidate. Did you see -- you mentioned something about that when you were giving your testimony. Can you elaborate on that a little bit?

JIM TOWNSLEY: Yeah, there was a candidate in Cheshire that was well ahead. It was late at night and they were only missing one district, and she was ahead by maybe 1,000 votes or 800 votes, It looked like hands down, she would win. But the ratio of the number of votes that were coming in changed drastically, and almost every vote went to the other candidate and she ended up losing by just a few votes. So that's one example. There are others.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Yeah, it's amazing that the shift and why people don't trust the process. You know, usually, when people go to the polls to vote, it's kind of a mix. You know, maybe it's 60/40 or whatever, but when I saw that within the absentee ballots, it was a big difference, so it certainly causes suspicion for people. I think 329 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE that's why we're having all these problems with the absentee ballots and why people don't trust the process. Which is, I believe, is an area that we certainly need to fix prior to that. But thank you so much for your testimony and for sticking it out today. I appreciate it. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Thomas, the floor is yours.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Hi, good evening. Thank you for sticking it out at 11 hours and 45 minutes. I just want to make sure I heard you correctly. Are you saying or implying that because more Democratic votes came in through the absentee ballot, like it's a potential sign of fraud?

JIM TOWNSLEY: There was mail-in ballots that were far exceeding what the normal ratio was that had been counted up to that point. And the only thing they were counting were the mail-in ballots. So my concern is, why did such a great disparity exist? I'm not saying something was fraud or illegal, but it's something that I have not seen before, and causes me to wonder, why did that happen? I don't know if you have an answer, why did that happen?

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I have some theories, for sure, so I appreciate you asking. You know, I think we saw larger numbers because don't forget, so many more people, more than half-a-million people voted by absentee in this past election compared to the number who voted by absentee before. So some of it’s a volume issue. I know in my neck of the woods, whether I believe them or not, but many people of both parties told me that they wanted to make sure their vote was in, and they didn't want to either risk going to the polls or risk, you know, waking up to a thunderstorm, so they submitted absentee ballots. But, I do find that more people in my district, anyway, I can only speak for the people I knocked on the doors of, and they were mainly unaffiliated and Democratic voters. A lot of 330 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE them were much more fearful about COVID than many of the Republican voters whose door I knocked on. Smaller percentage, so this is anecdotal but you know, if I had to make a guess, I would say, especially at that time, the leader of the party, President Trump, was really downplaying the severity of COVID. And I saw that played out throughout my district.

So, people who weren't fearful of COVID, listening to President Trump, went to the polls. Many people who were listening to Dr. Fauci, and the CDC, et cetera, were more afraid of the risk and submitted absentee ballots. So if that fell out Democrat versus Republican, maybe that could be the reason. But I know in my district, both numbers increased but happily I won, so I benefited from those people who were afraid to go out.

So that's one theory. I'm sure if you ask everybody else, they'll have other ones. But that seems like a more likely scenario than widespread fraud across every district of the state.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Well, I agree with you. I know, there was -- there were more people on the liberal spectrum, the Blue voter, that were afraid to go out and more conservative people were less afraid to go out, but it's just the numbers were so exaggerated. It baffled me. It was really extreme so that may have been it. But whether -- it was a great disparity, I'll tell you that.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I appreciate that. Judging by the number of emails I've been getting every day about people who are anxious to get the vaccine, I think perhaps the number of people who have a real fear in their heart about COVID was perhaps under -- or people didn't know it was as big a population as it is here in Connecticut. But thank you so much. I don't want to -- we're very close to the end, so I'm sure people are looking at me with a side eye. So, thank you. 331 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

JIM TOWNSLEY: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative McCarthy Vahey, the floor is yours.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman and Representative Thomas, I'm not looking at you with a side eye at all. Mr. Townsley, thank you so much for sticking with us and staying here to share your thoughts and opinions. I think it's really important. I also think it's important to look at the facts and the math. I often joke with my children that everything is a math problem. I just wanted to follow up a little bit on what Representative Thomas was talking about in terms of the absentee ballot piece, because I do think it's really important right now, as we've heard today, to differentiate between the elections in the past and this one from a mathematical standpoint, but also when we're talking about trust in the system and so that people understand and know how that works.

I think one thing is, I'm sure you're aware that every community has a Republican and a Democratic registrar.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Correct.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Wonderful. And so that's really important in terms of our local elections administration. But I also just, you know, as a point of information, one of the things that you actually can do is find out in your community what the party affiliation was of the voters. Of course, you can't find out their votes, thankfully, that's part of our free and protected society here in America, but that you can actually mathematically take a look at that, so that you can understand what happened that night.

