Governor Sununu signed into law the recommendations from the Select Committee on 2020 Emergency Election Support on July 17. .
The temporary measures included in this bill are absolutely necessary to protect the health of voters this fall. After Governor Sununu rejected legislation to permanently expand absentee voting rights, this bill temporarily permitting absentee balloting by voters concerned about exposure to COVID-19 became critical to short-term public health and election fairness.
This modest, temporary expansion of absentee voting was widely supported across the political spectrum.
The bill received received unanimous bipartisan support from The Select Committee on 2020 Emergency Election Support, bipartisan support in the Senate, and the support of Governor Sununu
If the measure had not passed and signed into law no voter would be permitted to use concern for COVID-19 as justification to vote by absentee ballot this fall.
I thank my colleagues in the House and Senate for assuring this critical voter safety legislation reached the Governor’s desk. We will continue the fight to make these commonsense changes permanent in the next legislative session, so that NH citizens will always have the ability to vote safely and conveniently.