GOP requests vote challengers at polls Tuesday
Bob Stefanowski continued on his path of bucking Connecticut tradition, this time by requesting official voting challengers be appointed to certain polling places. Challengers are allowed by state law, but no one remembers the last time a candidate or political party has actually invoked the law. “I’ve been here a long time and I don’t recall anyone using it,” said Gabe Rosenberg, a spokesman for the Secretary of the State’s office. “We had to blow the dust off the statute. This is not something that happens a lot.”
The law allows challengers, which must be appointed by a registrar, to contest someone’s right to vote on the grounds that the voter isn’t who they claim to be, doesn’t have the right to vote, or doesn’t live within the voting district. The challenger must provide evidence under oath to a moderator, who decides whether to uphold the challenge or allow the person to vote.
Rosenberg said the only thing less common than a candidate using the law is a case of actual voter fraud. That may be why no one uses the law, he said. “We have a very different system in Connecticut … including an elected registrar from each party in every town,” Rosenberg said. “The level of shenanigans would have to be so advanced to corrupt both people that are in different parties that have different interests and different candidates that they’re supporting. We have such a long history of bipartisan election administration in this state.”
The dusting off of the statute has drawn accusations of voter intimidation from Stefanowski’s opponents. State Democratic Party Chairman Nick Balletto sent a letter to Secretary of the State Denise Merrill arguing the appointment of challengers, in addition to intimidating voters, could create significant delays at busy polling places, ultimately dissuading people from voting. “It appears, irrefutably, to be a voter suppression tactic specifically designed to intimidate people and create delays,” Balletto wrote. “All while targeting citizens who already face huge hurdles when attempting to exercise their rights — particularly immigrants, lower-income residents and voters of color.”
Stefanowski’s campaign manager Pat Trueman, who has not previously worked on a campaign in Connecticut but has run several in Virginia, said it is common in other states to appoint challengers, particularly in a close race. He added that the request for challengers has been organized through the state Republican Party rather than directly through the Stefanowski campaign. “I think everybody is interested in a fair election and this is a piece of that,” Trueman said. “This is certainly within what the law allows and prescribes.” Trueman could not say why the Republican party has never invoked the law before, but said the decision to do so now is simply part of a “comprehensive campaign” during a close race. Though Democrat Ned Lamont has led in most polls since August, a new poll from Hearst Connecticut Media and Sacred Heart University released last week showed Stefanowski ahead by 2.4 percent.
Merrill’s office has been advising local registrars of their rights and responsibilities as it pertains to the law, which allows registrars to deny requests for challengers. Requests were reported in New Haven, New London, Meriden and Waterbury, according to the Secretary of the State’s Office. It was not immediately clear if any had been approved. Merrill said challenges are made under oath, and only when there is reason to believe the voter is not qualified, meaning a challenger could not stand at a door and repeatedly stop voters because they must “know, suspect, or reasonably believe that the voter is not who they say they are, does not live where they say they live, or is disenfranchised, under penalty of false statement.” “Although we take great pains to ensure that only eligible voters are allowed to vote, we are also careful to avoid potential voter intimidation,” Merrill said. “Challenges to the eligibility of voters should not be made lightly — they are made under oath and only when there is reason to believe they have merit, for good reason.”
https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/local/article/GOP-requests-vote-challengers-at-polls-Tuesday-13362114.php