Voting by mail isn't safe?

[kentuck]

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EaeYFNDU8AAqJxH?format=jpg

[csziggy]

1. I'm not worried about the mail part - I am worried about what election officials will do

Right now I feel as though the Supervisor of Elections in my county is honest and will count every legal vote - but I do NOT trust Republican supervisors in other counties in Florida or election officials in other states (think Georgia) to count received ballots honestly or to keep them safe.

There is a long history of absentee ballots being disqualified with no notice to the voters. In Florida, prior to 2000, absentee ballots were routinely not counted at all unless a race was close enough that the number of received ballots could make a difference - which in most cases meant that absentee ballots were never counted.

Of course if we can't trust our election officials, then any form of voting cannot be considered secure and there is no solution.

[kentuck]

2. Do election officials have no role if you vote at your polling place?

Usually, if someone wants to do something criminal, they can find a way.

[csziggy]

3. When I vote at a polling place, I know immediately if my signature will be accepted

Since I vote early, they print my ballot and give it to me in a folder. No one touches it other than the voter after that - I fill it out and insert it into the scanner. If I screwed up (missed voting a race or voted twice, for instance) the scanner immediately kicks it so I can correct it. Once the scanner sucks it in and keeps it, I know it is secure.

The only worry about voting in person is that it is possible to hack the scanners. The former Supervisor of Elections was shown how that can be done with the Hursti Hack in the documentary Hacking Democracy. In order to prevent that he instituted severe security around the scanners and the entire voting process.

Since Republicans control the state government, that leaves the tabulation of the state's totals by the Division of Elections as the last questionable part of elections. The only way I can control that is to vote Democratic every time in every race.