Masks and MAGA hats are in. Candidate buttons and “poll watching” are out. You’ll see more, and younger, poll workers, and have more ways to vote. The results? Who knows when you’ll see them. 

These are just a few of the realities of voting in Connecticut during the pandemic year of 2020. Secretary of the State Denise Merrill says she thinks that half of the votes cast this election could be by absentee ballot, a first for a state that’s traditionally made it hard to vote any other way than showing up on the first Tuesday in November.

On this episode of Steady Habits she explains to host John Dankosky that safety will be a priority (masks at the polls are a must), and that you can track your registration and the status of your absentee ballot online. And, she tells me, it will be a long day for election officials dealing with both big turnouts and lots of mailed-in ballots to count.

We also hear from writer Colleen Shaddox, who is joining a vigil to make sure that every vote is counted.