Sec. 9-17. Sessions of registrars of voters.
Sec. 9-17. Sessions of registrars of voters. (a) For the purposes of this section,
"primary day" means the day that a primary for state, district and municipal offices is
being held in accordance with section 9-423, and "election day" means the day of each
regular election. (1) The registrars of voters of each town shall hold sessions to examine
the qualifications of electors and admit those found qualified on the dates and at the
times set forth in this section. Such sessions shall be held on the following days during
the hours indicated, except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection:
DayHours
Fourteenth day before
primary day
any two hours between
5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.
Saturday of third week before
election day
10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Seventh day before
election day
9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
The session of the registrars of voters on the seventh day before election day shall be
the last regular session for the admission of electors prior to an election, as defined in
subsection (y) of section 9-1. (2) No town having a population of less than twenty-five
thousand persons shall be required to hold sessions for admission of electors on the
fourteenth day before primary day.
(b) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) of this section, the registrars
of voters shall hold a limited session on the last week day before each regular election
from nine o'clock a.m. to twelve o'clock noon for the purpose of admitting only those
persons whose qualifications as to age, citizenship or residence in the municipality were
attained after the last session for the admission of electors prior to an election. The
registrars shall enter the names of those electors admitted at such limited session on the
proper list, with their residences by street and numbers, if any, before one o'clock p.m.
of such last week day before the election.
(c) In addition to the sessions held pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this section,
the registrars of voters in each town shall hold one session each year, between the first
of January and the last day of the school year, at each public high school in such town,
for the admission of persons who are eligible for admission under subsection (a) or (b)
of section 9-12, provided, in the case of a public high school in a regional school district,
such session shall be held on a rotating basis by the registrars of voters for each town
which is a member of the regional school district. The registrars of voters need not give
notice of this session by publication in a newspaper.
(1949 Rev., S. 1015; 1953, 1955, S. 518d; 1957, P.A. 441, S. 4; 1963, P.A. 530, S. 1; 1969, P.A. 694, S. 1; 1971, P.A.
708; 768, S. 2; 1972, P.A. 144; P.A. 73-630, S. 2, 19; P.A. 75-12, S. 1, 2; P.A. 77-330, S. 1; 77-604, S. 83, 84; P.A. 79-189, S. 2, 9; P.A. 83-391, S. 3, 24; P.A. 84-319, S. 5, 49; 84-546, S. 18, 173; P.A. 87-210; P.A. 89-297, S. 1; P.A. 91-351,
S. 21, 23, 28; P.A. 93-230, S. 1; P.A. 94-121, S. 10, 33; 94-203, S. 1, 12; P.A. 95-171, S. 3, 14; P.A. 96-134, S. 1, 9; P.A.
97-67, S. 6, 9; P.A. 98-67, S. 4, 10; P.A. 05-235, S. 27; P.A. 07-217, S. 40.)
History: 1963 act reduced duration of session in sixth week before election from 11 to "at least four" hours, and deleted
variations in length of session according to the towns' sizes; 1969 act deleted provisions for towns holding a municipal
election on the first Monday in October in the even-numbered years; 1971 acts added a session "on the first Saturday after
Labor Day", added clarifying language to the provision of adjournment of session on the Saturday of the sixth week,
deleted reference to the third week as the case may be and added a provision for additional sessions if the Saturday of the
sixth or fourth week before election falls on day on which tenets of religion forbid secular activity; 1972 act added provision
for two evening sessions between the Saturdays of the sixth and fourth weeks before election; P.A. 73-630 substituted
clarifying language for "rights have matured" as age citizenship or residence attained after the Saturday of the fourth week
before the election; P.A. 75-12 provided for additional session on Saturday of fifth week before election and for adjournment
of that session from time to time instead of provision for adjournment of the session on sixth Saturday, further provided
for one evening session rather than two between the Saturday of fifth week (instead of sixth) and the Saturday of the fourth
week and further substituted fifth week for sixth week in the requirement for additional session where that Saturday falls
on a day on which religious tenets forbid secular activity; P.A. 77-330 provided for evening session before primary, changed
provisions for hours of sessions before elections to "from at least nine o'clock a.m. to one o'clock p.m.", specified that
the evening session between the fifth and fourth week be on Wednesday, provided for a session on the twenty-first day
before election between the hours of nine a.m. and eight p.m., changed the hours for the session on the last weekday before
election to "from at least nine a.m. to eleven a.m.", changed the purpose of that admitting session to "those persons whose
qualifications as to age or citizenship were attained after the twenty-first day before the election", changed provision for
extra session where religious tenet forbids secular activity on Saturday of fifth or fourth week to twenty-first day and
provided that admission of electors on the last weekday before election would be determined from that next succeeding
day; P.A. 77-604 made technical changes; P.A. 79-189 divided statute into three Subsecs. with Subsec. (a) including
information set forth in schedule format; P.A. 83-391 amended section to delete references to board for admission of
electors and eliminated certain mandatory sessions in towns having a population under twenty-five thousand; P.A. 84-319
and P.A. 84-546 made technical amendment to Subsec. (b), restoring language inadvertently omitted from 1983 revision;
P.A. 87-210 added Subsec. (c) re sessions at public high schools; P.A. 89-297 changed May ninth to May twelfth in Subsec.
(c); P.A. 91-351 amended Subsec. (a) to move all sessions one week closer to election day and changed ending time for
last Saturday session before election day from 8:00 to 5:00 p.m; P.A. 93-230 amended Subsec. (a) to repeal requirement
that session be held on Saturday of fifth week before election day and to change hours for session to be held on the
Wednesday falling between fourth and third Saturdays before election day, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. to "any two hours
between 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m."; P.A. 94-121 deleted reference to elector's oath in Subsec. (a)(1), effective January 1,
1995; P.A. 94-203 amended Subsec. (a) by changing hours of session on fourteenth day before primary day, from "7:00
p.m. to 9:00 p.m." to "any two hours between 5:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m.", effective July 1, 1994; P.A. 95-171 amended
Subsec. (b) by extending session from eleven o'clock a.m. to noon and requiring names be entered by one o'clock p.m.
rather than noon, effective October 1, 1995, and applicable to elections held on or after that date; P.A. 96-134 amended
Subsec. (a) to delete references to mandatory sessions on the Saturday of fourth week before election day and the Wednesday
between fourth and third Saturdays before election day and to change session hours for Saturday of third week before
election day and amended Subsec. (c) to replace "May twelfth" with "the first of January" and add provision that the
registrars of voters need not give notice of session by publication, effective May 29, 1996; P.A. 97-67 amended Subsec.
(a) by changing hours of Saturday session from "9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m." to "10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.", effective July 1,
1997; P.A. 98-67 amended Subsec. (a) to change definition of "primary day" from day scheduled for primary to day that
primary is being held, effective July 1, 1998; P.A. 05-235 amended Subsec. (a) by changing "fourteenth day before election
day" to "seventh day before election day", effective January 1, 2006; P.A. 07-217 made a technical change in Subsec. (b),
effective July 12, 2007.
Board being, under the constitution, quasi-judicial, its members acting in good faith are not liable in damages. 53 C.
527; having to act under discretion, are not subject to mandamus. 34 C. 415.