Registrar of Voters

The Registrars of Voters are elected officials of Haddam. The office is governed by General Statues and financially supported by the municipality. The Registrar of Voters, as the chief election officials, have a wide variety of responsibilities from preparing and certifying the official voting list, to ensuring we have fair, accurate and efficient elections. The staff attends meetings regularly called by the Secretary of the State to keep current on new and pending legislation as it is proposed and passed.

In addition to overseeing the elections, primaries and referenda, they maintain the voter registration files, register voters and conduct an annual canvass of voters. The Registrars are also responsible for making changes to voter lists based on information received from various sources such as the DMV. They also remove those who have been convicted of a felony or have moved out of town. The Registrars also process all local and statewide petitions. Registrars work with various organizations to maintain voter registration at the highest possible level. Voter registration drives are conducted at the local high school, senior centers as well as special functions.

Election, Primaries or Referenda time is an extremely busy period for the office, as they are responsible for preparing the budget for all elections, conducting the lottery for municipal candidates, making all the arrangements for the three polling locations in Haddam, and the hiring and training of approximately 30 poll workers and election officials. Just days prior to a voting session, the office must prepare an official voter list of active and inactive voters for the three polling places, arrange for the set-up and removal of all voting equipment prior to and immediately after an election and inspect and pre-test all voting machines. The day of the election, the Registrars must supervise and assist all election officials in addition to voter inquires. After the election is completed they ultimately submit the election results to the Secretary of the State and the Town Clerk. Election audits are held at the discretion of the Secretary of the State to help ensure the accuracy of voting machines.