Your thoughts about the 'Mail in Ballot' please.

[Paper Roses]

Yesterday I received the form to apply for a 'Vote by mail' option. I'm torn about accepting this option. I don't trust what is going on w/tRump and the post office. Where are these ballots going and who will supervise the counting?

If I vote in person, my town uses paper ballots. I arrive, sign in, vote, sign out and then I place my ballot in the big, black machine. It does not read the results, just counts the # of ballots at the point I add mine.

Am I being foolish? I am not comfortable mailing my ballot in. The form does not tell me where it goes and does not explain the procedure. How many boxes will be discovered after the election is over?
This old timer has very serious doubts that this option will go well.
Your thoughts would be a great help.
Thanks,
PR

[Jim__]

1. In Colorado I always vote "by mail".

"By mail" is in quotes because they mail me a ballot and I can mail it back; but they also provide ballot drop-off locations. I drop my ballot into a box at one of those locations - I drop mine in a box outside the library. So, my filled in ballot never actually goes through the post office

[CentralMass]

2. The way it works in Oregon is we can either mail them in or drop them off at local drop boxes.

Once we have mailed or dropped our ballot off we can check online to see when it was processed.

[Sherman A1]

3. Mailed in my last two ballots

and see no problem.

[oregonjen]

4. This is how Oregon does it

https://sos.oregon.gov/voting/pages/voteinor.aspx

It’s pretty nice. We sit at the table, open up the ballot and the voter’s pamphlet and study the issues. No rush and plenty of time to research.

[CentralMass]

18. Yes it is a great system.

[SheltieLover]

5. In TN

No option to return mail in ballot by dropping off, so I will vote in person.

[TreasonousBastard]

6. You local news outlets should have some reporting on how it all works by. So far...

I haven't heard any legitimate complaints about skulduggery or chicanery concerning mail-in ballots.

My county has tried several things-- either they stay at BoE headquarters and get counted, there, or get dropped off at individual polling places and get counted there.

Biggest problem is bad ballots. In person we always have a percentage of badly filled out ballots that the machine rejects. In person, we just give them a new ballot, but what do you do when a mail-in ballot gets rejected?

[Wounded Bear]

7. Might depend on where you live, but it works fine here in WA state...

been on all VBM for years and works fine.

Many states are moving this way because of the virus. I'm all for it.

[Autumn]

8. We vote by mail in CO. It's easy and safe. We also have places where we can drop off our ballots.

We can check the status of our ballots on line

[ananda]

9. I accepted the option here in Texas.

Never had a problem.

And now it's postage paid ... all good.

[Liberal In Texas]

15. And in my county you can go online and see if they received it. n/t

received

[brooklynite]

10. When you distrust the Post Office you play into Trump's game...

[Phoenix61]

11. You can still vote in person.

This gives you the option. Some places they can be dropped it off at polling places including the supervisor of elections office.

[mcar]

12. I have voted by mail in Florida for years

I just mailed my primary ballot the other day. Usually, however, I just bring the ballot to the elections office.

I can follow its track on the supervisor of elections website so I know it gets counted. Also, each party is allowed to have observers at the elections office on election day when they start to scan the VBM ballots. One of the leaders of our county Dem party has done it and says the system is quick and efficient.

I would check with your local supervisor of elections. They can answer all your questions. Some communities have boxes outside the elections office - like mailboxes - where you can just drive up and drop in your ballot.

Vote by mail is safe and easy. Republicans have been doing it for decades and that is how they have won tight races. Trump is hurting their efforts by his lies about VBM.

[subterranean]

13. Is early voting available where you live?

If so, you might want to consider that to avoid the crowds on Election Day.

What about ballot drop boxes? In Washington, where voting is done by mail exclusively, we also have drop boxes in various locations that you can drop your ballot into, instead of sending them by mail. That's what I usually do. I don't know if that option is available in your area.

Also, each ballot comes with a tab with a number that you tear off before submitting it. Later, you can use that to check online to make sure your ballot was received. (I don't know if all states have that, but Washington does.)

[HotTeaBag]

14. I would feel perfectly confident voting by mail here in New Jersey.

But, I am going stand in line as long as it takes on election day to push the button, or pull the arm or punch the hole or whatever I need to do to get a tactile feel as I vote to get that asshole out of office.

[Ms. Toad]

16. Why all the right wing talking points about vote by mail, all of a sudden?

This plays right into trumps plan, and is what they do so skillfully - raise an issue, then get us to carry the water for them.

Absentee ballots have always depended on mail, as part of the process. There are well developed processes, that include bipartisan observation at every step of the way. Most, if not all states have an electronic means to verify that you're ballot was received, and approved for counting. The verification process includes confirmation by personal knowledge (DOB, and partial SS# or drivers license#), and signature match.

The only thing that will change with vote by mail is that instead of requesting an early voting or absentee ballot, you will be sent one automatically.

Please stop letting them live rent-free in your head.

This is the fourth or fifth thread I've seen questioning vote by mail, which serves no purpose other than to support trumps completely without merit attack on vote by mail.

(I'm not saying this was your conscious intent. They are insidious and very skilled at getting us to do their dirty work for them. I went through this with very close friends with same-gender marriage who were sucked into a right wing argument that was designed to get liberals to undermine ourselves. Now that there is a progressive push for vote by mail, they are intentionally planting doubts about the mail, even though the mail has reliably been a part of voting for decades, including the only way to vote in some reliably Democratic states)

[rolypolychloe]

17. depends on your name or your zip code

I have a name that sounds Republican, and I live in a district that is 99 44/100% Republican, so I do not expect any shenanigans with my ballot. That said, my post office only delivers half the mail in either direction. If you every watched the sitcom Senfield, it is as if Newman got a job at my post office. The Republicans are scared to death of mail in ballots because their favorite and most effective way of voter suppression is to limit the number of polling machines/places in unfavorable districts. Mail in ballots circumvent all that.

But with mail in ballots, a different set of shenanigans can occur. If you have a ethnic name or live in a predominately Democratic district or zip code, your ballot may never be mailed, or your postal carrier might neglect to deliver it. Oops, blame it on the post office. Then they take the ballots that were never mailed and fill them out to their liking. If you get a ballot, there are three opportunities for your ballot to disappear, you postal carrier, your local post office and the destination post office. The drop boxes aren't much better. If I was a Republican terrified of losing, I would not be above hijacking the drop boxes in the dead of night. All of this is quite illegal, but that only matters if the culprit thinks they will be caught. I think all of us exceed the speed limit when we don't see patrol cars around. Partisan election workers are not above breaking the law if they don't think they will be caught.

And then, if you don't file the ballot instructions precisely, your ballot might be discarded for not following the rules. You may or may not be made aware that your ballot was rejected.

If the opportunity presents itself, read the book "What Happened in Ohio" by John Conyers. It's a fairly comprehensive list of ways politicians cheat on elections.