Jenny Durkan for USA TODAY: Voting by mail protects our democracy and our families
JENNY DURKAN, CONTRIBUTOR, USA TODAY
Despite the many misleading, unfounded, and conspiratorial claims about voting by mail in the first presidential debate and by Attorney General Bill Barr, we know that voting by mail will protect our democracy and keep more families safe during an unprecedented public health crisis.
The United States has always held elections and upheld the results, even in times of great crisis like 2020. We held successful presidential elections amid the Civil War, the Great Depression, and both world wars.
This year, more Americans will vote by mail than ever before, and during COVID-19, one of the best ways to vote safely is by using a mail ballot. We know we can do this because we’ve actually been doing it for years in every part of the country. Several states — including in places like Washington, Utah, and Oregon — have been all vote-by-mail for many years. In other states, like Florida and Arizona, many voters already get their absentee ballots by mail. In fact, members of our military serving overseas have cast legal ballots. And yes, our country has repeatedly counted Donald Trump’s ballots by mail.
It is common: about one-quarter of all votes cast in 2016 were mailed in. And, this year, it will be a critical and convenient option to vote safely and securely for nearly 75% of all Americans. 44 million voters will have ballots directly mailed to them, and now, 118 million other voters can absentee vote. That’s key: safe for you and secure for democracy.
States have extra security protocols for mail-in ballots such as unique bar codes, signature verification, audits, secure drop boxes if you want to hand-delivery your paper ballot, and, important for you, a tracking system that lets you see when your ballot was mailed to you, whether it has been received after you send it back, whether your signature has been verified, and that it is in the queue for counting.
Sure, we hear a lot of bluster from the president and attorney general who are trying to undermine the United States Postal Service (yes, the same USPS that delivers Social Security checks, tax refunds, new credit cards and life-saving medicine).
As former Department of Justice officials, it was our responsibility to protect the right to vote, and we cannot allow the country’s law enforcement official and president spread misinformation about a process that will actually keep more Americans safe during the time of COVID-19.
No politician — no president — gets to decide who gets to vote or which votes get counted. The ugly truth is that Donald Trump is losing and the only way he can stay in power is to cast doubt on voting.
We know if more Americans vote — Donald Trump will lose. He will not win if every legally cast ballot is counted.
The best way to counter his attempts at chaos and disruption: cast your ballot early and track it on your state’s official election website to make sure it has been received, verified and counted.
Voting by mail means we may not see final results for a few days, but we will be counting a historic number of ballots in an election if you get your friends and family to vote — and vote early if possible. And just like always, the election is not over or valid until we count all the votes.
Even in times of crisis, we continued to vote on behalf of the generations of Americans who have struggled and even died to get the right to vote from soldiers to women's suffragists to Civil Rights leaders.
At the time many of us are questioning our president and the future of our country, never has been a more important time to vote and believe in the power of our democracy. And demand that every single vote is counted.
We must stand up for our hard-won rights by voting in this year's election. Democracy will work.
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