Boston Globe: In R.I., new pattern of voting methods taking shape
Boston Globe: In R.I., new pattern of voting methods taking shape
PROVIDENCE — As Rhode Islanders head to the polls today, they are beginning to settle into a new pattern of voting that mixes mail ballots and early voting with the tradition of showing up at the polls on election day.
Before the polls opened this morning, nearly 28,000 residents had already voted with mail ballots or in early voting, representing a turnout of 3.5 percent.
Far fewer people are using mail ballots and early voting than in 2020, when the pandemic was surging. In the 2020 general election, 39 percent of voters cast their ballots on Election Day, while 33 percent used mail ballots, and 29 percent voted early. And in the 2020 primaries, 51 percent of voters cast their ballots on election day, while 41 percent used mail ballots, and 8 percent used early voting, according to the secretary of state’s office. …
John M. Marion, executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island, said the state will need a few election cycles to gauge what the new permanent voting pattern will be, but this year is bound to see an increased percentage of voters casting ballots by mail and early voting as compared to pre-pandemic levels.
“In 2020, tens of thousands of people tried voting early or by mail for the first time and many of them liked it,” Marion said. “And that is what we have seen in other states: As you make voting more convenient and provide other forms of voting, people take advantage of the opportunity.”