Category Archives: Town Hall

Old Lyme Town Clerk’s Office Clarifies Absentee Ballot Procedures for November Election

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OLD LYME —  In a statement issued yesterday, the Old Lyme Town Clerk clarified that due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, “All voters will be permitted to vote by absentee ballot rather than appear in person,” at the Nov. 3, 2020 election. This replicates the situation from the Aug. 11 Primary election,
For those who wish to vote in person, the polling place will again be the Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m.

The statement explains, “For the Aug. 11, 2020 Primaries, the Secretary of the State’s (SOTS) office contracted with a Mail House to send out the absentee ballots rather than have the Town Clerk’s office handle it in-house as it is usually done.”  This decision had been taken, “… based on an effort to take some of the workload off the Town Clerks due to the sheer volume expected with voters being given the option to vote via absentee.”

Noting, “There were issues with the Mail House in performing this function,” the SOTS has determined use of the Mail House will be discontinued.

The statement continues, “On Aug. 18, 2020, the Town Clerks of Connecticut were notified by the SOTS that rather than use a Mail House again for the Nov. 3, 2020 election, they would be returning the task of sending out absentee ballots to the Town Clerks.”

Adding, “We were also notified that the SOTS’s Office will be mailing Applications for Absentee Ballot to all registered voters beginning mid-September.  The completed Applications will then be sent to the Town Clerk’s office and absentee ballots would be issued by us,”  the Town Clerk stresses that residents should note, “… we will begin mailing out Absentee Ballots on Friday, Oct. 2.”

As a large numbers of voters wishing to vote absentee is anticipated, the Town Clerk recommends the following:

  • Do not use the Application for Absentee Ballot which was mailed to you for the Aug. 11 Primaries as it will be rejected. You will receive a new one specifically for the Nov. 3 election.
  • Applications for Absentee Ballots will be mailed to you from the SOTS beginning mid-September.
  • If you do not receive your Application for Absentee Ballot for the Nov. 3 election in the mail by Sept. 30, contact the Old Lyme Town Clerk’s office or you visit this link to obtain one.
  • If you have previously filed an Application for Absentee Ballot for the Nov. 3 election with the Old Lyme Town Clerk’s office, disregard the one received from the SOTS.  Your initial Application will be processed.
  • Completed Applications for Absentee Ballot can be mailed to us or dropped in the Old Lyme Official Ballot Drop Box located in front of the Town Hall.
  • The Old Lyme Town Clerk’s Office will begin mailing Absentee Ballots Oct. 2.
  • Once you have received your Absentee Ballot and cast your vote, you may mail it to the Old Lyme Town Clerk’s Office or drop it into the Official Ballot Drop Box located in front of the Town Hall.

If you have any questions concerning the upcoming election, contact Town Clerk Vicki Urbowicz at (860) 434-1605 Ext. 221 or her assistant, Courtney, Ext. 220.

Editor’s Note: We urge all residents of Old Lyme and Lyme to mail or deliver their votes as early possible to allow time for the Town Clerk’s Office to process them.

Recounts for 2nd Congressional District Republican Primary Held in Lyme, Old Lyme Yesterday; No Change in OL, Gilmer Loses Two Votes in Lyme

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LYME/OLD LYME — Yesterday (Monday) morning, the Town Clerks of both Lyme and Old Lyme held recounts of the Republican 2nd Congressional District Primary votes this morning.

The recount was ordered by Theodore Bromley, the state’s director of elections, because the original vote counts of 9,225 for Gilmer and 9,199 for Justin Anderson showed a difference of less than 0.5 percent of all the votes cast.

The recounts were required to be completed on or before today, Tuesday Aug. 18.

The recount results were as follows with the original number shown in parentheses:

LYME

Thomas Gilmer: 59  (61)
Justin Anderson: 64  (64)

OLD LYME

Thomas Gilmer: 190  (190)
Justin Anderson: 152  (152)

8/17 from The Day: An ongoing recount in the race shows Gilmer winning by 14 votes, according to unofficial results from the Secretary of the State’s Office on Monday …

An attorney representing Republican congressional candidate Tom Gilmer sent a cease and desist order to his opponent Justin Anderson in May, seeking to stop Anderson from making “defamatory” statements about Gilmer and from disseminating a video that shows Gilmer in a violent altercation with a former girlfriend in 2017 …

Visit this link to access the full article about Gilmer’s arrest by Julia Bergman and published Aug. 17 on TheDay.com

8/11 from The Day: Thomas Gilmer, the endorsed Republican candidate on Tuesday’s primary ballot for the 2nd Congressional District, said he has dropped out of the race after police in Wethersfield arrested him on a warrant late Monday night.

Police charged Gilmer with second-degree strangulation and first-degree unlawful restraint. He was arraigned Tuesday in New Britain Superior Court.

Visit this link to access the full article about Gilmer’s arrest by Julia Bergman and published Aug. 11 on TheDay.com

Biden, Trump Win in Old Lyme Primary; Gilmer (Arrested Monday, Now Withdrawn) Defeats Anderson in Congressional 2nd District Race

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OLD LYME — This morning Old Lyme Town Clerk Vicki Urbowicz sent us the preliminary, unconfirmed results of Tuesday’s Primary. The numbers were as follows:

Republican Presidential Preference Primary

Donald Trump: 297

Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente: 41

Uncommitted: 83

Democratic Presidential Preference Primary

Joe Biden: 740

Bernie Sanders: 76

Tulsi Gabbard: 3

Uncommitted: 14

Republican Representative in Congress, Congressional District 2

Thomas Gilmer 189

Justin Anderson 152

Thomas Gilmer, a Republican candidate who was on Tuesday’s primary ballot for the 2nd Congressional District, said he has dropped out of the race after police in Wethersfield arrested him on a warrant late Monday night.

Police charged Gilmer with second-degree strangulation and first-degree unlawful restraint. He was arraigned Tuesday in New Britain Superior Court.

Visit this link to access the full article about Gilmer’s arrest by Julia Bergman and published Aug. 11 on TheDay.com

Trump, Biden Win in Tuesday’s Lyme Primaries, Anderson Defeats (Now Withdrawn) Gilmer by Three Votes in Congressional 2nd District Contest

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LYME — Lyme Town Clerk Linda Winzer sent us the final, confirmed results of Tuesday’s Primary Thursday evening. The numbers were as follows:

Republican Presidential Preference Primary

Donald Trump: 102

Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente: 14

Uncommitted: 29

Democratic Presidential Preference Primary

Joe Biden: 306

Bernie Sanders: 47

Tulsi Gabbard: 2

Uncommitted: 3

Republican Representative in Congress, Congressional District 2

Thomas Gilmer 61

Justin Anderson 64

Thomas Gilmer, a Republican candidate who was on Tuesday’s primary ballot for the 2nd Congressional District, said he has dropped out of the race after police in Wethersfield arrested him on a warrant late Monday night.

Police charged Gilmer with second-degree strangulation and first-degree unlawful restraint. He was arraigned Tuesday in New Britain Superior Court.

Visit this link to access the full article about Gilmer’s arrest by Julia Bergman and published Aug. 11 on TheDay.com

It’s Primary Day! In-Person Voting Open 6am-8pm, Absentee Ballots Deposited by 8pm Also Accepted

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LYME/OLD LYME — The polls are open today, Tuesday, Aug. 11, from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Lyme Town Hall for Lyme residents to vote in person and Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School for Old Lyme residents to vote in person.

If you are voting by Absentee Ballot and have not already mailed your ballot or deposited it in the secure drop box in front of the appropriate town hall, you still have time to place your ballot into both the inner and outer envelopes and then deposit it into the appropriate drop box.

Once deposited in the secure drop box, your ballot is considered received by your municipality.

Your ballot must deposited in the secure drop box no later than 8 p.m. this evening, Tuesday, Aug. 11.

Registered Democrats can view their sample ballot at this link. They are only voting in the Democratic Presidential Preference Primary and their choices on the ballot are:

  • Joe Biden
  • Bernie Sanders
  • Tulsi Gabbard
  • Uncommitted

Registered Republicans can view their sample ballot at this link. They are voting in the Republican Presidential Preference Primary AND the Republican 2nd Congressional District Primary. Their choices on the ballot are:

Presidential Preference Primary:

  • Donald J. Trump
  • Roque “Rocky” De La Fuente
  • Uncommitted

Republican 2nd Congressional District Primary:

  • Thomas Gilmer
  • Justin Anderson

Lyme Town Hall is closed to all other public business today to reduce the number of people in the building and potential virus exposure.

Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School gymnasium is at 53 Lyme St., Old Lyme. This new voting location for all Old Lyme residents will also be used in the November election.

At both locations, masks will be required and social distancing will be observed.

For more information on the election tomorrow, visit our related post: CT’s Primary is Tuesday; Have You Completed, Sent In Your Absentee Ballot? Do You Know Where, When to Vote in Person?