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I think Representative Thomas was talking about the raw numbers, over half a million, but as a percentage when we hear that 35% of voters voted via absentee ballot versus you know well under 5% in a normal election, it's really a tremendous percentage. I appreciate the conversation that you had with her and just wanted to offer that that is something that you can actually do and look some of that.

JIM TOWNSLEY: I am aware of that, absolutely.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Okay, well wonderful, and thank you very much.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Sure, and I did follow up a number of contacts in the town of Berlin and there were people that were registered voters who had no -- there was no such address, probably half a dozen or a dozen on the Berlin turnpike alone. All these voter registrations need to be fixed. You know, my brother came here one year, voted and he was on the list for ten years and I kept telling him, take his name off, he doesn't live here, so that's a concern. I don't think that changes most elections, but I just think we need to make things work that we have, and that would give more confidence to me to say now let's work on these other things.

You know, we want everybody to be able to vote in a fair election if they are a legal resident. If they have a handicap, already they have a reason, they don't have to be no excuse, so you know, that's my concern.

REP. MCCARTHY VAHEY (133RD): Mr. Chair, if I may just to follow up, I think we all agree that there's always room for improvement. I certainly believe we've got to invest more in our voting infrastructure for certain and in the meantime, we're at least a year-plus away from having this be on the ballot, potentially and hopefully not more, so we've got time to do that work. But thank you 333 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE again for your testimony today. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

JIM TOWNSLEY: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Thank you, Mr. Townsley, we appreciate your time being with us today. Thank you. I've got about five more individuals listed, 132 Maria Weingarten, 134 Faith Ham, and then Kevin Farnsworth followed by David Delmar, followed by Mary Ronin. Maria Weingarten, you're still with us? Maria Weingarten? I don't think she's here. Faith Ham?

FAITH HAM: Good evening, how are you?

REP. FOX (148TH): Very well, thank you for being with us tonight.

FAITH HAM: Sure, no problem. Thank you Representative Fox and Members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, for allowing me to testify. My name is Faith Ham and I live in Cheshire. I was born and raised in Connecticut and I vote. I ask you to vote no on HJ 58 and HJ 59, at least until the Secretary of State begins to secure the vote in Connecticut. Every legal ballot cast in Connecticut is the purest expression of the will of the state's citizenry, and so this renders voting the most sacred right granted under the State Constitution.

The Secretary of the State of Connecticut, municipal registrars are charged with ensuring voter integrity, so that each citizen who casts a vote is assured that it will count, and his or her sentiments about the direction of their state, town, county, country are properly registered. Public officials must protect the voice of the citizenry as expressed in its vote.

These Resolutions resolve to amend the State Constitution to allow for no-excuse absentee 334 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE balloting and early voting. I've listened to much of the testimony today. We all agree that every citizen who wants to vote should be given the opportunity to do so. I don't oppose the concepts of absentee balloting and early voting, however, I oppose any initiative that opens the door to mistakes, irregularities, or opportunities for fraudulent voting that will disenfranchise legal voters in this state. And I believe that amending the Constitution without a concomitant effort to secure the integrity of the vote will do that.

From 2001 to 2013, my family and I lived in San Jose. California is a vote by mail state. Ballots appeared in our boxes four weeks before the election. We could fill them out and mail them into the county registrar, submit completed ballots to the precinct on Election Day or relinquish them when we voted in person. The system made it easier, for sure, but it also left ballots unattended in mailboxes, frequently those of unoccupied houses.

My daughter worked the polls and saw people submitting their completed ballots and then voting in person. People voting out of precinct or adult children voting for parents. Whether mistakes or irregularities or outright fraud, these incidences voided the vote of someone else who followed the rules. Perhaps it wasn't enough to throw an election, but it was still wrong, legally and ethically.

This fall I worked on a local campaign in Cheshire, relying on official town voter rolls, I addressed envelopes to single family residences with as many as four different surnames listed as occupants. Thousands of pieces of literature were mailed. Far fewer than those thousands were returned. These were the same rolls used to blanket the state with absentee ballot applications.

In a perfect world, every undelivered application would be returned to the Registrar's Office. I fear 335 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

Secretary Merrill's return rate on the absentee application was as abysmal as our candidates. A piece of misdirected campaign literature is not a threat to our republic. Not so a misdirected absentee ballot application. It creates an opportunity for fraud.

