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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsNate Silver: One thing Democrats could do--with basically no strategic downside...
Link to tweet
Blue Owl
(51,361 posts)mucifer
(23,748 posts)spanone
(136,274 posts)Wake up Nate
List left
(595 posts)dalton99a
(82,127 posts)sandensea
(22,110 posts)soldierant
(7,186 posts)the state one is in has not established it as firm procedure that mailed ballots are counted last.
In that case, mailing them in in droves is counterproductive, and if one can vote early in person by surrendering the unvoted mail ballot, that would be the thing.
I'm in Colorado, which is an all-mail state, and I certainly plan to get mine in as early as I can, to a drop off box or an county election site, myself.
mzmolly
(51,062 posts)I hand delivered my ballot yesterday.
lame54
(35,509 posts)MissMillie
(38,694 posts)PROVISIONAL BALLOTS if they encounter trouble at their polling location.
Wounded Bear
(59,088 posts)Sherman A1
(38,958 posts)Trumpocalypse
(6,143 posts)bamagal62
(3,314 posts)However, we applied for a mail in ballot and officials are recommending to wait until
That ballot arrives before choosing to vote in person. Apparently, its causing some difficulty at the early voting sites. We are in Chicago.
russ1943
(618 posts)9. We've decide to vote in person.
However, we applied for a mail in ballot and officials are recommending to wait until
That ballot arrives before choosing to vote in person. Apparently, its causing some difficulty at the early voting sites. We are in Chicago.
That sounds suspiciously like the advice Trump conservatives are promoting. The officials recommending this approach are creating a sham basis for questioning whether or not you are voting twice. In Michigan there are procedures for insuring one vote only in this scenario but what you describe creates more problems than it solves.
MagickMuffin
(16,107 posts)So, that is why they are being advised to wait for the mail in ballot, so that they surrender the ballot and they get a new one.
Nothing suspicious about it. I've worked elections and if someone comes in that has received a mail in ballot and we tell them they have to surrender their ballot, if they do not produce their mail in ballot, then they do not receive a ballot.
shrike3
(4,107 posts)In our state, ballots must be surrendered, paperwork filled out.
Pobeka
(4,999 posts)How can you surrender a ballot if it is still in transit from USPS? Surely this situation is covered?
MagickMuffin
(16,107 posts)That's how we do it in Texas. No surrendered ballot, provisional only.
orleans
(34,218 posts)i've heard some states you have a limited number of days after election to go into the election office to complete the provisional ballot process.
if people are voting with a provisional ballot they need to ask what they have to do follow up with in order for the ballot to be counted
i just tried looking it up for illinois and found this:
When should a voter cast a provisional ballot?
A provisional ballot must be offered to a voter when:
Election judges have no record of the individual,
A voter's voting status has been successfully challenged,
A voter did not provide identification when registering by mail,
A court order extends the time for closing the polls,
The voters name appears on the list of voters who voted during early voting, or
The voter received a mail ballot but did not return the ballot.
What is the process for provisional voting?
The voter must fill out a ballot application. They must sign an affidavit stating the reason for the provisional ballot. The voter receives a correct ballot and a special envelope. After the vote is cast, the ballot is sealed in the special envelope. The voter must submit more information within 2 days.
MagickMuffin
(16,107 posts)No one working the polls likes provisional ballots.
Our special bag for provisional ballots is a bright orange. After the polls close we have to account for all provisional ballots and then it gets sealed with a special identification tag that has a number code on it which has to match the paper work. When returning supplies the election officials require the provincial ballot envelop first. Never understood why, but I suppose it's to keep them separate from the rest of the sealed ballots.
Whenever we would inform the voter about going to the Election Office most of them would scoff at the idea of the inconvenience of verifying that their vote would be counted. Some simply would refuse to fill out the forms and just leave.
Now that we can vote anywhere in the county, there could be less provisional ballots. Most people that required one were at the wrong precinct. It was really sad seeing so many people not even knowing where they were suppose to vote.
I won't be working the election this year.
spooky3
(34,712 posts)and they gave me the in-person ballot, which I completed and put through the scanner.
A short time later, I went to the elections website and it correctly indicated that the absentee ballot had been surrendered and that my in-person vote had been recorded.
Pacifist Patriot
(24,659 posts)I take my mail-in ballot to my polling place, hand it over to the poll worker and they exchange it for the in-person ballot. Piece of cake.
panader0
(25,816 posts)When I showed up to vote in person I was given a provisional ballot. It took a bit of time to fill it out.
The thing is, I think that sometimes provisional ballots get "lost". My last vote, in the primaries was
mail-in, and cast at a collection box. I checked on line a few days later and it had been received and
counted. I'm pretty sure most states, if not all, have a web site where you can check your vote. Do that,
and if it hasn't been counted before the election day, go vote in person. These repub bastards will do
whatever they can to fuck up the vote.
napi21
(45,806 posts)Never had any probs. IWe DO however send ours in early. I believe it's always better to take advantage of the slower time for processing. Things always get crazy at the last minute, people are all in a hurry & some boss is always on your back to "hurry up, damn it" And mistakes are made.
russ1943
(618 posts)NYT https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/10/27/upshot/election-results-timing.html
"Usually the number of provisional votes is not large enough to be significant, but there is evidence from early voting that this election may be different. Some voters in at least 22 states are required to vote provisionally if they initially request a mail ballot but decide to vote in person instead (other states have different methods to prevent voting twice). Provisional voting can slow down lines at the polls, and those ballots are generally the last to be reviewed and counted, sometimes weeks after the election."
catrose
(5,116 posts)KS Toronado
(17,917 posts)I'll be going to a drop off box with ours. Don't trust the post office this election!
shrike3
(4,107 posts)Which is what I did during the primary.
