Is anyone else reconsidering voting by mail?

[mindfulNJ]

Covid be damned. I think I'm go to the polls in person.

[mucifer]

1. My mail has been sucking for weeks. I'm early voting with a mask and goggles

[mindfulNJ]

3. So scary what is happening with the USPS

I read somewhere that 75% of Biden voters plan to vote by mail and 75% of Trump voters will vote in person. This is why Trump is destroying it.

[Demsrule86]

13. I don't buy that...many GOP types vote by mail.

[LisaL]

29. In OH, republicans certainly vote by mail.

And in Fl, I am pretty sure more Republicans vote by mail than Democrats. Maybe that's why Trump is claiming that mail in vote in Fl is all good. But if he destroys USPS, how will those republicans vote?

[Demsrule86]

34. I live in Ohio...you are correct. And we only had one drop off bin for votes during the primaries

too and it was fine. I live in Cleveland.

[LisaL]

36. I just voted by mail in OH primary.

Well, I had no other choice, since the in-person primary was cancelled the evening before it was supposed to happen. But that was before Trump really got his tiny little hands into the Post Office. Also turn out in the primary was really low, which I guess is no surprise since in person primary was cancelled.

[Totally Tunsie]

45. Earlier tonight, Ali Veschi on MSNBC was quoting results from an "MULaw Poll in Wisconsin".

These results of this particular poll back up Post #3 by mindfulNJ.

The results:

Of those voting by mail, 81% support Biden and 14% support tRump.

Of those voting in person on 11/3, 67% support tRump and 26% support Biden.

That's a pretty good illustration of why Chump wants to screw with the mail-ins.

[Totally Tunsie]

47. Please see my Post #45 above for back-up of your figures.

[agingdem]

17. Me too..

Ruth Bader Ginsberg mask, wrap-around goggles, disposable gloves, hand sanitizer and I'm good to go...

[msongs]

2. hand delivering completed ballot to polling place - trump apologists wont like it

but even tho we have mail ballots in hawaii by election day the USPS will be so compromised not gonna mail it.

[mindfulNJ]

7. Just saw on Maddow

that Ohio, a swing state with a Republican SOS, has decided that only one drop box per county will be allowed. The fix is in.

[LisaL]

27. OH also has only one early voting location per county.

Which might be fine for a small rural county, but not so much for a large urban county.

[mitch96]

22. " hand delivering completed ballot to polling place"

That is EXACTLY what I did for my recent local election. I got a mail in ballot. Filled it out and drove the 20 min down to the supervisor of elections office. This is the location where they count the ballots. They had a large ballot box out side and it had a big ol lock on it. A polling volunteer checked the envelope to make sure I signed it. Popped it in the box and I was on my way. Easy peasy. That was the other day. Today I checked the election web site and it said my ballot was logged in and my vote was counted. The envelopes have bar codes on them. So the system worked as intended. Few people to interact with and no touching.
This was my dry run for Nov 3. This is too important of an election to mess around with..
m

[LisaL]

25. You still have to get the ballot mailed to you.

[Cuthbert Allgood]

35. Yup. That's what I did with my primary ballot.

They got it to me about 3 weeks ahead of time and already signed up to get the November ballot. If I don't get it, I'll vote in person, but, otherwise, I'll drop it off at City Hall ahead of the election.

[Squinch]

4. I'll be voting in person. I grocery shop, I get take-out. Voting is a lot more important

and worth the risk to me.

[Blue_true]

28. I made the decision two months ago to vote in person.

My last 2 votes were by mail, a special election and a primary and State Judge election. But I requested that a mailin ballot not be sent for the November election. If they send me one by mistake, I plan to take it with me when I early vote, ask for an in person ballot and have the county elections staffer tear up the mailin ballot.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

5. Nope. I'm going to hand-deliver my ballot.

In my state you can use UPS or FedEx as well as USPS, but the voter center is convenient enough that I'll just take it there.

[herding cats]

6. Texas here.

I don't have a choice.

If you choose to vote in person, and you have the option to vote early, use it. I have been an election judge, the slowest time was 2-3 on Wed.

Stay safe out there and VOTE!

[mindfulNJ]

10. I will vote if I have to wear a hazmat suit

[herding cats]

19. Good for you!

I'm gonna mask, glove and safety goggles up. It's a political statement. I keep teasing I'm also going to wear my beekeepers hat. 🤣

Thank you for planning to vote!

[spanone]

8. the crime is that many people cannot go in person and trump knows that.

[LisaL]

31. And it's also dangerous to vote in person during a pandemic.

He wants to kill us all.

[Demsrule86]

9. I will early vote if I can...if not, I will mask up and head to the polls...not giving Trump any

help.

[mucifer]

15. What scares me is that none of us know if we could get covid and it could stop us

from early voting and/or voting on election day. It's still my plan over vote by mail.

[broiles]

11. I will vote in person.

This is just too important to leave to chance.

[still_one]

12. i will vote by mail and early. I live in Califirnia where you can check the status of your ballot

[hlthe2b]

14. No, but I will hand-deliver to the county voter office the day after I receive the ballot

Colorado has a good system and I can track that they have both received/counted my vote.

[democrattotheend]

16. I plan on voting in person

In light of everything going on with USPS, and the fact that even absent sabotage, most states are not well set-up to process a huge increase in mail ballots, I figure it makes sense for those of us who are not in the most vulnerable groups health-wise to go to the polls in person and save mail voting for those for whom it's really unsafe to vote in person.