JENNA SCHWERDTLE: Your three minutes is now over.

FAITH HAM: Just to conclude, voting is our most cherished right, and on that we all agree. If Senator -- I'm sorry, as Representative Stephanie Thomas today has pointed out repeatedly, the system will never be flawless. I agree with her. But that doesn't mean we don't strive to make it as clean as possible. Citizens and organizations across the state for years have sounded the alarm about bloated voter rolls and lax verification procedure for absentee ballots. Little or nothing has been done to correct these problems. Using returned absentee ballot applications to purge rolls offers little comfort, and I'm sorry, Ms. Merrill, but the threat of jail time is about as ineffective a deterrent to someone intent on committing voter fraud as it is to a thief. The only way to stop either is to institute safeguards, and in Connecticut, these have been slow in coming.

Proponents of these measures would engender goodwill by simultaneously working with those calling for election reform. In the words of Representative Smith (sic), walk and chew gum at the same time. Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Ham. Any questions or comments? Representative Thomas, your hand is raised.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Hi, I couldn't resist just because you said we were in agreement on one thing, so thank you for that. No, I appreciate you hanging in, for sure. I feel like I only have another half hour left in me. But something I can't remember now 336 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE if you just said it or a few people have said it, but people on both sides supporting and opposing the Resolutions have all said some version of, like, I've been here or I've testified about this before and like nothing has happened in the Legislature, on both sides I've heard that. In fact, the main reason I ran for office in 2018 was because early voting had not been adopted in Connecticut and it just seemed like such a no-brainer that I found it incredulous that it hadn't. And we have had a Democratic majority, so I thought, well what is happening that we can't get that enacted? And so on and so on.

So I wonder, and I would love your thoughts on, and I really believe that because of this stalemate, if you will, like neither side seems to be happy, it seems like it's really time to bring this to the voters, because much --

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Excuse me, Mr. Chairman, I have to call a point of order and I don't mean to do this towards the end, but does Representative Thomas have a question for this person?

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Mastrofrancesco.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Can I answer?

REP. FOX (148TH): Representative Thomas, if you could just please ask your question to Ms. Ham that would be great. Thank you.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I have one point of order, again I'm new to the Legislature, but is there a stated time limit in terms of our lead in to the question? If so, I would love to know what it is and to standardize it.

REP. FOX (148TH): I'm not familiar with the stated time limit. At this point in the day, individuals 337 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE are looking to wrap things up or not, but if you could just go ahead and take care of the question? Thank you.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Thank you, so I was actually just beginning the question which was -- now I actually forget. What were we talking about? I was saying, I think it feels like it's time to bring it to the voters, and I would love your thoughts about, your opinion, someone who seems to have thought about this a lot. Is it a problem that we are -- or do you think it's a problem that we are trying to legislate this here instead of elevating it to the voters so they could weigh in? And it would open up a much larger discourse.

FAITH HAM: So you're talking just about the amendment?

REP. THOMAS (143RD): Correct.

FAITH HAM: I look at changing the Constitution as amending the Constitution, as a very -- it's something you don't do lightly. And I fear that this -- I'm not accusing anyone of taking this cavalierly or anything. You know, I have heard for years, you know, clean up the voter rolls and we're hearing of folks who, you know, I have friends who are registrars and they're saying that they have people on the voter rolls who were born in 1917. You know, is it possible? Of course, it's possible that they're on, but when you get multiple folks that old on the rolls, it's clear that they need to be examined. And there is nothing in the state, as far as I understand it, either in the statutes or the Constitution that calls upon the Secretary of State, you know, specifically on a regular basis, you know. Make a serious effort to clean up your rolls. You know, it's late. I'm not -- my language is not where it needs to be right now. But it doesn't -- it says she may, but it doesn't say she shall do this or he shall or the Secretary shall.

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And I think there has to be -- I think it has to be committed, a legislative -- God, I'm sorry, I'm just mangling my words here.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): I feel your pain, I understand.

FAITH HAM: I think that that should be a primary function of the Secretary of State, and. to ensure that the registrars are reporting back that these are results. Because you can have one town where they're on the ball, I hear up in Somers they have just gone through that. And then you can have other cities or towns where it hasn't been done for decades. So there needs to be some consistency and I think that those of us who are asking for voter integrity want to see those kinds of actions taken, audits. You know, those are just a few of the things, so.

