Democratic Registrar LeReine Frampton has issued an advisory to Newtown voters to inform them of important upcoming dates and information if they wish to participate in the Democratic and Republican caucuses or other possible election-related activities leading up to Election Day November 7.

Frampton, along with her GOP counterpart Erica Canfield, expressed a desire to make sure all voters have every opportunity to participate in any part of the voting process for which they may be qualified. The first issue is ensuring those qualified voters’ records are up-to-date.

“We work very hard to make sure our lists are accurate,” said Canfield. “We go through address by address and name by name to make sure our lists are as accurate as possible. We are very diligent.”

The upcoming election this year primarily involves local municipal candidates.

“This is [voters’] opportunity to do something, be involved, and make a difference in their town,” said Frampton. “The people elected this November decide our local issues and how our taxes are spent.”

With that in mind, Frampton laid out the pathway to the coming election.

“The first step is the caucus,” stated Frampton. “Each party has their own caucus.”

Any registered Democrat may attend the Democratic Caucus on Monday, July 24. Any registered Republican can attend the Republican Caucus on Tuesday, July 25.

Those participating must be enrolled in one of the two parties prior to the caucus date. The Registrar’s Office closes at 1 pm Thursday, July 20, which is when the list will be printed. Voters who are currently unaffiliated will need to join one of the two parties by that time in order to vote at the caucus.

If a voter is registered in another party, there is a 90-day waiting period before party privileges are in effect.

“Please verify that you are enrolled in the party of your choice before the time runs out,” said Frampton. “You enroll in a party when you register in that party, not because you vote that way. We have no way of knowing how you voted.”

Frampton also asked voters to beware if they have been to the DMV. Depending on how a voter may have answered a question on DMV paperwork, they may not be enrolled in the party of their choice.

Voters can verify their registration by going to ct.gov, put “voter registration lookup” in the search bar, and fill in the blanks. All residents should be advised for purposes of this system, their town is Newtown; there is no separation for Sandy Hook.

If a voter’s name does not show up, they should make sure their last name is correct; hyphen, space, apostrophe, or two last names. Once a voter’s name is pulled up, the site will tell you what party they are in.

If a voter finds they are not registered or are inactive, they can put “register to vote” in the search bar and follow the prompts. Voters are asked to not wait until last minute to do this since Newtown’s Registrar’s Office will have to receive and process their application before 1 pm on Thursday, July 20, for the voter to be able to vote at the caucus.

Help Is Available

Voters may e-mail the registrars at lereine.frampton@newtown-ct.gov or erica.canfield@newtown-ct.gov with any questions. Frampton advised that emailing is better than leaving a voicemail, since the registrars, who are in the office two days a week, will have better access. Voters are asked to feel free to include both registrars in the email if they prefer.

Voters also have the option of coming in to the Registrar’s Office Tuesdays or Thursdays, between 8 am and 1 pm, to register. Voters may also leave a registration at the Town Clerk’s office for the registrars to process. That office is full-time, 8 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday. The cutoff remains 1 pm July 20.

The registrars noted that at the caucus level, any person registered to the party in question could seek nomination on the floor for an open seat.

The day after the caucus, the Registrar’s Office will be open until 4 pm for the first day of primary petitions. The petitions are available beginning the day after the caucus; they are not available at the caucus or before the caucus. Democratic petitions will be available Tuesday, July 25, and Republican petitions will be available Wednesday, July 26.

The deadline for filing the filled-out petitions is 4 pm Wednesday, August 9. The petitions must be turned in at the Registrar’s Office.

“We appreciate them coming in as early as possible for verification purposes,” said Frampton.

Once the signatures are verified, if there are enough valid signatures, any necessary primaries for either or both parties will be held Tuesday, September 12, and all eligible voters will be able to cast their ballot in their party’s primary.

Two Republicans signaled their interest in the First Selectman seat, with Legislative Council Vice-Chairman Matt Mihalcik announcing himself as a candidate, and Legislative Council Chairman Jeff Capeci and his running mate, Board of Finance Chairman John Madzula, being endorsed by the Republican Town Committee.

Mihalcik is expected to seek endorsement of local registered Republicans during voting at the GOP caucus. Depending on the results of the caucus, either aspiring candidate has the option to petition for a primary.

Those interested must be registered in the party to sign a petition for either a Democrat or Republican, Frampton said. A qualifying petition requires signatures representing five percent of those who voted in the last election, so with 6,717 voting in the last municipal election in 2021, 335 signatures would be needed.

Anyone registered to vote in Newtown can also sign a petition for someone not running on a major party line for Election Day. Primaries are not held for those seeking office outside the major party factions.

On Election Day, the following boards and commissions will be on the ballot: Board of Selectmen, Legislative Council, Board of Finance, Board of Education, Planning & Zoning Commission, Planning & Zoning Commission alternates, Zoning Board of Appeals, Zoning Board of Appeals alternates, Police Commission, and Edmond Town Hall Board of Managers.

“We want to make sure everyone legally able to vote has the opportunity,” said Frampton. “The bottom line is check your registration and vote.”

Associate Editor Jim Taylor can be reached at jim@thebee.com.