Absentee / Mail-in Voting

All states have some form of absentee or mail-in voting due to federal requirements. These voters normally include military and overseas citizens, voters with disabilities and students who reside in a different state. For example, absentee or mail-in ballots are sent to these military and overseas voters 45 days prior to federal elections. However, absentee or mail-in voting is often limited by states to a number of valid excuses based on age, absentee status or an inability to vote on Election Day.

Some states have a greater number of reasons and valid excuses to vote absentee ballots by mail or in-person in an election office. A number of states have no-excuse absentee or mail voting. Lastly, a number of states have implemented an entire method of mail-in balloting that includes return of ballots to secure boxes or by postal mail. Oregon instituted an all-mail-in balloting system in 1998 and other states like Washington and Colorado have instituted similar all mail ballot methods of voting.

Mail-in and absentee balloting provides certain vulnerabilities to the electoral system:

  • One stated general purpose for no-excuse absentee or mail ballot voting is to increase convenience and reduce long lines on Election Day. However, “Election Day” has become “Election Month,” which has increased the overall costs of election administration. County election offices that must process a large number of mailed ballots will experience significant delays in releasing official election results. A month or more of voting dramatically increases the overall costs to political campaigns for poll watching and get-out-the-vote efforts prior to Election Day.
  • Mail-in ballots are not cast in the secure polling place where precinct poll workers can confirm addresses and verify identification. A great deal of voter fraud and abuse of absentee and mail-in ballots has been documented across the country. Absentee or mail-in balloting may spur a short-term increase in turnout in local elections; however, there is no evidence that voting by mail increases overall turnout for the long term in general elections.
  • Absentee or mail-in balloting requires the use of the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) to transmit and return the ballot. This often causes delays to the election office. Citizens in states that use mail-in ballots often authorize the return of ballots to secure mail boxes that voters can use if they distrust the postal service.

A number of states authorize or require in-person absentee voting with verification by voter ID, and some states require a voter ID at the time of absentee or mail-in ballot request or return.

Alternatively, many states that allow absentee or mail-in voting use signature comparison to verify the identity of the voter. Many believe that signature verification is error-prone and not uniformly implemented by election officials across the country. While signature verification does catch a small percentage of invalid ballots or voter fraud, the system often fails to identify a great many irregularities associated with absentee or mail-in voting. Alternatively, many argue that signature verification routinely disenfranchises thousands of voters when it is used to ferret out an invalid signature.

ACRU Commentary

The media’s greatest power is the power to ignore

Sixty-two percent of Americans believe voting by mail increases fraud. So we reviewed mainstream media vote fraud stories and found nearly every story started with, “GOP to fight voter fraud that doesn’t exist.” The bias willingly ignores fraud despite reams of evidence. Author Gore Vidal once quipped, “Half the American people never read a newspaper. Half never vote for President — the same half?” Glad you read the EIB.

A citizen’s reminder: absentee ballots have not gone extinct

We are grateful to Mr. Brian Glass of Virginia, who points out in clear prose; 1. A list of confirmed cases of mail-in vote fraud; and 2. The difference between universal mail-in ballots and intentionally requesting an absentee ballot. Yes, we all know this, but sometimes the obvious things are lost in the debate. Everyone in America can still request an absentee ballot. With their name on it. That comes to their actual house.

And also, the dog ate my ballot

Tennessee officials on Friday sought an appeal and an immediate pause to a court’s ruling this week that lets all 4. 1 million registered voters vote by mail during to the coronavirus pandemic, as the state made updates to its materials to reflect the expansion. The state attorney general’s office filed the request in Davidson County Chancery Court to appeal and stay that court’s temporary injunction that expanded absentee eligibility Thursday.

Vote collection mobiles should be relegated to bad Saturday Night Live skits

This is one of those moments when there’s not much we can say other than, “click, look at the picture, and ask, ‘what can possibly go wrong?’” Not to offend modern day VW owners, but the original Volkswagen was a product of fascism. This Philadelphia "voteswagen" plays right back into that history of tyrannical government trampling liberty by making a mockery of safe and secure elections. With wheels.

Incompetent election officials as a protected class

In the 2016 and 2018 elections, Maryland’s election administrator made a mess of things. Her stated excuse? “I have no control.” This month, Maryland’s mail-only primary was a bust - votes lost, uncounted (manipulated?). Yet [...]

News

Be On The Lookout issued for missing ballots

58,000 Pennsylvania voters are experiencing the political version of “Who Moved My Cheese?” At first, Westmorland County election officials said they mailed the ballots and blamed slow mail for lack of delivery. Then they said they mailed some of the ballots. This week they claim they are NOW mailing these same ballots. While election officials in too many counties are trying to figure out where your ballot is and what they did with it, we suggest you Vote In Person.

Are organized vote fraudsters now taking interstate road trips?

“Michael Lewis” has been charged for illegally voting in New Hampshire in 2016. He was caught after being arrested afterward without a license and giving a Florida address. Mr. Lewis also voted in Florida and Georgia in 2016. His actual residence is a two bedroom home with 12 (alleged) residents in Georgia. He picked NH—a state where he could walk up and vote with no ID. He’s not the only one. Hawk-eyed NH anti-fraud activist Ed Naile may have poked the tip of a fraud iceberg with a sharp stick.

Liberal governor’s unsolicited ballot fiat creates havoc for voters

New Jersey Democrat Governor Phil Murphy used COVID as an excuse to mail ballots to every address in the state, whether the addressee is alive or dead, or relocated. NJ election officials, overwhelmed by this unnecessary political maneuver, can’t get it right. In Bergen County, officials sent out nearly 7,000 incorrect ballots to 28,000 voters. The officials who made this mistake claim there will be no confusing results. Right.

Postal worker thinks voters live in a nearby trash bin

Also in the Garden State, Mr. Howard Dinger was throwing out trash last week when five bins of mail—including absentee ballots—caught his eye. A postal worker has been arrested on felony charges for dumping the mail instead of delivering it. If not for Mr. Dinger’s eagle eye and willingness to do his civic duty, 100 West Orange residents would be wondering where their ballots went. Vote In Person.

Capital-area county sends out broken ballots

In the county that contains Ohio’s seat of government, 21% of absentee ballots sent to voters were incorrect. Some had the wrong congressional race and some had the wrong voting precincts. Vote fraud is real, and so is election office incompetence. Both result in false results. Like similar cases in Michigan and New York, officials are sending new ballots to further confuse people. Don’t take chances. Go to the polls. Be a VIP--Vote In Person.

Is the liberal demand for unsolicited ballots planned chaos?

EIB has been documenting the confusion inherent in the liberal push for mail-only balloting—including in this edition. The evidence is clear. Our colleague Chuck DeVore of the Texas Public Policy Foundation succinctly notes, “the rush to mail-in balloting will overwhelm the local elections officials who do the job of counting the vote.” We suggest this was exactly what the left planned.