We Need Postage-Paid Vote-by-Mail Nationwide

In my last blog post (https://ecomerge.blogspot.com/2020/05/vote-by-mail-is-effective-but-not-cure.html) I stated that 'Vote by mail is effective but not a cure-all' and talked about the effectiveness of mail-in voting in the states that have already instituted the practice. In that posting I posited that mail-in voting definitely made it easier to vote because you just need a stamp, the mailman will even pick it up from you, but there is still the problem of getting procrastinating people to actually DO it. People must be invested in the need to foment change. People need to believe that the ballot envelope on their table needs to be opened, their choices made, the ballot signed, and mailed in so they can help make a difference.

In the short weeks since that post, things in this country have taken a decided turn for the worst in regard to human rights and political ambitions. With the ongoing covid-19 pandemic, and this new outbreak of mass protesting (with the side problems of destruction and looting), there are now curfews and restrictions being placed on citizens across the country. There was already a lot of discussion about how we are going to be able to hold an election while practicing social distancing and functioning in lock-down mode. Now we may have to factor in curfews and anarchy. If people are forced to go to a polling place to vote, many will not vote because the Covid-19 epidemic is still uncontrolled. I believe that a lot of those same people WOULD vote using mail-in if it was an alternative that was available to them. The added obstacles of curfews and rioting make the ability to vote from home all the more attractive.

 

Donald Trump is doing all he can to dissuade and prevent states from allowing mail-in voting. His goal is to win the 2020 election, and he has clearly stated that mail-in voting ‘doesn’t work out well for Republicans’ without explaining that claim [1].

Trump has also claimed (without substantiation) that mail-in voting leads to mail fraud, a claim that was refuted by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) Commissioner Ellen Weintraub, who asserted that there was 'No basis' for the incendiary claim[2].

This is yet another attempt to put false information out into the media-sphere to affect people's opinions while declining to substantiate. Claims like 'you get thousands and thousands of people sitting in somebody’s living room, signing ballots all over the place', and the assertion that there is a substantive difference between mail-in voting and absentee balloting is simple disinformation intended to muddy the waters of truth [3][5].

 

It seems apparent that the reason mail-in voting is bad for Republicans is that it enables voting for many lower and middle class voters who are not voting Republican; for voters that are currently being blocked and obstructed by the establishment and current rules and attitudes. These voters might not have voted without mail-in, and the administration is doing all it can to ensure that there are obstacles for those voters. This group includes working people that cannot schedule personal time to vote, people that cannot get caregivers to watch their children and their elderly, transportation-challenged individuals of all kinds, the elderly themselves and minorities that might not feel comfortable at their local polling place.

 

If the Republican party repeatedly asserts that mail-in voting would hurt them in elections, it is tantamount to an admission that if more Americans were enabled to vote, they would lose. Note that Trump LOST the popular election in 2016 and only won the election because of the anomalies of the Electoral College [4]. The G.O.P. is admitting that they are not the majority choice of the American people, and that they cannot stay in power unless they stifle the votes of their adversaries.

The G.O.P. should adopt policies and programs that make voters amenable to their point of view and earn the votes, rather than attempting to suppress those that oppose them by limiting voting access, gerrymandering and generally working to make it harder for those voters to be heard.

 

What can you do? The number one answer is VOTE!

 

Vote for people that want to improve America rather than promoting their own self-interests. Vote for candidates that advocate for mail-in voting, because in these days of pandemic and social distancing this could be the great equalizer when it comes to election fairness.

• Contact your state representative (https://action4oregon.weebly.com/contact-your-representative.html) and let them know that you support voting by mail.
• Sign a petition and add your voice to the effort to convince congress to institute postage-paid vote-by-mail nationwide:
• Sign Here Now: https://www.signherenow.org/petition/national-vote-by-mail/rouda/e/
• Change.org: https://www.change.org/p/legislators-and-secretaries-of-state-protect-the-november-2020-election-by-offering-vote-by-mail-in-all-50-states
• Action Network: https://actionnetwork.org/forms/sign-the-petition-to-your-state-election-officials-vote-by-mail-must-be-available-to-all-voters
• Sign for Good: https://petitions.signforgood.com/votebymail

 

Everyone needs to pitch in and help make changes in our country and changes in our political system.

 

Get everyone you know to vote, and make sure that you do too!

• If you need information on how to register in your state check here: https://swagyoungvote2.weebly.com/
• If you are in Oregon, check here for information on voting and community political action: https://action4oregon.weebly.com/

 

 

 

[1] https://nypost.com/2020/04/08/trump-claims-mail-in-voting-doesnt-work-out-well-for-republicans/

[2] https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/499890-fec-chairwoman-no-basis-for-trump-claims-voting-by-mail-leads-to-fraud

[3] https://www.vox.com/2020/4/9/21214821/trump-mail-in-voting-election-fraud-evidence-coronavirus

[4] https://www.archives.gov/electoral-college/about

[5] https://www.cnbc.com/2020/04/08/trump-slams-mail-in-voting-says-it-doesnt-work-out-well-for-republicans.html