HuffPost: A Fight In Critical States Over Mail-In Ballot Deadlines Could Decide The Presidential Election
HuffPost: A Fight In Critical States Over Mail-In Ballot Deadlines Could Decide The Presidential Election
An unprecedented number of Americans are expected to vote by mail this year. And many of them could face a problem, even if they think they’re doing everything right: They could fill out a ballot before Election Day, place it in the mail and, thanks to mail delays or receipt deadlines, wind up not having their vote counted at all.
Most states don’t count ballots unless they arrive by Election Day, meaning that voters have a shorter window to mail their vote, and any mail delays could render it ineligible. Other states count ballots that were postmarked by Election Day, so long as they arrive within a certain number of days. A majority of voters live in the latter category, since some of those states have large populations, but Arizona, Florida, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin ― the latter three having swung the Electoral College vote in President Donald Trump’s favor in 2016 ― all count votes only if they are received by Election Day.
Now, Democratic officials in several states that require ballots to arrive by Election Day are rushing to fix this as they prepare for an influx given voters staying home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Republicans ― urged on by President Donald Trump and the national GOP ― are attempting to block measures that would ensure all votes are counted.
The need for these changes became clear as mail delivery slowed dramatically due to changes instituted by the new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, who was appointed to the position after making major political donations to support Trump. After DeJoy’s appointment, the Postal Service warned 46 states in August that it may not be able to deliver all mailed ballots on time in November.
Ultimately this fight could decide the presidential election. Each of the Rust Belt states that just barely swung for Trump in 2016 has a strict Election Day receipt deadline and face lawsuits to change that. …
“Allowing voters to vote [absentee] on Election Day and having their ballots count is just another way to increase the number of people who can be involved in the process, really, at any time, but particularly in the uncertainty of this year,” said Sylvia Albert, director of voting and elections at the nonpartisan nonprofit Common Cause. …
The states that already accept ballots postmarked by Election Day and received in the days afterwards are of every partisan color.
“There isn’t a rhyme or reason [for which states accept post-election ballots],” Albert said.
They include traditionally Republican-leaning states like Alaska, Kansas, North Dakota, Mississippi, Texas, Utah and West Virginia; Democratic-leaning states like California, District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, New York, Virginia and Washington; and swing states like Iowa, North Carolina and Ohio. …