Ballot questions revolve around early voting and a new four-year term for the mayor

Posted By: Jack Krampitz November 6, 2022

There is one question on the ballot Tuesday to amend the state constitution and there are also four questions the Bristol Charter Revision Commission proposed and the City Council approved to be on the 2022 election ballot.

Connecticut Question 1, Allow for Early Voting Amendment (2022)

Shall the Constitution of the State be amended to permit the General Assembly to provide for early voting?

A “yes” vote supports amending the state constitution to authorize the state legislature to provide by law for in-person early voting before an election.

A “no” vote opposes amending the state constitution, thereby disallowing early voting.

City of Bristol Charter Questions

Shall the term of the office of the mayor be increased from two to four years?

The current mayor’s term of office is two (2) years. The proposed amendments to the Bristol Charter would change the term of office for the mayor elected in 2023 to four (4) years.

A “yes” vote would approve of changing the term of office for mayor to four years.

A “no” vote would retain the current two-year term.

Shall elected or appointed officials who are convicted of a felony, fraudulent conduct, or engage in unlawful harassment be subject to penalties up to and including removal from office?

The City Charter in Sec. 9 prohibits elected and appointed city officials and employees of the city from engaging in unlawful workplace harassment. The proposed Charter amendments expand sanctionable conduct to include conviction for felonies, fraudulent or dishonest conduct, and violations of the City Charter or Code of Ordinances, in addition to unlawful workplace harassment.  

Such sanctions may include removal from office. Three-quarters of the City Council are required to approve the decision to impose a penalty.

A “yes” vote will expand the list of sanctionable conduct and the power of the city council to impose punishments for elected and appointed city officials.

A “no” vote will leave the current rules in place.

Shall the Bristol City Council Districts be defined in accordance with the most recent map filed with the Town Clerk?

Every 10 years the state approves a plan to redistrict the General Assembly, Senatorial, and Congressional District lines based on population changes reflected in the U.S. Census. A “yes” vote authorizes the Registrars of Voters to re-align the local voting district lines to be consistent with the new State plan.

Once those new local voting district lines are completed, the city council must approve those lines. After the city council approval, the state and local district map is filed with the Town Clerk’s office. The proposed revision to Charter Sec. 12 would eliminate the specific map title and revise it to read “the most recent map filed with the Town Clerk.”

A “yes” vote would line the city voting districts with the state assembly lines of “the most recent map filed with the Town Clerk.”

A “no” vote would leave the current system in place where the City Charter has to be amended to change the city council districts.

Shall technical revisions to the Charter providing for consistency in capitalization and terminology be approved?

The proposed revisions standardize capitalization for the words: mayor, council district, and city council.  It also standardizes the use of the terminology: council, councilor, council member, and city council.

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