The race to the presidency between Donald Trump and Joe Biden is tightening and mail-in-ballot is the centre of attention among Republicans and Democrats.
Ahead of the US Presidential election due in November 2020, what has garnered more attention other than Republicans and Democrats is how the voting process will be executed in the virus-laden circumstances. Everyone is concerned about contracting the virus, and hence the common consensus has been in favour of a mechanism that would not delay the process. Contrary to incumbent President Donald Trump’s suggestion to postpone the election, largely everyone including Democrats have suggested to let the elections happen with a cautious approach. And this is where the role of mail-in ballot comes into play.
Though it’s not something new in the US and has been practiced parallelly in the form of absentee voting. But this is the first time that an off-booth option will be relied on holistically instead of just being an alternative. It should be noted that off-booth voting in the US exists in the form of mail-in ballot and absentee-voting, with the two having a thin-line difference.
In absentee voting, voters have to specify a reason to qualify the eligibility criteria while in mail-in voting, there need not be any such specification and one can exercise the right to vote without much ado. More or less, the two are same as both endorse casting votes without visiting the polling booth and ballot boxes are delivered to respective voters.
There is a prior process followed before a ballot box is delivered to a voter. It involves a pre-approved request for ballot boxes. The concerned agency involved in delivery makes it mandatory for voters to request ballot boxes beforehand to avoid delay. Now, had it been pre-Covid times, there would not have been any fuss over Mail-In Vote because this is normal in the US. But since this is Corona times, the fuss is snowballing with each passing day as the Mail-In Vote option has turned out to be a necessity.
So How Are The States Practicing Mail-In Ballots Now?
Mail-in ballot is still not mandated by all states. Each state has different rules and hence, it’s their discretion to decide how thew want to execute the process. The reason that it’s allowed is why there are talks to make constitutional changes for accommodating the practice in the states not used to it. The Washington Post reported that due to ongoing pandemic, there will be more people voting via absentee mail-in rather than in person. Of the 50 states, 32 have already allowed people to vote via mail-in ballot. It’s anticipated that a total of 190 million eligible voters would be casting ballot by mail this election.
Statistically, there has been a surge when it comes to mail-in ballot voters in the US. In a report by TOI, about 23.6% voters cast votes using mail-in ballot in 2016 Presidential election, contrary to 2008, when 19.2% population opted for mail-in ballot.
This year the same mechanism is not only seen as an alternative but a permanent exercise to ensure minimal human-to-human interface and more social distancing. But there are major jitters based on concerns over transparency and malpractices, alleged by both Republicans and Democrats. For example, President Trump is apprehensive of a fair practice, especially in states governed by Democrat Governors. He has alleged a higher possibility of ‘rigged’ results with the usage of mail-in ballots.
While Democrats on the other hand, have all huddled to ensure that mail-in ballot is put in place. Their only concern lies with the United States Postal Service that will helm the task to conduct a smooth to-and-fro delivery of ballot boxes. Secondly, the US Opposition is not very happy with postal service’s admission over delays.
Earlier, USPS had said that it ‘may not’ be able to entertain last-minute request for ballot boxes. General Counsel for Postal Service, Thomas J. Marshall in July wrote, “Certain deadlines for requesting and casting mail-in ballots are incongruous with the Postal Services delivery standard”. He urged the residents to send in their application for ballot boxes at least 15-days beforehand instead of four days.
However, to defend USPS’s stance amid the growing disquiet over its efficacy to handle elections, Postmaster General Louis Dejoy asserted that the delivery service was capable and committed to delivering the nation’s election mail securely on time.
Talking about the setbacks of all mail-in voting, there aren’t many as a matter of fact. In fact, it can be argued that this home-delivery of ballot boxes increases voter turnout. The New York Times reported that mail voting allows Americans to exercise the right to vote as fully as possible.
Based on the massive number of Unsolicited & Solicited Ballots that will be sent to potential Voters for the upcoming 2020 Election, & in order for you to MAKE SURE YOUR VOTE COUNTS & IS COUNTED, SIGN & MAIL IN your Ballot as EARLY as possible. On Election Day, or Early Voting,..
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2020
In 2016 Presidential election, nearly one in four voters opted for ballot by mail, therefore increasing voter turnout. States like Colorado saw a jump of 9% in voter turnout via all-mail voting in the same elections. And as far as defraud is concerned, Brennan Centre for Justice at New York University in a report outlined that the there was no evidence to establish that mail-in ballot increases electoral fraud. The Centre added that there were several built-in anti-fraud features that would be detrimental to such practices.
