AN ACT CONCERNING FAITHFUL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS.

House of Representatives
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General Assembly File No. 522
February Session, 2026 Substitute House Bill No. 5531

House of Representatives, April 8, 2026

The Committee on Government Administration and Elections
reported through REP. BLUMENTHAL of the 147th Dist.,
Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the House, that the
substitute bill ought to pass.

AN ACT CONCERNING FAITHFUL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2026) (a) (1) Each candidate for 1
presidential elector who is endorsed for nomination to such office by a 2
political party under section 9-388 of the general statutes, or who files a 3
candidacy for nomination to such office with a political party 4
designation under section 9 -453b of the general statutes, shall execute 5
the following pledge: "If chosen for the office of presidential elector, I 6
agree to serve and to mark my electoral college ballots for the nominees 7
for President and Vice President of the political party by which I was 8
nominated.". A copy of such executed pledge shall be included in the 9
filing of the certificate of endorsement or candidacy for nomination, as 10
applicable. 11
(2) If a political party's nominee for President or Vice President dies 12
or withdraws as a candidate in accordance with such political party's 13
rules prior to the meeting of presidential electors under section 9-176 of 14
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the general statutes, as amended by this act, the pledge executed under 15
subsection (a) of this section shall apply to such political party's 16
successor nominee. 17
(b) Each candidate for presidential elector who files a candidacy for 18
nomination to such office without a political party designation under 19
section 9 -453b of the general statutes, or who registers a candidacy 20
associated with a write-in candidate for President under subsection (b) 21
of section 9 -175 of the general statutes, shall execute the following 22
pledge: "If chosen for the office of presidential elector, I agree to serve 23
and to mark my electoral college ballots for the candidate for President 24
listed on this filing and for such candidate's running mate as Vice 25
President.". A copy of such executed pledge shall be included in the 26
filing of the candidacy for nomination or the registration associated with 27
a write-in candidate for President, as applicable. 28
Sec. 2. Section 9 -176 of the general statutes is repealed and the 29
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 30
(a) The presidential electors of the state shall meet at the office of the 31
Secretary of the State at twelve o'clock noon on the first Tuesday after 32
the second Wednesday of the December following their election [and] 33
to cast their electoral college ballots for President and Vice President, as 34
required by the Constitution and laws of the United States . [, shall cast 35
their ballots for President and Vice President. Each such elector shall 36
cast such elector's ballots for the candidates under whose names such 37
elector ran on the official election ballot, as provided in section 9 -175] 38
The Secretary of the State shall preside over the casting of such ballots. 39
(b) (1) If any [such] presidential elector is absent or if there is a 40
vacancy in the [electoral college] presidential electors of the state for any 41
cause, the presidential electors present shall [, before voting for 42
President and Vice President, elect] choose by ballot an [elector] eligible 43
person to fill such vacancy, and the person so chosen shall be a 44
presidential elector, shall perform the duties of such office and shall cast 45
his or her electoral college ballots for the candidates to whom the 46
presidential elector that he or she is replacing was pledged. 47
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(2) To be eligible to be chosen to fill a vacancy in the presidential 48
electors of the state under subdivision (1) of this subsection, a person 49
shall execute the following pledge: "I agree to serve and to mark my 50
electoral college ballots consistent with the pledge of the presidential 51
elector who I am replacing.". 52
(c) The Secretary of the State shall provide to each presidential elector 53
the electoral college ballots for President and Vice President. Each 54
presidential elector shall complete such ballots by marking such ballots 55
with his or her votes for President and Vice President, respectively, and 56
affixing his or her signature and legibly printed name to such ballots. 57
(d) Each presidential elector shall present such completed ballots to 58
the Secretary of the State, who shall examine such ballots and accept as 59
cast each such ballot marked consistent with the pledge executed by 60
such presidential elector under section 1 of this act or subdivision (2) of 61
subsection (b) of this section, as applicable. In the case of an electoral 62
college ballot marked inconsistent with the pledge so executed, the 63
Secretary shall not accept as cast such ballot. 64
(e) Any presidential elector who refuses to comply with any 65
provision of subsection (c) or (d) of this section, or marks any electoral 66
college ballot inconsistent with the pledge executed by such presidential 67
elector under section 1 of this act or subdivision (2) of subsection (b) of 68
this section, shall forfeit the office of presidential elector and cause a 69
vacancy in the presidential electors of the state, which vacancy shall be 70
filled in accordance with the provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection 71
(b) of this section. Each time such a vacancy is so filled, the process set 72
forth in subsections (c) and (d) of this section shall be repeated until all 73
electoral college ballots of all presidential electors of the state have been 74
accepted as cast. 75
(f) After all electoral college ballots of all presidential electors of the 76
state have been accepted as cast, the Secretary of the State shall furnish 77
six duplicate originals of the certificate of ascertainment of appointment 78
of presidential electors previously issued and transmitted by the 79
Secretary pursuant to subsection (b) of section 9-315, as amended by this 80
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act, or an amended version of such certificate prepared pursuant to 81
subsection (h) of this section, as applicable, to the presidential electors. 82
The Secretary shall then assist such presidential electors with preparing, 83
signing and transmitting the six certificates of votes required under 3 84
USC Sections 9 to 11, inclusive, as amended from time to time, and 85
annexing to all certificates of votes the duplicate originals of the most 86
recent version of the certificate of ascertainment described in this 87
subdivision. 88
(g) Any presidential elector who refuses to sign any of the certificates 89
of votes, as provided in subsection (f) of this section, shall forfeit the 90
office of presidential elector and cause a vacancy in the presidential 91
electors of the state, which vacancy shall be filled in accordance with the 92
provisions of subdivision (1) of subsection (b) of this section. Each time 93
such a vacancy is so filled, the process set forth in subsections (c), (d) 94
and (f) of this section shall be repeated until all electoral college ballots 95
of all presidential electors of the state have been accepted as cast and all 96
certificates of votes have been signed by all such presidential electors. 97
(h) After all electoral college ballots of all presidential electors of the 98
state have been accepted as cast and all certificates of votes have been 99
signed by all such presidential electors, the Secretary of the State shall 100
prepare a final list of presidential electors of the state. Whenever the 101
final list of presidential electors of the state differs from the list of 102
presidential electors of the state that was included on the certificate of 103
ascertainment of appointment of presidential electors previously issued 104
and transmitted by the Secretary of the State pursuant to subsection (b) 105
of section 9-315, as amended by this act, the Secretary shall immediately 106
(1) prepare an amended certificate of ascertainment of appointment of 107
presidential electors that complies with the provisions of 3 USC 5(a)(2), 108
as amended from time to time, (2) issue such amended certificate, and 109
(3) transmit, in the most expeditious method available, such amended 110
certificate to the Archivist of the United States. 111
(i) Any presidential elector who fails to mark his or her electoral 112
college ballots consistent with the pledge he or she has executed under 113
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section 1 of this act or subdivision (2) of subsection (b) of this section, as 114
applicable, shall be ineligible upon such failure and thereafter to the 115
office of presidential elector. 116
Sec. 3. Section 9 -315 of the general statutes is repealed and the 117
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2026): 118
(a) The votes returned as cast for a senator in Congress, 119
representatives in Congress and presidential electors shall be publicly 120
counted by the Treasurer, Secretary of the State and Comptroller on the 121
last Wednesday of the month in which [they] such votes were cast, and 122
such votes shall be counted in conformity to any decision rendered by 123
the judges of the Supreme Court as provided in section 9 -323. In 124
accordance with the count so made, they shall, on said day, declare what 125
persons are elected senators in the Congress of the United States or 126
representatives in Congress, and the Secretary of the State shall 127
forthwith notify [them] such persons by mail of their election; and , 128
except in the event that the Agreement Among the States to Elect the 129
President by National Popular Vote under section 9 -175a has taken 130
effect in accordance with Article IV of said agreement, they shall declare 131
the proper number of persons having the greatest number of votes to be 132
presidential electors and, in case of an equal vote for said presidential 133
electors, shall determine by lot from the persons having such equal 134
number of votes the persons appointed, and the Secretary of the State 135
shall forthwith notify [them] such persons by mail of their appointment. 136
(b) For the purposes of the Electoral Count Reform Act of 2022, P.L. 137
117-328, Div. P, Title I, as amended from time to time, the Secretary of 138
the State shall be the executive of the state responsible for issuing a 139
certificate of ascertainment of appointment of presidential electors and, 140
immediately after such issuance, transmitting such certificate to the 141
Archivist of the United States. In preparing such certificate, the 142
Secretary shall specify in the text thereof that (1) the presidential electors 143
appointed under subsection (a) of this section will serve as such unless 144
a vacancy occurs in the presidential electors of the state before the 145
conclusion of the meeting held under section 9-176, as amended by this 146
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act, in which case an eligible person shall be chosen to fill such vacancy 147
in accordance with the provisions of said section, and (2) if an eligible 148
person is chosen to fill such a vacancy, the Secretary shall issue an 149
amended certificate of ascertainment of appointment of presidential 150
electors, stating the names comprising the final list of presidential 151
electors of the state, and shall transmit such amended certificate to the 152
Archivist of the United States. 153
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:

Section 1 October 1, 2026 New section
Sec. 2 October 1, 2026 9-176
Sec. 3 October 1, 2026 9-315

Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Section 2(d), " complete his or her electoral college ballot and " was
deleted to eliminate redundant language and " such a presidential
elector's pledge" was changed to "the pledge so executed" for clarity; in
Section 2(e), ", as applicable" was deleted for accuracy; and in Section 2,
subsections (f)(1) and (2) were redesignated as subsections (f) and (g),
the remaining subsections of the section were relettered, an internal
reference to "subsection (g)" was changed to "subsection (h)" and a n
internal reference to "subdivision (1) of this subsection" was changed to
"subsection (f) of this section" for clarity.

GAE Joint Favorable Subst.

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The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.

OFA Fiscal Note

State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill makes procedural changes regarding presidential electors,
resulting in no fiscal impact to the state or municipalities.
The Out Years
State Impact: None
Municipal Impact: None

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OLR Bill Analysis
sHB 5531

AN ACT CONCERNING FAITHFUL PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS.

By law, when a voter casts a ballot for a presidential candidate, the
ballot is cast for a slate of presidential electors who have pledged to vote
for that candidate when all state electors convene to choose the
president and vice president of the United States (CGS § 9-175).
This bill requires candidates for presidential elector and individuals
who fill a vacancy for these offices to execute a pledge that they will vote
for the candidate they are pledged to vote for. It specifies that any
person who fails to vote for their ple dged candidate is permanently
ineligible to serve as a presidential elector in the future. Additionally,
the bill establishes procedures for rejecting an elector’s ballot if cast for
anyone other than the pledged candidate.
State law currently requires presidential electors to vote for the
presidential and vice-presidential candidates under whose names they
ran on the official ballot, but it does not nullify their vote if they fail to
do so.
The bill also makes technical and conforming changes, including
specifying how electors must be chosen if the National Popular Vote
Interstate Compact (NPVIC) is activated, which Connecticut has joined
(see BACKGROUND).
EFFECTIVE DATE: October 1, 2026
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTOR PLEDGES
Under the bill, each (1) presidential elector candidate nominated by a
political party or (2) person who files a candidacy for the office with a
political party designation, must execute the following pledge:
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“If chosen for the office of presidential elector, I agree to serve and to mark
my electoral college ballots for the nominees for President and Vice President
of the political party by which I was nominated.”
The bill specifies that when a political party’s nominee for President
or Vice President dies or withdraws before the meeting of electors, the
presidential elector’s pledge above must apply to the successor
nominee.
Similarly, a person who files a candidacy without a political party
designation or who registers a candidacy for a write -in candidate must
execute the following pledge:
“If chosen for the office of presidential elector, I agree to serve and to mark
my electoral college ballots for the candidate for President listed on this filing
and for such candidate’s running mate as Vice President.”
In either case, a copy of the executed pledge must be included in the
filed certificate of endorsement, candidacy for nomination, or
registration, as applicable.
Relatedly, to be chosen to fill a vacancy for these offices, a person
must execute the following pledge:
“I agree to serve and to mark my electoral college ballots consistent with the
pledge of the presidential elector who I am replacing.”
VOTING OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS
By law, all the state’s presidential electors must meet at the secretary
of the state’s (SOTS) office at noon on the first Tuesday after the second
Wednesday of the December following their election . Current law
specifies that each elector must cast their vote for his or her pledged
candidate. Instead, the bill eliminates this requirement and creates
procedures for nullifying these ballots.
Under the bill, SOTS must give presidential electors their ballots and
then preside over the voting process. Presidential electors must mark
their ballots, sign them, and legibly print their names. After completing
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their ballots, electors must present them to SOTS, who may accept them
only if marked for the candidate the electors are pledged for.
If a ballot is marked for another candidate or an elector refuses to vote
for the pledged candidate or comply with the bill’s procedures, the
elector forfeits the office, creating a vacancy. As under existing law, the
remaining presidential electors choose a new elector by ballot.
The bill specifies that each time a vacancy is filled, the procedures
above must be repeated until all ballots are accepted.
POST-VOTING REQUIREMENTS
Certificate of Votes
Federal law establishes procedures states must follow when
transmitting the results of the meeting of presidential electors. First,
presidential electors must make and sign six certificates of their votes,
seal them with their appointment certificates, and then transmit them to
certain people required by federal law (3 U.S.C. §§ 9 -11). The bill
requires SOTS to provide these certificates and assist in this process.
Under the bill, if an elector refuses to sign the certificates of votes,
they forfeit the office of presidential elector, and a vacancy is created.
The vacancy must be filled as described above and the procedures above
repeated until all ballots have been accepted and the certificates of votes
are signed.
Certificate of Ascertainment of Appointment
By law, SOTS must issue a certificate of ascertainment of
appointment for presidential electors once the winners have been
declared and transmit it to the U.S. Archivist. Generally, this certificate
is the official list of people declared to be the state’s presidential electors
(3 U.S.C. § 5).
If the list of presidential electors has changed since SOTS issued the
certificate (for example, filling a vacancy), the bill requires the secretary
to amend the certificate, issue it, and transmit it to the U.S. Archivist by
the most expeditious available method, as required under federal law
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for the original list.
Relatedly, the bill generally requires SOTS to note these procedures
in the original certificate filed with the U.S. Archivist.
BACKGROUND
Related Case
In 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed a Washington Supreme
Court decision, holding that a state may constitutionally enforce a
presidential elector’s pledge to support his or her party’s nominee —
and the state voters’ choice — for president (Chaitali et al. v. Washington,
140 S. Ct. 2316 (2020)).
National Popular Vote Interstate Compact
The NPVIC is an interstate agreement that any state party to the
agreement will commit its presidential electors to the national popular
vote winner if enough jurisdictions have done so to cumulatively
possess a majority of the Electoral College votes (cur rently 270 of 538
votes). To date, 17 other states (California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii,
Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New
Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington)
and Washington, D.C. have adop ted the compact. Together with
Connecticut, they currently hold 209 electoral votes. (These electoral
votes are based on population and the U.S. Census; thus, they are
current until at least the next decennial census in 2030.)
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Administration and Elections Committee
Joint Favorable Substitute
Yea 15 Nay 4 (03/20/2026)