REP. THOMAS (143RD): That is definitely one thing, another thing we agree. I do think it's a strange system that each town is responsible for maintaining this information. So maybe that's yet something else that can be tweaked going forward. But thank you for your willingness to engage in a dialogue, and sorry I took too long to get to the question, but I appreciate your feedback. Have a good night.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative Thomas. There is no need to apologize for asking questions today, we all have had patience with each other, Members of the Committee. There's a lot of questioning, and I appreciate that and value everyone's opinions and input. I think if we can just continue to have that patience with each other as possible, it would be beneficial to all of us. Thank you, Representative Thomas and Senator Haskell, the floor is yours.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I will be a very brief. Ms. Ham, thanks for your patience before coming before this Committee, I 339 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE think it's a testament to democracy that you waited 11 hours to testify, and I do greatly appreciate your perspective. I also appreciate your genuine desire, I believe a desire that we all share, to prevent any weakening of the integrity of our elections.

So I guess my question is, as has been repeated ad nauseum over the course of this public hearing, 34 states allow no-excuse absentee ballots, 40 states - - Red states and Blue states -- across the country, needless to say, allow early voting. Do you have similar concerns about the integrity of the election in those other 40 states and those other 34 states?

FAITH HAM: First of all, thanks for the question. And I would like to say I'm here as a testament to the republic, not the democracy. But do I -- I don't live in the other states. I live in Connecticut and right now that's where my concern is. As I said, I lived for 13 years in California. There I was a member of a voter reform group out there. Yeah, there were very serious concerns about voter fraud. Let me just -- voter irregularities, and as it was consistently pointed out, it doesn't have to be massive. It takes two or three in a precinct to sway an election overall, two or three misdirected votes. So I really, you're hearing a lot today from my side of the aisle saying no one is opposed to early voting. No one is necessarily opposed to no-excuse balloting, but there have to be safeguards put in place, and that's what we're asking for.

So, as I said, as perhaps a show of goodwill, the Secretary of State might be able to say hey, this is what I'm going to be doing from here on to show my commitment to the process.

SENATOR HASKELL (26TH): Wonderful. Thank you so much, Ms. Ham. Thank you, Mr. Chair.

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REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Senator. I see no further questions of Ms. Ham, thank you for your time today. I appreciate your advocacy and spending time with this committee. Thank you. Up next, Kathryn Farnsworth followed by David de Milhau, followed by Marilyn Cronin. Ms. Farnsworth.

KATHRYN FARNSWORTH: Hi. I'm sorry about the issues before. I was listening intently to the other speaker. Thank you everyone for being here. What I'm going to try and do is just read this. Hopefully you can hear me. I'm opposed to HJ 58 and 59. I believe this no-excuse option encourages and values convenience over security and confidence in elections. It is just a simple fact that mail-in ballots are more vulnerable to being altered, stolen or forged.

And election integrity is the foundation of our democracy. Simply because other states allow no- excuse voting, it doesn't mean it's the best method. I did a little bit of research, I checked my letter, it didn't appear to be on the public testimony site, but it talks about some of the states and the problems there. And even in 2016, Hillary Clinton against Trump, there were 6.5 missing ballots that - - mail-in ballots that were either misdirected or unaccounted for. And of course in smaller elections, even a small amount of votes can be -- can make a difference.

So, in-person voting is infinitely more secure. Absentee ballot is the exception if some hardship, people can be included. I don't believe you have to -- to touch the Constitution is not something anybody should do lightly. And one of the things, and I had heard on the radio, the things she reiterated today, Denise Merrill was saying she would like everyone to be able to vote. I think she said, I thought she said email, but maybe she just meant mail, but either way and to have that process centrally. And voting should be done individually in each municipality, under supervision and record 341 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE keeping. And in the case of national elections, they should be recorded and submitted individually by each county or town, and under no circumstances should mail-in votes simply be mailed to a central location. That is something that Denise Merrill had suggested. And that is just, I mean, talk about, you know, inviting fraud. You know, that is our entire foundation of our of our republic.

So I believe the risks outweigh the benefits, especially over the long term and I'm seeing a lot of political candidates run unopposed and weakening confidence in elections is sure to exacerbate that problem, as more voters simply will be discouraged to vote at all. I'm one of them. If this is done, I'm not going to bother because I don't have faith at all.

