FILE: A voting sign on November 5, 2024.
The special election for Fairfield First Selectperson, scheduled for next Tuesday, is heating up as both of the main candidates finalize their pitches to voters, including State Sen. Tony Hwang, who was seen on campus last Saturday.
On the Democratic side, a new account for Fairfield College Democrats has appeared on Instagram. The account, which has no posts as of publication, is the latest attempt to increase political awareness on campus.
However, while the election between incumbent Christine Vitale (D) and Hwang (R) is the talk of the town, students at Fairfield University appear to be indifferent to the election.
On Fizz, the anonymous student social media app, only five posts have been published regarding the election since the start of the semester. Most of the posts are “refizzes” of a screenshot shared regarding a request from the Fairfield Beach Residents Association for a clarification of voter registration eligibility for “non-permanent student residents in our town.”
The letter, which has been authenticated by The Mirror, asked the Fairfield Registrar of Voters to clarify the legal standards used to determine student residency for voting purposes and whether there is a process for residents to challenge students’ ability to vote in local elections.
Scott Hirsh, president of the FBRA, noted an increase in student participation in local voting, but claimed that the town’s growing college student population “do not establish financial or legal residency in Connecticut, do not pay Connecticut income tax, and do not register their vehicles in the state.”
“This has raised concerns among some residents regarding whether all student voters registered in Fairfield meet Connecticut’s legal requirements for residency and voter eligibility, and whether some individuals may be registered to vote in more than one jurisdiction,” Hirsh added in the two-page letter.
The concerns, however, have been dismissed by the Registrar of Voters’ office, a bipartisan organization responsible for voter records and election administration. In its response to the FBRA, the organization emphasized that “the voter’s intent governs” the residency determination for electoral purposes.
“Notably, Connecticut does not have a ‘durational residency requirement,’ meaning that an age-eligible citizen who moves into Fairfield as late as the day of an election will typically be allowed to register and vote here,” the agency responded in a letter. “To the extent that a student is registering at the address where they are presently living, declaring that (and not a family home) to be their residence for voting purposes is acceptable.”
The increasing participation of students in local elections dates back decades, but in the 2023 municipal election, Fairfield University students contributed to a 1,011 percent increase in Election Day Registration ballots compared to 2021.
According to an analysis of voting records by the Connecticut Post, a large portion of those who registered on Election Day 2023 were FU students who “broke almost entirely” for then-incumbent Brenda Kupcick, a Republican who lost the election by 37 votes.
This year, the Fairfield Democratic Committee is expecting the election to be competitive, with a recent post on their Facebook account pleading with supporters to make a plan to vote as “every single vote will matter.”
On campus, the Office of Student Engagement emailed students on Tuesday, encouraging students to “make your voices heard!”
Early voting will be available from tomorrow through Sunday at the Fairfield University downtown bookstore, from 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. On Election Day, voting will be held at the normal polling location.
Students living in the Sophomore Village (Meditz Hall, Kostka Hall, Claver Hall and 47 Mahan Rd.), Faber Hall, Dulles Hall and off-campus housing along North Benson Rd. will vote in Holland Hill School.
Senior students living in off-campus beach housing will have to cast their ballots at Sherman Elementary School.
All other residential students living within the N. Benson campus border will vote in Riverfield Elementary School.
According to the communication sent to students, Uber vouchers for Election Day voting will be emailed to students the evening before the special election.A sample ballot of the special election is available online through the Registrar of Voters website.