Vote by mail is effective but not a cure-all

There are currently five states that conduct all of their elections using vote by mail; Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Hawaii and Utah [1]. There are other states that allow vote by mail elections but they are only for small elections like school boards. On the surface this seems like a great idea, particularly in these days of COVID-19, and in some respects it is a good idea. In the 2018 election year, voter turnout in the midterm elections reached 50% of the registered voters, the largest in recent history. The vote by mail states of Oregon, Washington, Colorado, Hawaii and Utah had turnout percentages of 61.5, 58.9, 63.0, 39.3 and 52.0. In four out of five cases the vote by mail state had turnouts above the national average, so it seems to have had some positive effect [2].

But not in Hawaii. Although Hawaii has vote by mail elections which make it very easy, there are other reasons for the lower turnouts in Hawaii including time zones, lack of choices and, particularly, their history relating to the US Government. Many native Hawaiians feel that the US Government is illegally occupying Hawaii, which the Government acknowledged in 1993 when they apologized for the unlawful takeover of the islands [3]. They do not vote on principle.

It is of note that this disenfranchised feeling which causes some Hawaiians not to vote is not unique to their people. African Americans in the US have a bit of resentment thanks to slavery, and it is also reflected at the polls. The eight states with the largest African American populations are District of Columbia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Georgia, Maryland, South Carolina, Alabama and North Carolina [4]. Of these eight states only Georgia and Maryland exceeded that 50% average, and four of them were in the bottom ten states in turnout [2]. Race is not the only factor here, but many of the states with more African Americans are also economically challenged. Of those same eight states, six are in the top 15 most impoverished states [5].

So, vote by mail is an option that seems to help the numbers somewhat, but we still need people to fill them out and send them in; make them want to vote. Reach out to the disenfranchised and convince them that the only way to get more Government aid for their states is to vote in people that will do that. The only way to correct the Government that wronged them is to vote in people with their interests at heart. Whatever the reason, people need to vote.

[1] https://www.ncsl.org/research/elections-and-campaigns/all-mail-elections.aspx

[2] https://www.nonprofitvote.org/full-50-state-2018-turnout-ranking-voting-policy/

[3] https://www.cnn.com/2012/10/21/opinion/why-hawaii-doesnt-vote/index.html

[4] https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/us-states-with-the-largest-relative-african-american-populations.html

[5] https://worldpopulationreview.com/states/poverty-rate-by-state/