( CNN ) -- The Connecticut Senate on Thursday voted to repeal the death penalty , setting the stage for Connecticut to join several states that have recently abolished capital punishment . In the last five years , New Jersey , New Mexico , New York and Illinois have repealed the death penalty . California voters will decide the issue in November . The bill now goes to the House of Representatives , where it is also expected to pass . Gov . Dannel Malloy , a Democrat , has vowed to sign the measure into law should it reach his desk , his office said . `` For everyone , it 's a vote of conscience , '' said Senate President Donald Williams Jr. , a Democrat who says he 's long supported a repeal . `` We have a majority of legislators in Connecticut in favor of this so that the energies of our criminal justice system can be focused in a more appropriate manner . '' In 2009 , state lawmakers in both houses tried to pass a similar bill , but were ultimately blocked by then-Gov . Jodi Rell , a Republican . Capital punishment has existed in Connecticut since its colonial days . But the state was forced to review its death penalty laws beginning in 1972 when a Supreme Court decision required greater consistency in its application . A moratorium was then imposed until a 1976 court decision upheld the constitutionality of capital punishment . Since then , Connecticut juries have handed down 15 death sentences . Of those , only one person has actually been executed , according to the Death Penalty Information Center , a nonpartisan group that studies death penalty laws . Michael Ross , a convicted serial killer , was put to death by lethal injection in 2005 after giving up his appeals . `` It 's not a question of whether it 's morally wrong , it 's just that it is n't working , '' said Richard Dieter , the group 's executive director . `` I think when you hear of 15 to 20 years of uncertain appeals , that 's not closure and that 's not justice . It 's a slow , grinding process . '' Eleven people are currently on death row in Connecticut , including Steven Hayes and Joshua Komisarjevsky , who both were sentenced for their roles in the 2007 murders of the Petit family in Cheshire , Connecticut . The high-profile case drew national attention and sparked conversations about home security and capital punishment . In vetoing the measure to eliminate the death penalty in 2009 , Rell cited the Cheshire deaths . Dr. William Petit , the sole survivor in that attack , has remained a staunch critic of repeal efforts . `` We believe in the death penalty because we believe it is really the only true , just punishment for certain heinous and depraved murders , '' Petit told CNN affiliate WFSB . Advocates of the existing law say capital punishment can act as a criminal deterrent and provides justice for victims . Opponents say capital punishment is often applied inconsistently , can be discriminatory and has not proven to be an effective deterrent . They also point to instances in which wrongful convictions have been overturned with new investigative methods , including forensic testing . `` Mistakes can be made and you may not know about it until science later exposes them , '' said Dieter . But a recent Quinnipiac poll found that 62 % of Connecticut residents think abolishing the death penalty is `` a bad idea . '' `` No doubt the gruesome Cheshire murders still affect public opinion regarding convicts on death row , '' said Quinnipiac University Poll Director Douglas Schwartz . That number jumps to 66 % among Connecticut men , and drops to 58 % among the state 's women , according to the poll . The Senate 's proposed law is prospective in nature , meaning that it would not apply to those already sentenced to death . Read more about this story from CNN affiliate WFSB .
The bill enjoys majority support in each chamber of the state legislature . Gov . Rick Snyder (R) signed it into law on March 23, and Gov. Mary Fallin (D) has said she will sign it. If passed , Connecticut would be 5th state in 5 years to abolish capital punishment .