Vote 2020

​Here it is the third week of July, and it is ramping up to be the summer of our collective discontent. We are in the midst of a worldwide pandemic, the economy is in a shambles, protests against police injustice occur nightly, civil war monuments are being toppled, and dozens of our citizens were killed by firearms over the 4th of July weekend. The citizenry of this country should be discontented, if not downright outraged. Contentment leads to complacency, and this is not a time to be complacent. Black Lives Matter was considered by some to be a fringe radical group when it started in 2013. Today it is an international movement with support from people of all races. It is an example of a group of people getting together in common cause, and raising awareness of racial injustice right here in the United States. I think that their cause is catching fire, and will finally lead to some positive changes. But what about the rest of us? How can we make a difference? The answer my friends is at the ballet box!  The presidential general election will be held on November 3, 2020, and several state primaries are being held in the months leading up to November. You can find a state by state election calendar compiled by the Washington Post at (https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/calendar-2020/) .

Voting is a fundamental right of every U.S. citizen 18 years of age and older. The free exercise of this right is one of the most effective ways to let your voice be heard and to affect change. There are laws that make voting mandatory in approximately 22 countries, but not here in the United States. No one can force you to vote. But if citizens are complacent and don’t vote, how will change be made? If you are not motivated to vote, I have listed a few things that you may want to consider.

​Reasons to Vote:

• Preservation of Democracy: Apathy and indifference play into the hands of despotic leaders, and weakens democracy. The fewer people who vote, the more power accrues to the few at the top.  Voting is the most effective tool that citizens of a free society have to prevent injustice, tyranny, and despotism. When the right to vote is denied or restricted, then all power is ceded to the state. Look at China, which has a one-party system. Xi Jinping is the President of the People’s Republic of China and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China. In 2018 the Chinese constitution was amended, removing term limits for the president. Xi is now an autocrat, and what he says goes. Is there any wonder that the Chinese government recently imposed new security laws on Hong Kong, minimizing the island’s autonomy and restricting the rights of its citizens?  Another example of a country where free and fair elections are questionable at best, is Vladimir Putin’s Russia. Putin recently pushed through constitutional amendments which virtually guarantee his presidency for life. Autocracies are never good for the rights of the citizens.

 

• Local Elections Matter: Believe it or not, we are still in primary season. But for all intends and purposes, the presidential candidates for the major political parties are already locked in. This may keep many voters away from the polls in those states with late primaries. I get it! I live in California, where until recently, held its primary elections in June. This usually meant that my vote for presidential nominee was irrelevant. But it is a mistake not to vote in the primaries. Primary elections often pick local candidates, and decide local issues that impact your daily life much more than any national election could. What happens at the city, county, and state levels of government has a real impact on your family, community, and your wallet. Local elections choose school boards, city councils, mayors, county supervisors, judges, sheriffs, DAs, state legislators, governors, and others. I would venture a guess that most of us pay more in state and local taxes (and fees) than we do in federal taxes. At the federal level, you may pay income and payroll taxes, excise taxes on some fuels and alcohol, as well as fees on some utility bills. But at the local level, you pay sales taxes, gasoline taxes, transient occupancy taxes, vehicle taxes, tolls, property taxes, interest from bond measures, utility fees, income taxes, etc. Most of these are determined through ballet initiatives, or by elected officials. Perhaps even more important than how much is collected, is how the money is apportioned. How tax money is spent in your community on such things as schools, roads, public health, public safety, parks, green spaces and other community services, has a big impact on your quality of life. Recently, the elected sheriff in my county took it upon himself to refuse to enforce any pandemic related regulation that he disagreed with. I guess he didn’t read his job description! When law enforcement can pick and choose the laws to be enforced, the rule of law is jeopardized. Guess who I won’t be voting for sheriff in the next election cycle?

 

• Down Ballet Candidates Matter: Even if none of the presidential candidates are to your liking, there is more to November’s election than the presidency. The control of congress is up for grabs, and the stakes are high. The Democrats should easily hold on to their majority in the House of Representatives, but the Senate is very much in play. If the Democrats hold on to all of their Senate seats, they just need to pick up 3 more seats to win back the majority. More likely the Democrats will need 4 or 5 new seats. With the Republicans vulnerable in at least 6 states, this is very much doable. The Cook Political Report has a good perspective on how the 2020 Senate races are shaping up ( https://cookpolitical.com/ratings/senate-race-ratings).

