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Thomas said Connecticut saw 40% of voters use early voting in 2024 and that the state implemented early voting alongside a 2023 state-level Voting Rights Act that codified language-access and transparency provisions. She described a collaborative approach: monthly meetings beginning in 2023 with election workers and fusion-center partners, town-level trainings for police and poll workers on emergency scenarios, and a “CEO” program that recruited more than 250 businesses and organizations to help explain early voting.

Thomas said Connecticut uses paper ballots, performs regular audits and requires certification and continuing education for election workers. The state also deployed volunteer attorneys on election day and an investigatory agency to receive and review complaints. She told the committee these steps “helped our elections run smoothly even as 40% of our voters switched to early voting for the first time.”

Members asked about misinformation and whether the new procedures caused confusion. Thomas said the state ran targeted media campaigns and community outreach to explain processes and to provide trusted sources for information.

The testimony described Connecticut’s approach as incremental and cautious: expand access while maintaining procedural safeguards and public outreach. No committee action was taken at the hearing.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Subcommittee on Elections Hearing: “Revisiting the 2024 Election with Secretaries of State”","oneSentenceSummary","Connecticut's secretary of state told the House Elections subcommittee that early voting, list maintenance, audits and local outreach increased participation and public confidence in the 2024 election.","taxTitle","House Administration: House Committee, Standing Committees - House & Senate, Congressional Hearings Compilation, Legislative, Federal","taxId",1982,"location","","headline","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6084345,"Louisiana, Alabama and members debate third-party ballot collection and signature rules",434,6384000,6818000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca&start=6384&end=6818","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca/thumbnail_6384000.jpg","/articles/6084345/Louisiana-Alabama-and-members-debate-third-party-ballot-collection-and-signature-rules","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6084345-7984ff3e71f05e37e092c160b8446c64/orig.mp4?Expires=1771136944&Signature=ZbkF2khXArD7dU8ojlZt3V10d8mk~-pk4l~WuJsgWNm5fXrX8k4weQHt~L1u~UKhZBQiVSnVGboY4xR3XrIjRbh7XqXUgdqRWzcnHAKR3LWL25uPODja0JxzowD7my-arsy6dgkmgp07B25cZr58F36wFwzucOxBoDFu36t1fc~bZc3xfVqMHh0jOvm7-Es87TowAXE~XWmVaHUtPUsI-xdT3rBdk0Cl6REyoErBF6Hn2zgaLQVVUUJc23x~zPDOV5pDAGPRa8dADdP5v0DeAZ-G6qWWB0DwvZYU-WLr~tJCyCqbzDndc4D8UirZwvALiryHB43KnbClaD8F1enXGA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","WASHINGTON — Officials and members at a House subcommittee hearing clashed over laws that restrict third-party collection of absentee ballots and the balance between preventing fraud and ensuring access for voters who need assistance.

Louisiana Secretary Nancy Landry described a legislative package enacted before the 2024 election that “closed loopholes regarding ballot harvesting,” including a ban on individuals delivering multiple ballots unless they are family members. She said the measures have not reduced absentee voting and that a lawsuit challenging the law was dismissed after plaintiffs could not identify a harmed voter. Landry said the state also requires a signed authorization for third-party deliveries.

Representative Terri Sewell of Alabama raised concerns about recent Alabama legislation that criminalizes certain kinds of assistance with absentee ballot applications and the effect on family members helping elderly voters. Secretary Wes Allen said the law “protected the absentee process” and compared it to federal rules that allow disability assistance for applications, while saying paid political activists should not manipulate the process.

Members pressed for practical safeguards. Landry told the committee that when a ballot is delivered by a third party without the required witness signature, the law can bar that ballot from being counted and may carry penalties for the deliverer, but the vote of the voter is treated differently depending on the exact statutory provision and the facts presented.

