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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 1096
January Session, 2019
LCO No. 6252
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION
AND ELECTIONS
Introduced by:
(GAE)
AN ACT CONCERNING TE CHNICAL CHANGES TO ELECTION LAWS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 9-140b of the general statutes is 1
repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective 2
October 1, 2019): 3
(c) [For purposes of] As used in this section, "mailed" means sent by 4
the United States Postal Service or any commercial carrier, courier or 5
messenger service recognized and approved by the Secretary of the 6
State. 7
Sec. 2. Section 9-150c of the general statutes is repealed and the 8
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2019): 9
An applicant who applies for an absentee ballot because of 10
unforeseen illness or physical disability occurring within six days 11
immediately preceding the close of the polls at an election, primary or 12
referendum or because the applicant is a patient in a hospital within 13 Raised Bill No. 1096
LCO No. 6252 2 of 3
such six-day period, may appoint a designee, as defined in subsection 14
(b) of section 9-140b, to deliver the ballot to him, by stating on the 15
application, in a space provided for that purpose, (1) the date of 16
occurrence of the illness or disability or the name and address of the 17
hospital in which the applicant is a patient within such six-day period, 18
(2) the name, address and category under said subsection, of the 19
person so designated, and (3) the delivery which the person is 20
designated to perform, provided the person so designated shall also 21
sign a statement on the application to the effect that he consents to the 22
designation and will perform the delivery without tampering with the 23
ballot in any way. If the application designates a person to deliver the 24
ballot to the applicant, that person shall personally submit the 25
application to the municipal clerk. If such application is submitted to 26
the clerk in person, within six days immediately preceding the close of 27
the polls at an election or primary, by a person designated on the 28
application to deliver the absentee ballot to the applicant as provided 29
in this section and in subsection (b) of [said] section 9-140b, and if the 30
application is dated within such time, the clerk shall give that person 31
the absentee voting set. 32
Sec. 3. Section 9-264 of the general statutes is repealed and the 33
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2019): 34
An elector who requires assistance to vote, by reason of blindness, 35
disability or inability to write or to read the ballot, may be given 36
assistance by a person of the elector's choice, other than (1) the elector's 37
employer, (2) an agent of such employer, (3) an officer or agent of the 38
elector's union, or (4) a candidate for any office on the ballot, unless the 39
elector is a member of the immediate family of such candidate. The 40
person assisting the elector may accompany the elector into the voting 41
booth. Such person shall register such elector's vote upon the ballot as 42
such elector directs. Any person accompanying an elector into the 43
voting booth who deceives any elector in registering the elector's vote 44
under this section or seeks to influence any elector while in the act of 45
voting, or who registers any vote for any elector or on any question 46
other than as requested by such elector, or who gives information to 47 Raised Bill No. 1096
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any person as to what person or persons such elector voted for, or how 48
such elector voted on any question, shall be guilty of a class D felony. 49
As used in this section, "immediate family" [means "immediate family" 50
as defined] has the same meaning as provided in section 9-140b. 51
Sec. 4. Section 9-364a of the general statutes is repealed and the 52
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2019): 53
Any person who influences or attempts to influence by force or 54
threat the vote, or by force, threat, bribery or corrupt means, the 55
speech, of any person in a primary, caucus, referendum, convention or 56
election; or wilfully and fraudulently suppresses or destroys any vote 57
or ballot properly given or cast or, in counting such votes or ballots, 58
wilfully miscounts or misrepresents the number thereof; and any 59
presiding or other officer of a primary, caucus or convention who 60
wilfully announces the result of a ballot or vote of such primary, 61
caucus or convention, untruly and wrongfully, shall be guilty of a class 62
C felony. 63
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 October 1, 2019 9-140b(c)
Sec. 2 October 1, 2019 9-150c
Sec. 3 October 1, 2019 9-264
Sec. 4 October 1, 2019 9-364a
Statement of Purpose:
To make technical changes to certain election laws.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline,
except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is
not underlined.]