More and more elections are turning toward mail in options. Supporters contend that it is convenient, cheap, and popular.
The state of Oregon first adopted the system in 1998 and now has some of the highest voter turnout rates in the U.S. The state of Washington has now followed suit with 38 of 39 counties now exclusively mail-in.
With proven results over the years of increased voter turn-out, and other states seriously trending towards changing to this system could indeed prove also to be a boon for the Postal Service in increased mail volume and revenue.
What do you think? Good for democracy? Good for the Postal Service? Comment here.
7 comments:
The critical thing is that people need to vote. Vote by mail should be an option - but not the only option.
What is just as important is that the ballots be of the size they can be processed on the AFSM and AFSM-ai equipment. Both the outgoing and return ballots need to be that way. Otherwise, this will cost us more in processing costs than we will make with the revenue generated.
It is great for both the voter and the USPS. The voter gets the time to sit and review the way they wish to vote and the USPS reaps the postage. The two together work best for a better voter turn out. No standing in lines for hours and your vote still counts.
Colorado this year is all vote by mail. I hope it continues as such.
I think it is a great idea!! But we do need to make sure that they can be run on the machines and aren't overweight.
Is there anyone out there concerned about about voter fraud? Unless it is notorized it could be bad for the country.
I'm an Oregon voter. Vote-by-mail is much better than scurrying to get to the polls by closing time. It gives you a chance to vote leisurely, at your own pace, and research the issues if you are yet unsure. Oregon also offers community ballot drop-off sites (i.e. libraries, election office)that are pulled at the election deadline. Convenience, higher voter turnout, and postal revenue are advantages. I do miss the community atmosphere of meeting your neighbors and ritual of voting in a booth at a polling place.
The convenience of such a choice is appealing, but certain security measures must be taken. Voter fraud will rise if all loop holes arn't closed.
I believe there would be less fraud if we handle the ballots. We know who lives at each house, there would be no forwarding on ballots, and voter lists could be cleaned up each election. It is a plus for us and democracy.
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