And we should be promoting people to be engaged and not disenfranchised and apathetic. So please, please do not pass these two Bills, because they're not -- or HJs, they're not like SB or HB, but I think it's worthwhile to look at my letter if it ever arrives there, and about the incidences in Oregon and Washington. It is not rosy like people think it is.

So I thank you very much and thank you for giving me special consideration. I really appreciate it. Thank you so much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Ms. Farnsworth. Are there any questions or comments? Seeing none, I appreciate your advocacy today. Thank you for being here with us tonight. Thank you. David de Milhau, final call. There he is.

DAVID DE MILHAU: Okay, Chairman Fox, Madam Chairman Flexer --

REP. FOX (148TH): Sir, can you please put your camera on, please?

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DAVID DE MILHAU: Okay, it says unable to start camera. It's not starting. Should I go without video?

REP. FOX (148TH): In light of the time of day, sir, we will make an exception. Please proceed.

DAVID DE MILHAU: Sorry. Chairman Fox, Madam Chairman Flexer, esteemed Members of the Government Administration and Elections Committee, my name is David de Milhau. I'm a resident of the town of Greenwich. I am testifying in support of HJ 58, a Bill to enable no-excuse absentee voting, and HJ 59, a Bill to enable early voting. Please vote for and support HJ 58 and HJ 59.

The early voting and multiple days to vote, with early voting and multiple days to vote, there will be more time to consider the issues. I believe that making voting decisions based on issues is important. With early voting, people will have more time to do research and gather information in a more relaxed atmosphere. A lot of people in Fairfield County where I live have a long commute into New York City and back every day. On Election Day, it is difficult for them to get the polls. People who have a long commute by car are in the same situation. I believe that most people who work would rather vote on weekends and most people with families would rather vote on weekends.

In the past, the cost of having polls open on multiple days has been brought up as an issue. The general perception is that having the polls open on multiple days will increase the cost of elections. In the case of early voting, just a second. In the case of early voting, the polls can be reduced on Election Day Tuesday, and shifted to other election days. It might be possible to just shift the cost to other days and not increase the total costs.

With no-excuse absentee voting, the costs would actually -- the process during the week and the cost 343 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE of the election could actually be reduced. If there are people who feel disadvantaged implementing early voting and no-excuse absentee voting, it would show them that their participation in the electoral process is welcome. Removing the constitutional amendment requirement will make changing the elections process more flexible and more responsive to the needs of the voters. It will counterbalance voter suppression.

I had a chance to listen to the testimony today. I believe that removing the constitutional amendment might make it easier to solve the other election inequities that have come up. I've learned a lot today. Thank you for your time and consideration.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much for your testimony. Any questions or comments? Seeing none, I appreciate your patience with the Committee today, sir. Thank you for your testimony. I appreciate you being here. Thank you.

DAVID DE MILHAU: Thank you.

REP. FOX (148TH): Now batting cleanup and closing the show I think, Mayor Luke Bronin.

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Thanks very much, Representative Fox, Senator Flexer and all the Members of the Committee. I'll try to be brief, since I know you've all had a long day, but I do appreciate the opportunity to testify.

I am here tonight to strongly advocate in favor of HJ 58 and HJ 59. As many have said today, including Members of the Committee, Connecticut is one of only a handful of states that does not allow early voting or no-excuse absentee voting for our residents. Passing these Resolutions and allowing the people of Connecticut to vote on this constitutional amendment would not make Connecticut a leader in more accessible, more convenient voting; it would simply 344 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE allow us to take a few steps to catch up to the rest of the country.

I think it's really important to focus on the specifics of what an amendment, these amendments would allow. Early voting would allow people to vote in person prior to Election Day. They would have to show up to vote, just as you do today on Election Day. So there is no way in which anyone can credibly and honestly said that that increases the chance of voter fraud.

With respect to no-excuse absentee balloting, if someone is willing to commit the felony of voter fraud, they're not going to be deterred from doing that by the requirement that they also say that they're sick or out of town that day. So no one can honestly and credibly say that no-excuse absentee balloting would increase the risk of voter fraud. It would, however, make it easier for US citizens who want to participate in the democratic process to do so.

On behalf of the residents of my city, I strongly encourage you to support these two Resolutions and send this issue to the voters of Connecticut.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Mayor Bronin. I appreciate you being here today. If I can quickly ask you a question I see Representative Mastrofrancesco has a question. I'll go to her. Representative Mastrofrancesco, the floor is yours.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Mayor Bronin for being here today. I just really had one quick question you had mentioned early voting. How many days prior to the election would you recommend or think is a good idea to begin early voting?

