Connecticut Senate Bill SB00644

Connecticut 2019 Regular Session

• Introduced: 1/25/19
• Refer: 1/25/19

Caption

An Act Concerning Post-election Audits.

Impact

The primary impact of SB00644 is expected to be an increase in election transparency and public confidence in the electoral process. By ensuring that districts with closely contested races are included in the audit process, the bill addresses concerns over electoral accuracy and aims to provide a system of checks and balances to detect potential discrepancies in voting outcomes. The bill acts as a safeguard against electoral fraud and errors that might arise from election processes.

Summary

SB00644 is proposed legislation aimed at enhancing the integrity of elections in the state through the implementation of mandatory post-election audits. Specifically, the bill seeks to amend section 9-320f of the general statutes to require the Secretary of the State to randomly select 5% of voting districts for audit. A key provision of the bill is that it mandates the inclusion of districts where the vote difference between candidates is below a specific threshold in this audit selection, thereby targeting areas that may have close election results but are not close enough to trigger a recanvass.

Contention

Although the bill is largely designed to bolster the election audit framework, it may face contention regarding the criteria for selecting districts and the administrative burden it could place on the Secretary of the State's office. Critics might argue that defining the threshold for what constitutes a 'close' election could lead to disputes and complications in its implementation. Moreover, there may be concerns about the timing and resources required to conduct these audits without disrupting the electoral process.