Washington State votes entirely by mail. We have 70% participation.

[maxsolomon]

Why the rest of America isn't voting this way I cannot fathom.

You have 3 weeks to mail the ballot.
You can turn it in on election day if you don't mail it.
70% of registered voters return their ballots.
No lines at polling places.
No early voting limited hours shenanigans.

19 votes, 0 passes | Time left: Unlimited
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	18 (95%)
	Leave the system in the hands of individual states.
	1 (5%)
	Love it or leave it, Soshlyst!
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[Life Long Dem]

1. Oregon as well

If you look at Oregon polling, it's the closest match to the actual vote you can get. No machines to flip or hack the vote. No computer glitches.

[Tigress DEM]

2. Might make a profit for the Post Office TOO!

[ChazII]

4. Here in AZ

the state picks up the tab. No stamp required to mail in the ballot.

[LisaL]

8. Might make poor people not vote.

[Evergreen Emerald]

14. There are official drop boxes in very convenient places:

police stations, court houses, fire stations, apartment complexes, etc. I never mail mine, but rather drop it off at the main county drop. It is cheaper, and more secure.

But, the cost should not be prohibitive as there are plenty of official places to drop them off.

[ChazII]

3. I vote by mail

but opted for each state to decide for themselves.

[Liberal_in_LA]

5. why don't you have 100% participation?

[maxsolomon]

6. Because we are drunk

and high on medical marijuana.

I assume you are joking.

57% was the turnout nationwide in 2008.
It was a pitiful 37% in 2010, which allowed the tea party takeover of congress.

[Liberal_in_LA]

11. lol.

[uppityperson]

9. People are lazy, forgetful, don't care. Pick any or all per person.

My county is currently at 66%, usually goes over 80

[LisaL]

7. What you have to realize is that both FL and OH already have vote by mail absentee system.

People clearly prefer to vote in person.
Switching to mail in will be a disaster in some states.

[Nye Bevan]

10. Which states?

No lines, fill out ballot at your leisure, what's not to love? I do it every election in CT (they mail you an absentee ballot if you say you plan to be out of town on election day. But plans can change).

[LisaL]

12. Both FL and OH have absentee by mail voting.

In fact every registered voter in OH was send an application. Clearly people prefer to vote in person.

[ancianita]

13. If the USPS is now privatized, is mail tampering as a federal offense no longer applicable?

That's an important consideration in 'cleaning up' the viability of vote counts, no?

[TPaine7]

16. Drop it in a mailbox in the most expensive neighborbood.

It should be safe, provided there's no return address written.

[Upton]

15. I think it's great..

We received our ballots around the 20th, sat around talked and voted at our leisure. I took the ballots to a drop box next time I went into town..

My particular county in Washington state has been voting by mail since the 90's..I see no downside to it at all..

[bigwillq]

17. I like to vote in person on Election Day

but not against giving folks several voting options.

[pscot]

18. Rachel was showing long, long lines of people waiting to vote

This is so wrong; so unnecessary. And it's by design. The Rich and their thinktanks don't like Democracy. It doesn't have to be this way. Washington and Oregon prove that. It's an experiment that works and should be adapted all over the country.

[cmf]

19. I was listening about the stuff going down in Florida

And it reminded me how lucky we are to have vote by mail. I've lived here since late 2000 (after the election), and I've never cast my ballot in a polling place in WA. At first I missed the whole act of going to a polling place, but I really appreciate how nice it is to sit down with my ballot, a cup of tea, and vote on my own pace and mail it in on my own time. It's a much cleaner and fairer way to go. Unfortunately the reason more states don't do it is because they don't actually want to increase participation.