Sen. Murphy Voted In Old Lyme, But His Vote Was Not Counted

OLD LYME, CT — U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy registered to vote by absentee ballot in the Nov. 5 municipal election in Old Lyme, Connecticut.

Murphy and his family were reported to have been staying at his parents' summer cottage at 92 West End Drive. He registered to vote via absentee ballot. But, that vote was not counted.

When the registrar of voters sent a letter asking him to confirm his Old Lyme registration, the missive was returned, registrar Cathy Carter told CT News Junkie, saying the notice was returned and, she told the news site, the space on the voter registration card for forwarding was left blank. Patch was unsuccessful in reaching the Old Lyme registrar of voters for further comment.

So Murphy's name had been removed from the active voter list and placed on the inactive voter list, his office confirmed.

Murphy and his family, wife Cathy Holahan and their two sons live in Washington D.C. The couple sold their Cheshire house in September and are reported to be looking for a new home in the Hartford area. It was reported last summer that Murphy was renting in Old Lyme; that was soon corrected.

The beachfront house was reported to not be weatherized and used as a summer cottage. The tax assessor’s office’s database shows it has gas heat and a two-story chimney. The near half million-dollar-assessed house, built in 1937, is owned by Murphy’s mother Catherine A. Murphy.

Murphy told CT News Junkie that he was "disappointed" his vote didn't count but that the snafu underscores the importance of voter registration right.

Murphy's spokesperson Ed Patterson emailed a statement to Patch.

"Senator Murphy was issued and cast an absentee ballot in the most recent election, but it wasn’t counted on election day because, unknown to the Senator, he was temporarily labeled inactive due to a failure to receive a follow up card from the registrar. As already reported, the Senator’s home sold more quickly than expected, and he and his family are still looking to buy a home in the Greater Hartford area."

The Old Lyme Nov. 5 election saw a GOP sweep with Republican Timothy C. Griswold to be the town's First Selectman beating out Democrat Bonnie Reemsnyder with a final vote count of 1774 for Griswold and 1403 for Reemsnyder.

Voter turnout in the town was reported to be well above 50 percent, but the Connecticut secretary of state says it was more like 35 percent.