Indykatie
(3,712 posts)It took much longer for my Primary Mail Ballot which arrived much closer to election day. I didn't trust the USPS to get it back in time so I dropped it off.
PatrickforO
(14,645 posts)I know I'm sure talking to people about planning their vote and dropping the ballots off at the earliest possible moment.
RussellCattle
(1,562 posts)....by saying "We should all ask for and return our ballots as early as possible". There you go. You're welcome.
BadgerMom
(2,794 posts)lindalou65
(258 posts)Thanks Nevilledog for posting this. I posted Nate's tweet on Facebook and will keep reminding people as I can. I am fortunate to live in Colorado which is a vote by mail state. As soon as I receive my ballot (by mid-October), I will fill it out and take it directly to the Clerk & Recorder's office in Boulder. They, in turn, will confirm that my ballot was received and processed --- usually a quick turnaround.
bucolic_frolic
(44,137 posts)and it's important to put up a good showing on Election Night apparently. After all Trump's whining, it would be amazing if Trump has to plead for more time until his imaginary late surge is counted.
usaf-vet
(6,404 posts).... THE VERY NEXT DAY. 9/22/2020 our 72 year birthday present to her and the country.
Nitram
(23,499 posts)aikoaiko
(34,193 posts)40RatRod
(538 posts)DallasNE
(7,421 posts)It also removes a possible jolt by an October surprise.
They also need to spend some advertising dollars explaining how voters can go online and track where their ballot is in the process but warning it could take a week for the information to get posted.
LAS14
(13,876 posts)Poiuyt
(18,156 posts)Dark n Stormy Knight
(9,812 posts)Which is why SO and I are thinking of taking our Mail In vote ballot in on election day and voting in person.
We really don't want to. We have been staying away from indoor public gatherings as much as possible since the Spring. And Rs are the majority in our township and certainly will be at the polling place this year. No doubt many will be in line without masks. And won't honor physical distancing.
However, because Mail In ballots might not be counted on election day (they are supposed to start counting them, but might not finish), we're concerned about that helping RW shenanigans. Especially regarding declaring Pissolini the winner with mostly R votes being counted first, since more Ds are expected to vote by mail.
PoindexterOglethorpe
(26,007 posts)Some won't even start counting those until the polls close on November 3. Some will start counting them either as they come in or a week or more before November3.
I think the real cluster fucks will be with the states that don't have early voting but will be having lots of mailed in ballots this year. Pennsylvania comes to mind. They may have as many as 3 million mailed in ballots, and as it stands now will not start counting any of them until the morning of November 3. That's a state whose final results will probably take weeks to know.
Upthevibe
(8,256 posts)marble falls
(58,934 posts)cab67
(3,060 posts)First, it feels more important that way. To me, anyway.
Second, I like to make eye contact with the elderly election monitors who walk around or sit sternly near the polling site, sidearms in plain view. I want them to know Im not intimidated.
TomCADem
(17,394 posts)I am not taking any chances. I am not relying on the mail and I am not going to risk standing in line on election day. Thankfully, in California, you can turn in your vote by mail ballots with your Registrar directly.
Algernon Moncrieff
(5,801 posts)...ask voters to take them directly.
That is what we plan to do. Once our ballots show up, we will fill them out and put them in the drop box at the election commission.
C Moon
(12,258 posts)Cha
(299,445 posts)says "IF You Plan to VOTE by Mail Plan Ahead"!!
spooky3
(34,712 posts)saying the same thing. The Dems are already on it, so Nate should be happy about that.
Cha
(299,445 posts)the USPS seems to care.. in spite of the trumPROPAGANDA against Mail in Ballots.
spooky3
(34,712 posts)I hope all is well with you!
sellitman
(11,625 posts)I will double mask up with a shield on top and bring lots of hand cleaner.
spooky3
(34,712 posts)"dots" to stand on while waiting in line, there was plexiglas at each reception booth, and there were barriers between voting booths. And hand sanitizer in several locations. Smooth as silk...
Cha
(299,445 posts)spooky3
(34,712 posts)Things work well in Hawaii!
NYC Liberal
(20,154 posts)I work in retail 8 hours a day, and where I work is very busy (even with social distancing)...so going to a polling place for a fraction of that time really can't be any worse.
MarianJack
(10,237 posts)Up here in Maine early voting starts on 10/5. My wife and son and I are planning to go up and vote that day.
IF my son votes for Dolt45 I will still love him. I'll miss him, but I'll still love him.
#notmypresident
RESIST
WillParkinson
(16,864 posts)Paul will be taking them to work and handing them to the mail carrier tomorrow. Two blue all the way.