Fasano Responds to AG Tong Comments on Voter Suppression

October 15, 2020

Senate Republican Leader Len Fasano (R-North Haven) released the following statement in response to comments made by Attorney General William Tong at a press conference hosted by Secretary of the State Denise Merrill today. After Secretary Merrill’s assurances that voter intimidation and suppression are not happening in Connecticut, Attorney General Tong suggested that criticism of the absentee ballot system is equivalent to voter suppression. Sen. Fasano said the following:

 

“I thank Secretary Merrill for being open and honest with the public about the fact that voter suppression and intimidation are not happening in our state. I thank her for her reassuring remarks today and honesty with the public about how the state is preparing, as we do every year, for the election especially in light of the questions she is receiving about inappropriate activity in other states. I was surprised that following Secretary Merrill’s comments, Attorney General Tong could not help himself but to turn political and suggest that people who express their views and concerns in our court system are suppressing the rights of others.

 

“In our nation every person has a legal right to challenge an issue and have their disagreements and perspectives heard by an objective body. It is completely inappropriate for an Attorney General to suggest that someone raising concerns about our voting system or pursuing a lawsuit has hostile motives just because their concerns conflict with his own partisan standpoint. Especially coming from someone who has joined every single politically motivated lawsuit involving the President, it’s shocking to hear Attorney General Tong criticize others for raising any concerns in a court of law.

 

“If the Attorney General wants to talk about suppression, perhaps we should talk about the 6,000 people who were denied their right to an absentee ballot in Connecticut’s last primary election and either didn’t vote, or put their health at risk to vote in person – an issue the Attorney General has refused to investigate. Every vote must be protected and counted. In order to do that we need to be open and honest about problems that may exist in the voting system and speak up when we see them so they can be corrected. That is not voter suppression. That is voter protection. It’s disturbing that the Attorney General disagrees.”