The committee’s exchange illustrated a broader policy fault line: members and witnesses who prioritize preventing third-party manipulation of absentee ballots contrasted with those who warned that strict rules could discourage or penalize family caregivers and other lawful helpers. No formal action or vote occurred at the hearing.","Secretaries and members disagreed about third-party ballot collection laws, chain-of-custody protections and whether anti-harvesting rules burden absentee voters, with Louisiana describing recent limits on multiple-ballot delivery and signature attestations.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6084348,"States credit early preprocessing and standardized data for faster election-night reporting",146,5476000,5622000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca&start=5476&end=5622","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca/thumbnail_5476000.jpg","/articles/6084348/States-credit-early-preprocessing-and-standardized-data-for-faster-election-night-reporting","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6084348-3a1b458cee3ee1926f6b547539f58b7e/orig.mp4?Expires=1771136944&Signature=IwnjyTdFff7pxr85MnXC~WxCzIcPnHKMaLtgvw60baDHsW7kCIl~6br1uUz82S1QPhoVcR5DpbsalSV-ngL~Yavt1ye59ylwl25~tvaAnSVczENj8DAZ2OYRtblELu7PSlneKwQKCsvcPUZDjByQLhIgXsqwuW7YtVDxG-xPP90OcT6y7jjwiDxTZxGEfvlI6SWGqCc6zTnB-sfWcStJM~ARojlU3Q0Uzw724LCkhVYWI9RMA~flFMEP-7yEGBgWPqA~MPsCXkBeZLzDIO3efoHMzcLAQSQs7~mn-q5rdDvn24zv~Z~pOdCvrlorUkaoRu6K2HLeDCjB7pkg1zlEpQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","WASHINGTON — State election officials told a House subcommittee that preprocessing absentee and early ballots, standard data definitions and robust election-day operations helped states report election-night results more quickly during the 2024 cycle.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose described a “ready for November task force” that trained county boards and recruited more than 35,000 poll workers. He said absentee ballots were opened and signature-checked by bipartisan teams as they arrived, flattened and scanned so the “very first ballots counted” on election night were already prepared. LaRose said Ohio called presidential results in the “10 p.m. hour” and was at 90% reported by 11 p.m., though a final 10% took into the early morning for a few counties.

Louisiana Secretary Nancy Landry said her state’s legislative package and outreach led to “full unofficial results posted within three hours of our polls closing,” and that improvements to procedures and physical security increased voter confidence. Idaho Secretary Phil McGrane emphasized training, local adjudication and post-election judicial review in close contests.

Members questioned the panel about the relationship between preprocessing and voter confidence, and about mail ballots received after Election Day. Several secretaries said their states require ballots be received by Election Day; members from both parties debated whether ballots postmarked by Election Day but received later should count. Allen said Alabama treats Election Day as the strict end of the voting period; LaRose and Landry argued that accepting ballots postmarked before Election Day can raise questions about manipulation and chain of custody if results are already being reported.

Witnesses also described technical fixes such as standardizing data elements across counties, a step LaRose credited with improving transparency and timely public reporting. Several secretaries said robust election-night “operations centers” or “war rooms” helped resolve county-level issues quickly.

No committee votes were held. Members and secretaries agreed on the practical benefits of preprocessing and standard reporting but differed on rules governing the handling of ballots postmarked on Election Day.","Ohio, Louisiana and other secretaries described preprocessing mail ballots, standardizing data, and election-day operations as key reasons they could report results quickly following the 2024 election.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":72,"_74":72},6084354,"Secretaries of state press Congress for federal data access to clean voter rolls",1371,5313000,6684000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca&start=5313&end=6684","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2917033-22eb8f7a568ca24f11cc4b25c3c7d8ca/thumbnail_5313000.jpg","/articles/6084354/Secretaries-of-state-press-Congress-for-federal-data-access-to-clean-voter-rolls","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6084354-2b8fee9187d12d28d921d91ed0df3b3d/orig.mp4?Expires=1771136944&Signature=YS9uBbzSfYf0B2fcN9yY4bYXwPc~0st5E1uAMQdrmFjvR9~zZ1deGhH1ssq02LmRbF~-CxKOX5UFrCfWXHL9oTFIF8fHW3knjPEs2-6AeTiYTVssxMZNOnqaQ~0S~nzZX99mFO7PGLqccgnflVrNgmQNStn0ZrJMIjBS0TDkxmMYzTz-6DKV46da8zt-j7Qof-hJmvGqqTwDOZty6fU9Ul~6DDj~iQg6jRgHrxRt1IQbZziidfkOdVTsI~PSpuGXJAN4r4lSHyP1TYElbwjdHIv9a3ibnF2wJ8fRTmXRJk4TpxwQ4ArmcrPOWZlu~ZhqISk6ZTHt4cR8l5Efy7XcxA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","WASHINGTON — Secretaries of state testifying before the House Subcommittee on Elections said federal help accessing citizenship and death records and funding for state systems is needed to keep voter rolls accurate and maintain public confidence.