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Representative, I don't have a recommendation on that front. My recommendation is to allow the people of Connecticut to allow you to 345 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE use your judgment in deciding that question as Legislators.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Right, and usually we get input from our constituents on what that would be, and I know Hartford is a big city, so I just was curious of what you would recommend. And we do get input. I know we make the laws, but we do that based on the input from our constituents.

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Sure. I would say in the two years that we would have or the year that we would have to begin thinking about that, we should look around the country at the time periods that are offered. I'm not really prepared to give a recommendation. I really don't see any reason why we couldn't give a couple of weeks prior to an election for our citizens to vote early. But again, it could well be that we should offer more time than that or less time than that, and I, like you, would want to be persuaded by looking at what other states have done.

But again, that's not the question before the Committee tonight, and I encourage you to let the voters decide on whether they should have more options for casting their ballot.

REP. MASTROFRANCESCO (80TH): Okay, thank you very much for answering my question, and thank you, Mr. Chairman.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Representative Palm.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thank you, Mr. Chair. Hi, Mr. Mayor, it's good to see you, the excellent caboose of this 11-hour train. Thank you for being here. What are you hearing from your clerks and registrars, as the mayor of a big city? You must have had some interesting conversations with them. Do you have a sense of how the wind is blowing for 346 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE them in terms of how we can safeguard this and what they might need in terms of support?

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Well, I think that our clerks and registrars see one of their primary missions as encouraging and enabling our citizens to vote. And I think our registers and our clerk, from the conversations I had during the electoral season this year, were encouraged by the amount of participation and by the number of people who chose to vote absentee during this pandemic, when to vote in person might well put themselves or others at risk.

In terms of the resources that are available, that must be available to make sure that it can be done effectively and efficiently, I think we probably need to recognize that this past year was an outlier. That you saw an extraordinary number of people voting. absentee because of the pandemic, but it may well be that as people become familiar with that process and develop that habit, that more and more people choose to do so on a regular basis, and I do think it's important to make sure that our registrars and clerks have the capacity and the staffing to process those ballots as they come in.

But I did not encounter any significant concerns about the integrity of the process or in this particular year, given the resources that were available, the ability to process those ballots effectively and efficiently.

REP. PALM (36TH): Thanks, Luke, that's good to hear. Thank you. Appreciate it. That's it for me, Mr. Chair.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you, Representative. Mayor Bronin, one quick question if I can. Connecticut has 169 towns and cities, all different, unique in their own right. As the mayor of one of the largest cities in the state, can you give me a quick synopsis of how you think allowing this voting might benefit a municipality like yours? 347 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Sure, thanks Representative Fox. I think it will benefit residents and citizens in every municipality. As many speakers have said today and as many Members of the Committee have acknowledged, offering one day of voting presents many challenges to many residents. We have many residents of my city who work not one job, but two jobs or three jobs. And when they return from that one job or two jobs or three jobs, they have children to take care of. They have responsibilities at home. They may travel outside of the city limits for work, but be in the city during part of the day but find the transportation unpredictable. They may be relying on public transit. There are many, many reasons why job schedules, family obligations, and access to transportation present challenges when the only option we provide is in-person voting on one particular day, which happens to be a weekday and a work day.

So I, as many of you, as I'm sure you do on nearly every Election Day I'm at the polls at 6:00 a.m. and I'm at the polls until 8:00 p.m. and I see many, many residents racing to get that vote in before they have to get to work, or racing back to try to cast that ballot and get in line before the polls close. I don't think we should require our residents to do that, and we certainly shouldn't deprive our residents of the opportunity to cast their ballot if they fail in that effort. We should do what most other states in the country do, which is give some more options to our residents and our citizens.

REP. FOX (148TH): Thank you very much, Mr. Mayor. Any further questions or comments? Seeing none, I appreciate you hanging in there with us, Mr. Mayor and being with us tonight and advocating on behalf of your city and yourself for these very important issues. Thank you very much for your patience today. 348 February 22, 2021 si/ GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION 10:30 A.M. AND ELECTIONS COMMITTEE

MAYOR LUKE BRONIN: Thank you very much.

REP. FOX (148TH): Seeing no other members of the public who are here to testify, at least I don't think I see any others. I do not. As a result, I would like to bring this Public Hearing to a close. I thank everyone for their patience and their opinions and say thank you for being here, hanging in there with us. I look forward to resolving these issues and many others. Thank you very much. Have a good evening.