Do you know your voting rights? On this page, you will find easy-to-use resources that might come in handy if you need quick information about your right to vote in Connecticut for the November 3, 2020 election. If you do not see what you are looking for here, you can find more voting Know Your Rights guides from our national office. The information presented in these guides is not intended as legal advice. For help at the polls, call the non-partisan Election Protection Hotline at 1-866-OUR-VOTE.

Make Sure You're Registered to Vote 

Remember to check your voter registration status. If you need to register to vote or update your registration go to vote.gov.

Important Dates to Know

October 27: deadline to register to vote, or you can register to vote on Election Day

November 2 (the day before Election Day): deadline to request an absentee ballot. But if you are applying to vote absentee, it is important to do so as early as possible to avoid the risk of your application potentially not being received in time.

November 3, 8 p.m. (Election Day): deadline by which your town clerk must have received your absentee ballot. If you are returning your ballot to your town clerk in person (not via mail or dropbox), you must deliver it to your town clerk by November 2, the day before Election Day. Remember: if you are voting absentee, it is important to do so as early as possible to avoid the risk of your ballot not being received in time. 

November 3: Election Day.  If the polls close while you are in line to vote on Election Day, stay in line. If you are registering to vote on Election Day and are in the registration line by 8 p.m., you have the right to cast your ballot that day. 

Stay informed

1. Know Your Rights: Voting Absentee in the November 3, 2020 election

A.Know Your Rights: Voting Absentee in the November 3, 2020 election

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During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, every Connecticut voter has the right to vote absentee in the November 3, 2020 election. This special edition Know Your Rights guide explains your rights when voting absentee in statewide elections in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. Read more and download a copy. 

2. Know Your Rights: Absentee Ballot Drop Box Locations for the November 3, 2020 election

A.Know Your Rights: Absentee Ballot Drop Box Locations for the November 3, 2020 election

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Voting absentee and looking for your drop box? Look up your town's drop box location(s). 

3. Know Your Rights: Voting and IDs in Connecticut

A.Know Your Rights: Voting and IDs in Connecticut

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The right to vote is a fundamental part of our democracy. Under Connecticut law, you do not need a photo ID, such as a driver's license, to vote. Poll workers may ask you for an ID, but you can cast your ballot without one. 

Note: If you are a first-time voter who registered to vote via mail AND you are voting absentee, you will need to submit a photocopy of an ID with your absentee ballot. This photocopy needs to go inside the *outer* envelope, not the inner envelope in which you place your ballot.

Learn more in our quick pocket guide. 

4. Know Your Rights: Registering to Vote on Election Day

A.Know Your Rights: Registering to Vote on Election Day

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Connecticut allows people to register to vote on Election Day. As long as you are in the registration line by 8 p.m., you have the right to register and to cast your ballot on election night. Our Election Day Registration Know Your Rights guide has more.

5. Know Your Rights: Voter Intimidation at the Polls

A.Know Your Rights: Voter Intimidation at the Polls

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The U.S. Supreme Court has long recognized that polling places should be an “‘island of calm,’” free from distraction and interference. Yet the history of the United States, including Connecticut, has included racist attempts to suppress the political power of voters of color, especially Black voters, through intimidation at the polls. Every voter has the right to vote in a safe polling place without intimidation and suppression, and Connecticut has legal obligations and a moral responsibility to protect those rights. Stay safe and know your rights. Read and download our guide regarding voter intimidation at the polls.

Ahead of Election Day, the ACLU of Connecticut also sent letters to all Connecticut registrars of voters and all municipal police and the state police regarding voter intimidation at the polls. In those letters, we reminded those election officials and police that voter intimidation would disproportionately threaten the rights and safety of Black and Brown people, who have been historically and grossly suppressed from voting, and outlined state and federal laws regarding voter intimidation. Read those letters.  

6. Count Every Vote

A.Count Every Vote

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Racial justice demands that every vote is counted. Period.