DARIEN, Conn. — Since polls opened in Connecticut Monday, nearly 210,000 voters have cast their ballots statewide.
You may have seen those long first-day lines, as more than 56,000 people showed up across the state Monday to vote early.
While crowds have died down and waits have shortened, election officials say enthusiasm is still high, and now there are some concerns about whether this high turnout might be a strain on the state’s poll workers.
“You've seen the number of people who are taking advantage of early voting, the convenience of it, being able to come here even on weekends,” said Gov. Ned Lamont (D-CT), as he finally cast his ballot Friday morning. “I thought it was a Grade A problem when there were so many people here... I came on the very first day. It was a 50-minute wait, but today, it's a five-minute wait.”
“It has been crazy in the best of ways, I'm very happy to say,” said Darien’s Deputy Registrar of Voters Corey Frate. “The turnout for early voting has astounded me.”
Darien has seen more than 2,000 voters in the first five days. Frate says that’s about 13% of the town’s registered voters.
“People are very grateful for the work that we're doing, very grateful for our poll workers, and in turn, we're so appreciative of their patience and understanding as we work through the system with this unprecedented and historic volume of voters,” Frate said.
One difference between election day voting and early voting — voters don’t run their ballot through the tabulator machine right after they fill it out. Instead, they put it inside a sealed and signed envelope and into a secure ballot box.
This is because none of these votes will be counted until Election Day, Nov. 5.
“The envelope process and not counting those ballots right away through a tabulator is for the security of those voters,” Frate explained. “It ensures that we do not have an active running tabulator in the poll site for 14 days straight over weekends and overnights and we're not worried about break-ins or any kind of sabotage like that.”
There are some concerns about the sheer number of ballots election workers will be tasked with opening on Nov. 5 though.
Friday afternoon, state Senate Democrat leadership sent a letter to the Secretary of the State’s office, writing, “If early voting remains as popular through Sunday, Nov. 3 as it has been in its first several days, local registrars of voters will be inundated with opening and counting early ballots on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5.”
They added, “We believe it is of the utmost importance that your office be prepared to offer any and all assistance and guidance to local registrars in the quick and accurate tallying of early votes.”
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Emma Wulfhorst is a political reporter for FOX61 News. She can be reached at ewulfhorst@fox61.com. Follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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