2020 Presidential Election

[Sunsilver]

Not just sorting machines, either. I have seen several posts on FB that say MAILBOXES are being removed, too!
And the reports are coming from more than one area of the country.

https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/verif ... ojhlvgl2wg

Snopes is downplaying it, though: https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/usps- ... capWzXwO4k

Edit: here's a Reuters article that gives more information about what is actually going on: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa- ... 5o-7seojfo

[elengil]

https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/16/politics ... index.html

Given the crisis facing the United States Postal Service before a presidential election, the last thing John Herter expected to receive in the mail Saturday was an absentee ballot request form with President Donald Trump's face on it.

"Is this a joke?" Herter said his wife told him as she opened up the mailer to reveal a photo of Trump grinning underneath the words, "Are you going to let the Democrats silence you? Act now to stand with President Trump."

[River]

You don't understand, el. Absentee voting,where registered voters opt to receive their ballots in the mail and return them via mail or drop off is absolutely fine. It's that new-fangled mail-in thing where all registered voters get ballots in the mail by default and return them via mail or drop off that's the root of all evil because Trump says so.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

It's more than just the hypocrisy of supporting absentee voting but not mail-in voting. It is the utter inappropriateness of an ballot request form with the image of one of the candidates, and the message that he is "counting on you".

[RoseMorninStar]

But are we surprised? No, of course not. He has no sense of decency or appropriateness. He's a con man. Con men do not play by the rules.

[Dave_LF]

But if there's no danger of fraud with mail-in voting, then why is anyone concerned about Trump committing mail fraud? This is the trap he's trying to maneuver Democrats into, and they're demonstrating their usual lack of street-smarts by walking right into it.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

People aren't worried about Trump committing mail voting fraud. People are worried about Trump committing mail voting suppression. For a while that has the been the conflicting narratives. Republicans use the false claims of rampant voting fraud in order to suppress the votes of primarily Democratic voters. Nothing new here, just more extreme.

[Cerin]

The danger of universal mail-in voting, as I see it, is that it will guarantee no result -- perhaps even until after the day constitutionally mandated for transfer of power. Given the volatile state the country is in, I believe we need a result on election night. My preference would be to keep everything as it was -- mostly in person voting, normal volume of absentee ballots, states that are used to voting by mail continue to do so. Otherwise, I truly fear the demise of the country.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

The danger of universal mail-in voting, as I see it, is that it will guarantee no result

This would only be true if the postal service is unable to handle the influx of voting by mail caused by the pandemic. So the answer to that is to shore up the postal service, not to emasculate it further to make that it can't handle the increase.

[River]

My state does mail-in voting. Ballots must arrive at the clerk's office on Election Day before the polls close. A drop-dead date for putting the ballot in the mail is published. After that date, voters are encouraged to use drop boxes that are positioned outside public buildings. The one I like to use is right outside the local police station (which is also a polling place). The thing is a permanent fixture and looks like it could withstand a tank. If this is how other states implement their mail-in voting I'm not sure where this "we'll never know the results!" stuff is coming from.

[Inanna]

Well, NY took ages to give the primary results.

[elengil]

My state does mail-in voting. Ballots must arrive at the clerk's office on Election Day before the polls close. A drop-dead date for putting the ballot in the mail is published. After that date, voters are encouraged to use drop boxes that are positioned outside public buildings. The one I like to use is right outside the local police station (which is also a polling place). The thing is a permanent fixture and looks like it could withstand a tank. If this is how other states implement their mail-in voting I'm not sure where this "we'll never know the results!" stuff is coming from.

In 2016 the dropbox I used was so stuffed we had to actually force the ballot in and I suppose it might have been easy for someone to start pulling ballots out if they actually wanted, but it was in front of the city building so I'm sure any attempt would have been seen.

As for counting,
I don't see why mail-in ballots would be any harder to count than any other paper ballot would be. Harder to tamper with than electronic - none of that "I choose this person but the ballot registered the other person" stuff. The only thing needed is for the states to step up and put the process in place to get it done. As some states can do 100% of voting by mail it isn't the vote-by-mail that is fundamentally the issue.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I don't see why mail-in ballots would be any harder to count than any other paper ballot would be.

Exactly. They are not. Nor are they any harder to tamper with, since they require a signature that must be matched with the registration signature (at least in California, and I assume other state implement similar policies. As I think will be made clear when a hearing is held in that Pennsylvania case in late September, there simply isn't any evidence at all to support the claim that mail in voting causing election fraud. The only way that mail in voting can be a problem is if the postal service can't handle it. And the ones that are most complaining about mail in voting or the ones that are making sure that the postal service can't handle it.

[elengil]

I don't see why mail-in ballots would be any harder to count than any other paper ballot would be.

Nor are they any harder to tamper with, since they require a signature that must be matched with the registration signature .

Nor are they any easier to tamper with? lol

But can confirm, several years ago I had to come in and resign my voter registration card because my 'current' signature didn't match the one I had like what 20 years ago? So they do check, and my vote was held up because of it.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Easier, harder, its all the same. (I constantly amaze myself at the bizarre forms that my dyslexia takes.)

And since I just saw this on Facebook:

[elengil]

[Frelga]

If this is how other states implement their mail-in voting I'm not sure where this "we'll never know the results!" stuff is coming from.

Oh, I'm pretty sure we know where this stuff is coming from.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

My state does mail-in voting. Ballots must arrive at the clerk's office on Election Day before the polls close. A drop-dead date for putting the ballot in the mail is published. After that date, voters are encouraged to use drop boxes that are positioned outside public buildings. The one I like to use is right outside the local police station (which is also a polling place). The thing is a permanent fixture and looks like it could withstand a tank. If this is how other states implement their mail-in voting I'm not sure where this "we'll never know the results!" stuff is coming from.

California allows mail-in ballots postmarked up to election day.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Former senior Trump administration official endorses Joe Biden

In all my years of closely following presidential politics (more than 40), I don't recall ever seeing a senior official who worked in an incumbent's administration explicitly endorse his general election opponent.

[Frelga]

https://twitter.com/feliciasonmez/statu ... 81956?s=19

Another one for "why have any threads other than the WTF thread in Lasto"

The St. Louis couple who became famous after wielding guns at protesters will be part of next week's Republican National Convention, @jdawsey1 reports: