As I See It
Why have they made voting such a process?
Casting a ballot used to be so simple. Now we have to jump through hoops to exercise our democratic right. In Wisconsin, absentee ballot drop boxes have been ruled legal by the Supreme Court, but many municipalities, including La Crosse, have failed to return the drop boxes for the upcoming election. Other communities have returned their drop boxes, but in Wausau the mayor literally pulled it from the ground. In Dodge County, the sheriff was able to bully the clerk to remove the drop box. They tell us we can put our ballots in the mail, but I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the mail hasn’t exactly been timely lately. A card mailed from Madison one week ago today still hasn’t arrived in La Crosse. The Postal Service says it is ready to handle the surge in ballots, but there are plenty of skeptics. And the Postal Service itself admits that nationally the mail has gotten slower. In fact, only 70% of first-class mail sent in Wisconsin over the last three months was on time. Only Georgia had a lower on-time rate. Plus, the rules have gotten silly. I can serve as a witness to my wife’s absentee ballot, but the rules prohibit me from physically handing my and her ballot to the clerk, or even to put it in the mailbox. I’m not sure what problems all this is supposed to solve, but I have trouble believing that all these changes actually do anything to improve election security.
Roy
October 14, 2024 at 7:05 am
I’m on the daily Post Office email alert that tells me what mail addressed to me has been processed at the Twin Cities Regional office and will be delivered that day. I can tell you for a fact that it all doesn’t get to me and a few pieces arrive way after the email says it’s on the way. When I inquire about it at the local office, no one knows anything. One windy day, my carrier lost a Menard’s rebate check in a wind gust and it blew down the street with him ignoring it and getting back in his truck. I drove 2 blocks and found the parcel in some brush.
Given these, along with the examples you’ve given, and many other reasons, is it any wonder that voters are a bit suspicious about mail-in votes?. All the voting problems you’ve listed would be solved with a return to election-day-only voting. Requiring absentee ballots to be picked up at the clerk’s office with a declaration on why you can’t vote in-person would further tighten the “looseness” of the current requirements.