 

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• Be a Part of History: Today, many of us take our right to vote for granted. But those who came before us fought long and hard to win the rights that we enjoy today. 2020 is the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, giving women the right to vote. The least we can do to recognize this major achievement for women, is to vote. Vote to commemorate the achievement of all the brave women, and other marginalized people, who fought so that we wouldn’t have to. For further information on the history of voting in the United States, I refer you to  a report written by the Carnegie Corporation entitled “Voting Rights: A Short History”(https://www.carnegie.org/topics/topic-articles/voting-rights-timeline/).

 

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Voting During the Pandemic: The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted just about every aspect of our lives. To top it off we are faced with a national election. How do we do it safely during a time of self -quarantines, social distancing, and enhanced sanitation procedures? We don’t know if the virus will still be with us in November. But we can’t sit idle and wait to find out. We do have some experience with voting during this pandemic, and it wasn’t pretty! During this primary season we have all read and seen news reports of people waiting in long lines, under extreme conditions, to vote. Voters in Wisconsin stood in lines for hours in the frigid cold, to exercise their right to vote this past April. More recently the good people of Georgia endured long waits, in scorching heat, to vote in their primary. Why did this happen? Election officials blame it mostly on the pandemic. Many of the poll workers are volunteers, who were frankly too frightened to work the polls. Those who did work were provided too little, or inadequate training, due to distancing and sanitation rules. Fewer poll workers lead to consolidation of polling places, compounding an already bad situation. Is this what we can expect in the November election? I hope not, and it doesn’t have to be.
According to an April survey by the PEW Research Center, 70% of voters surveyed were in favor of voting by mail (https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2020/06/24/as-states-move-to-expand-the-practice-relatively-few-americans-have-voted-by-mail/).
In federal elections, you are not allowed to vote online. For most Americans, the only way you can vote without going in-person to a polling place, is to use an absentee ballet. This is not the same as vote-by-mail, which is allowed in 5 states. Let’s look at these two forms of voting by mail separately.  

​Absentee Voting: Every state offers mail-in absentee voting. But every state’s election rules are different, and some may have changed due to the ongoing pandemic. Here is a link for the specific rules for each state (https://www.usa.gov/election-office).
In May, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order making all registered voters in the state automatically eligible to vote in the November 3, 2020 general election by mail. Accordingly, all registered voters in California will receive a vote-by-mail ballot in the mail prior to the election. If you live in California, make sure that Registrar of Voters has your current address. I live in California and am registered as a permanent vote-by-mail voter. I have not stepped foot into a polling place in over 20 years, and have never failed to vote in an election. Both President Trump and Vice-President Pence vote in their respective states via absentee ballot, why don’t you?
   
Vote-by-Mail: Currently 5 states conduct all-mail elections. They are Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and Utah. Many states will choose to increase vote-by-mail by simply registering more voters to vote absentee. So why don’t we just have everyone vote by mail during the pandemic? Not so fast! The President and the Republicans are against expanding voting by mail. They claim that vote-by-mail increases voter fraud, and helps the Democrats. On April 8th Donald Trump tweeted out “Republicans should fight very hard when it comes to state wide mail-in voting. Democrats are clamoring for it. Tremendous potential for voter fraud, and for whatever reason, doesn’t work well for Republicans.” In a recent interview with Fox News' Chris Wallace, President Trump stated "I think mail-in voting is going to rig the election, I really do." However, a Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research survey published in April, (https://siepr.stanford.edu/research/publications/neutral-partisan-effects-vote-mail-evidence-county-level-roll-outs) found no partisan effect in mail-only elections. The study found that neither the turnout nor the vote share, benefited either political party. The study did find that the overall number of ballots cast had increased. Isn’t that a good thing in a democracy?

Voting by mail is not perfect, and may result in increased costs and delayed election results. But during a pandemic, if we can minimize the number of people who have to vote in person and reduce their risk of infection, then we should do it. We can have a safe and legitimate election if we have the will, and don’t wait too long. 

​Register to Vote: If you are already registered to vote, great! If not, get a move on. Talk with your family and friends, and make sure that they are registered to vote. If you have moved since the last election, you may need to update your voter registration information. To register to vote or to change your voter registration, check with your Registrar of Voters. To find your state or local election office website, follow this link (https://www.usa.gov/election-office).   
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Get registered and vote, it’s not difficult. Most of us now have the choice to vote in-person or via mail, so safety should not be a deterrent. Be a part of history, and let your voice be part of the conversation within your community and within this country.  Elections matter!

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Thanks,
Armchair American
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