Vote-by-Mail and the 2020 Election | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
News

Vote-by-Mail and the 2020 Election

A quick overview of the importance of vote-by-mail in the U.S. and how Trump's sabotage of the USPS is already compromising the integrity of the upcoming election

32
Vote-by-Mail and the 2020 Election

In a rather candid interview with Fox News earlier this week, President Donald Trump expressed his revulsion toward the twenty-five-billion-dollar funding request needed to save the United States Postal Service, arguing that universal mail-in voting will lead to voter fraud in the upcoming presidential election. Several of the President's tweets have supported his uninformed point of view; he has suggested that "the honorable thing to do is drop the Mail-In Scam before it is too late," thus perpetuating the false claim that mail-in voting is unreliable and ineffective, despite being the primary mode of voting in states such as Oregon, California, and Colorado, according to the MIT Election Data + Science Lab.

As a nation currently in the midst of navigating an unprecedented global pandemic, it is important to understand how vote-by-mail affects our elections and the harm that will befall our country if President Trump succeeds in blocking its funding.

Since 1998, Oregon has issued all its voting ballots by mail, allowing voters the option to either return their ballots by mail or to return them in person. States such as California and Colorado have also boasted large numbers of mail-in voters in more recent years. Of course, one cannot argue the possibility of voter fraud when ballots are not cast in person on a given election day. However, it has actually been proven to increase voter turnout, since "it does a good job of retaining existing voters," according to a study done by Adam J. Berinsky, Nancy Burns, and Michael W. Traugott. To further disprove false claims of widespread vote-by-mail voter fraud, the MIT Election Data and Science Lab revealed that there have only been 143 cases of voter fraud related to voting by mail in the last twenty years, despite more than 250 million ballots cast.

Trump is wrong in saying that voting by mail perpetuates voter fraud – it is instead a vehicle that allows citizens to exercise their right to vote from the comfort and safety of their own homes. This kind of innovation is incredibly important in times like these, when immuno-compromised Americans are potentially risking their lives just to cast an in-person ballot. To de-fund the United States Postal Service is, simply put, to silence the voices of millions of Americans.

If the USPS does not receive the stimulus it needs from Congress, millions of Americans will be left without a voice. Already, mailboxes across the nation are being removed or locked up. It is interesting to note, however, that all three of the aforementioned states that rely most heavily on mail-in voting (Oregon, California, and Colorado) are, in the last twenty or so years, predominantly left-leaning ("blue" states). Does this mean that Trump is specifically targeting those states in which he has less reach in an attempt to influence this year's presidential election?

It is more than likely.

Donald Trump is threatening our country's democracy. He is blatantly targeting a proven method of voting, thus putting the welfare of all Americans on the line. Please, vote wisely in November, and if you are planning on voting by mail, be sure to cast your ballot with time to spare.


Sources:

https://electionlab.mit.edu/research/voting-mail-and-absentee-voting

https://watermark.silverchair.com/650178.pdf?token=AQECAHi208BE49Ooan9kkhW_Ercy7Dm3ZL_9Cf3qfKAc485ysgAAAq0wggKpBgkqhkiG9w0BBwagggKaMIIClgIBADCCAo8GCSqGSIb3DQEHATAeBglghkgBZQMEAS4wEQQM8RZBZvqcN7TwlNVzAgEQgIICYEvrAaxT5YI80gt2L0hO4i0njL6c2vhuJ-pfoVJJRXU6cAmp5EAulesbrnS7gNRZIlqBgiTNlQ5eu17yWVU1UQKKixTTo7KXPzxFf6_jfcN8_bqc9duModnWI5IyOo9k-eysXRvTcK_fjTZnsrEUXt8cBLu0qELDzAeU_gHMC1EYIN8T5hR9kfKqPUCe3dOBa4xKJMXkdWUZnkJcRh4N-R8vZCMkih8xK4KDQUwNKqs9lD-R8Uy-17RZzsFYjqVuxzOHRIcfC83W4JkAbaUrbFH0PD9pAOiQZ8d7352t8w6iBi8D16lROEPtoVYfA0h7CDcIdzZ5fn3P2RjnVNPB2e5nQuSiEcKO44s8bRMX-sFumxOBmG-KgsgDMVclX9a6mnVaaQkCYPdXpa5f8EuSGEmBZbF_o31_baJjkG-pc-bWcZDsg6jqaCIZOPWqfEe9vdmtdVt6VCXcTgi63uz3VGABUvYxk8ugyDyrC8rDdQD3fpAA98ky5gI0OvxrXHzQ0pHRtV3WCCn5SX2TiUrL7si6FjG6bcsaPYbnfpp6-oEn2rHuIg9ZkM875-31Jnj9gyPvxejNEzUjG4RCJkTTtZ-DapElpXi4trA8VDLsbKW60UF1pRkfcgOPq-TqkJGdf8XBQ6VCj89ff4UOH7q8cp1_PdrohoygPG0m3iMkKqbqe7R0uBmDTAdH_zQ06pMEtNZAtE5y9aiR3oW6j5T1sRlQo5QiQ3csH_P0M9awFe54QLRUGPYSke7cHDvYic2BPeVcQTKEsiqd-9iwGUkAxM6Dsx7lBR_Z5lQddnXCZEvH

https://www.npr.org/2020/06/04/864899178/why-is-voting-by-mail-suddenly-controversial-heres-what-you-need-to-know#fraud

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Health and Wellness

5 Ways To Bring Positivity Into Your Life When All You Want To Do Is Drown In Self-Pity

It seems like life has been serving up more bad than good and in all honesty, the only thing you want to do is crawl under your covers and hide from the rest of the world.

1207
5 Ways To Bring Positivity Into Your Life When All You Want To Do Is Drown In Self-Pity
Photo by Kinga Howard on Unsplash

The first two weeks of classes have come to an end and they have been anything BUT easy. It seems like life has been serving up more bad than good and in all honesty, the only thing you want to do is crawl under your covers and hide from the rest of the world.

Although this seems like the best solution, it is also the easy way out. Take it from the girl who took basically a whole week off from her life because she just could not handle everything that was being thrown at her. This caused her to feel extremely lonely and even more stressed out for being behind in classes that JUST began.

Keep Reading...Show less
friends

1. Thank you for being my person.

2. Thank you for knowing me better than I know myself sometimes.

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

11 Things We Learned From Brooke Davis

"What's more important? What we become or how we become it?"

643
Brooke Davis

"She was fiercely independent, Brooke Davis. Brilliant, and beautiful, and brave. In two years she had grown more than anyone I had ever known. Brooke Davis is going to change the world someday, and I'm not sure she even knows it." - Lucas Scott, An Unkindness of Ravens

Brooke Davis of the hit show One Tree Hill was the it girl - she had it all, or so we thought. She started out as a stuck-up, shallow, spoiled, head cheerleader who didn't have her life together. She slept around a lot and loved to party - sounds like your typical high school teenager right? Wrong. B. Davis had so much more to offer. Caring, loyal, and outspoken, she has taught us some valuable lessons throughout the 9 seasons that OTH was on the air:

Keep Reading...Show less
Honorary Roommate
Rachel Zadeits

For some of us, coming to college was the first time we ever had to share a room. It was a big change, but a fun one. As you meet more and more people over the course of your college career, it seems to be a pattern that you will at some point have that one friend that doesn't live with you, but acts like they do. We call those people, "Honorary Roommates" and here are 11 signs you have one in your life.

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons Why It's Awesome When Your Best Friend Gets New Friends

She may not be with you 24/7 but it's all good because you're soul sisters.

2495
super friends
Gabi Morales

We all have a person, and when that person makes some new friends, we tend to forget all the great things that can come out of it. Never forget how special they are to you and why you are best friends.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments