Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, along with other Democratic figures in the state like Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal, argue that requiring proof of U.S. citizenship for voter registration in federal elections is unacceptable.
At a press conference held late last month, Lamont, accompanied by Connecticut Secretary of State Stephanie Thomas and Lt. Governor Susan Bycevic, expressed his confusion regarding the American Voter Eligibility Safeguards Act. He remarked, “I can’t, for the life of me, understand why they would do this. What’s the rush? The SAVE Act seems to me to be a solution in search of a problem.”
The governor’s comments came shortly after the arrest of an individual involved in a 2023 absentee ballot fraud case in Bridgeport. Lamont stated, “We don’t want to create bureaucratic hurdles that will make it even harder to send people to prison.”
Although Lamont is against complicating the voting process without valid identification, he doesn’t seem to oppose all forms of bureaucracy or laws that mandate photo ID to combat fraud.
For instance, he recently signed a law that requires bottle redemption centers in the state to gather extensive information from those looking to recycle more than 1,000 bottles—details like the person’s name, license plate number, and more.
Republican Senator from Utah, Mike Lee, pointed out the inconsistency, saying, “Connecticut requires identification to recycle more than 1,000 bottles in a day, but not to vote for the next leader of the free world.”
The editorial board of the Connecticut Republican-American noted that the Democrats’ reactions to the bottle deposit issue imply they believe ID requirements are effective for preventing fraud. The big question is: why treat elections differently?
Meanwhile, the Save America Act, which aims to introduce federal election anti-fraud standards analogous to Connecticut’s bottle recycling requirements, passed in the House and is awaiting further action in the Senate.
On a related note, Rep. Anna Paulina Luna recently suggested that after a two-week recess, John Thune is no longer considering the SAVE America Act. Congressional insiders have mentioned that the proposed bill is still pending in the Senate.
