By October 20, I’d already cast my vote in November’s special election in Oregon to replace disgraced congressman David Wu (D). Voting took just a few minutes and consumed no gasoline, parking spots or time away from work.
The reason: this election—like every election in Oregon—was strictly vote-by-mail. It’s been like that here for years.
Vote-by-mail is secure, safe, gives people time to consider their ballot, and increases voter turnout. In 2008 more than 80% of registered Oregon voters cast ballots. Since vote-by-mail was adopted, turnout in Oregon is always among the nation’s highest.
Because of those kinds of numbers, the Republican party hates hates HATES vote-by-mail.
In fact, the GOP is generally opposed to anything that makes it easier for folks to vote. After all, there are only so many upper-income people—the natural Republican constituency and, these days, the group that Republicans in Washington cater to. The more people who can vote, the more likely those voters will be, you know … lower-income. Working-class. Poor. Not Republican.
So around the country, Republican-backed initiatives—falsely characterized as aimed at reducing voter fraud–are trying, and in some cases succeeding, at changing voting laws in ways that will suppress voter turnout. Restrictions are being placed on how soon in advance of election day people can cast votes. Several states may require that people present government-issued photo identification in order to vote—tough luck for anyone who doesn’t have a driver’s license, the major form of government-issued ID. Other rules would make voting tougher for college students and anyone else who has moved recently. Officials are even looking at reducing the number of voting locations and voting machines. Remember the scenes in 2008 that looked like some third-world country just beginning an experiment with democracy, of Americans waiting in serpentine lines for hours to exercise their right to vote? That may wind up looking like a practice run for what we’ll see in 2012.
And let’s not even talk about the idiocy of scheduling voting for Tuesdays — a working day for most people — or the complete refusal by the political establishment to consider a two-day voting “day” on the weekend. (The whole idea of registering to vote adds yet another barrier to voting. In Australia, where all eligible voters are automatically registered, folks who don’t vote pay a fine.)
Don’t forget the perennial favorite for politicians who want to disenfranchise whole blocks of Americans: state laws making it illegal for anyone convicted of a felony to vote, even after the individual has served their time and paid their debt to society.
If politicians really want to be sure that a ballots are honestly and legally cast, I have the solution: Make vote-by-mail the nationwide standard. Authorities will have plenty of time to review any questionable ballots and compare signatures with the registration rolls. No threats of mistaken identity; no Dead Men Voting. No intimidation near the polls by people trying to prevent voting, as, sadly and unbelievably, still happens in some parts of the country. In Oregon, the county clerks start authenticating ballots (but not counting votes) as soon as the ballots arrive at their offices, with observers from both parties present to monitor the proceedings. They’ll even give you a call if they have any question about your signature or registration.
The only losers might be television reporters who will lose their standard-issue Election Day background of people waiting at the polls. Democracy definitely wins.