At the hearing, Secretary of State Wes Allen of Alabama described the Alabama Voter Integrity Database, or AVID, and said his office has removed “more than half a million ineligible voters” since he took office. He told members that obtaining timely access to the Social Security Administration’s death data and noncitizen data from the Department of Homeland Security has been “absurdly time consuming and overly burdensome.” He urged Congress to “cut through that red tape.”

The nut of witnesses’ arguments was that better data and tools would let states quickly identify likely noncitizens and deceased registrants without resorting to ad hoc, error-prone processes. Secretary Phil McGrane of Idaho said his state used a patchwork of SAVE-related databases after issuing an executive order to verify citizenship, but added the SAVE resources are “not actually a program or a database” and recommended federal investment in purpose-built systems. Ohio Secretary Frank LaRose and Louisiana Secretary Nancy Landry also urged broader federal cooperation and data sharing to support state maintenance efforts.

“I think one of the things this committee can do is invest in the tools that we need as a state to ensure that our voter rolls are accurate,” McGrane said. LaRose told the committee that a presidential executive order on citizenship data was “a good first step” but that more access via DHS and USPS is required.

Ranking Member Terri Sewell pressed Alabama’s Allen on accuracy after earlier roll-cleaning actions. Allen said a previous removal of 3,251 records included cases that later proved to be citizens and, he provided a figure during questioning that 93.8% of those 3,251 purged records were actually U.S. citizens who should have remained eligible; Allen framed the work as ongoing and said his office would continue maintenance efforts.

Witnesses described different technical approaches: Alabama said it replaced participation in the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) with its AVID system; Ohio described a standardized data-definition effort called the Data Act; Idaho and Louisiana described state-level comparisons with DMV and DHS records. Connecticut’s Secretary Stephanie Thomas highlighted regular list maintenance and audits as part of the state’s routine election administration.

Members and witnesses focused on precision and safeguards. Several secretaries emphasized the need for case-by-case adjudication before removing registrations and suggested that federal agencies should make relevant records more readily available for lawful, verified comparisons.

The witnesses also urged Congress to provide sustained funding for state election offices and for improved, centralized tools to reduce the manual burden on county and local election officials. No committee action or vote was taken at the hearing; members said follow-up and potential legislative fixes could be explored in subsequent hearings and oversight steps.

The hearing included detailed questioning from members about specific removals and legal safeguards; several members, including Sewell, warned against overbroad purges that could remove eligible voters.

Looking ahead, witnesses recommended targeted federal support: clearer access protocols to DHS/USCIS and SSA death records, and investments in databases and standardized reporting that states could use to maintain accurate rolls without removing eligible voters erroneously.","Secretaries of state from Alabama, Idaho, Louisiana, Ohio and Connecticut told the House Elections subcommittee that better federal access to citizenship and death records and funding for state systems would improve voter-file accuracy and election confidence.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Connecticut says early voting and local outreach expanded access without eroding voter confidence

Louisiana, Alabama and members debate third-party ballot collection and signature rules

States credit early preprocessing and standardized data for faster election-night reporting

Secretaries of state press Congress for federal data access to clean voter rolls