[Blue_true]

30. Exactly. nt

[sheshe2]

18. I will drop mine off at the Town Hall.

Along with my 94 year old mothers. She lives with us and I can't risk being infected. She will most certainly die if I do.

[bluestarone]

20. To me

Hand deliver is the way to go! (if you can that is)

[KentuckyWoman]

21. I *WILL* vote absentee.

However, this year I will hand carry my absentee ballot to the county board of elections drop off. Not everyone is lucky enough to live close enough to the drop.

I've heard ideas to put drop boxes in Fire Stations, public libraries or even outside the polling place on voting day.

[LisaL]

39. Putting more boxes is now forbidden in OH.

Only one per county at the board of elections.

[dawg day]

23. I'm thinking that way too, but it's easier for me.

I live about a mile from the precinct station, and it's seldom very busy. So I think I can bundle up, wear gloves and two masks (that's my new thing-- I figure one mask good, two masks better), wait for a slow time, and go in and out really quick.

But if it sounds like it might be really busy there because there are so few people willing to work the polls, I might reconsider. But I'd have to decide a couple weeks early. In my state, you can check to see if your mail-in ballot has arrived, so maybe I'll check the day before Nov 3 and if it hasn't been received, go to the polls.

Then I think about that woman in Texas who voted a provisional ballot and it turns out because she was on parole, she was "voting illegally" and they put her in prison! So what if I check and my mail ballot hasn't been received even though I mailed it weeks ago, and I go to the poll and vote in person, and they say I tried to vote twice?

Goodness, I hate Trump and all his works. How can anyone support someone who is trying to criminalize voting?

[LisaL]

41. I am pretty sure it would be o'key to vote by provisional ballot and shouldn't result in charges.

At least during normal times.

"After all this however, there still are some anomalies every election. According to Poland, this is usually voters who vote by mail and submit provisional ballots in-person. Every case is investigated individually. It usually results in a voter who mailed in their ballot near the deadline and then also voted in person to ensure that their vote counted; or an elderly who forgot they mailed in a ballot already. In all of these cases, only one ballot is counted and no charges are filed."

https://www.ideastream.org/news/how-mail-in-voting-works-in-ohio-a-step-by-step-guide

[SheltieLover]

24. I'm doing early, in-person

👍

[SiliconValley_Dem]

26. I am in CA, so I will be sending my ballot to county drop box

[UTUSN]

32. Never considered it. Will early-vote in mask & line. Plus, ever since Repukes did Voter Suppression

with their "voter ID" and other gimmicks, I have used my U.S. passport, which W.Shrub/CondoRICE/ColonPOWELL forced on us, to comply with "picture ID." I could easily use the drivers license or whatever, but I choose the most irrefutable and extreme option.

The poll workers in my area aren't that used to passports and usually express surprise or bare familiarity with it. And especially during primaries when the parties are segregated, I relish saying loudly, "Because I feel I'm in a foreign country!1"

[LisaL]

33. I already signed up to vote by mail.

Too late to reconsider. I won't be allowed to vote in person by a regular ballot. If ballot doesn't show up, my only option will be to vote by a provisional ballot.

[frazzled]

42. What state is that?

In most places, as long as you haven’t submitted the ballot, you can vote in person.

[LisaL]

46. Ohio.

[frazzled]

62. In Illinois

If you change your mind, you just bring your mail-in ballot to the early voting site or election-day polling place and surrender it to the election official; they will spoil it and give you a new ballot.

If you lost the ballot or it didn’t arrive, then you’d have to fill out a provisional ballot to vote in person.

[GulfCoast66]

37. I'll vote in person like always.

Mask up and vote the traitor out. I voted in the primary and I was safe enough. Social distancing and a big ass room. Not worried about it.

[hauckeye]

38. Yes!

We voted absentee in the Wisconsin April primary, but I’m going in person in November. My husband still wants to vote absentee though.

[soothsayer]

40. Yeah I was kind of hoping people might be thinking that way

Those who can go, should. Those who can’t or shouldn’t should vote absentee or early.

[Generic Brad]

43. I'll be early voting in person

And on a week day of my choosing.

[Claustrum]

44. Same here.

I voted by mail for the primary. But NY doesn't seem to have any ballot tracking so I didn't know if my vote was received and counted (and that's before the USPO bs that Trump is pulling). It just didn't feel right for me. I am all for voting by mail but every state needs a system to track the ballot so you know your ballot is received and counted. I know a few states like CA and AZ has that system in place but I couldn't find one for NY.

Also, I want my vote to count on election night instead of waiting a week for it to be counted. Though, I am in my 30s and healthy so my risk is much lower with in-person voting.

[Binkie The Clown]

48. We only vote by mail in Oregon. nt

[TheBlackAdder]

49. My NJ county sends a confirmation card with an 'I have Voted by Mail' peel-off sticker attached.

[SharonClark]

50. Absolutely will vote by mail.

I can track the progress of my ballot.

I don’t want to vote in person when there might be too few poll workers to prevent long lines and require consolidated voting sites.

[LisaL]

53. That was my concern as well.

We don't know what covid is going to look like in November, but we might be having another big wave.
Normally voting on election day is not a problem where I live, but who knows this time?
Of course with Trump trying to kill USPS, I have big concerns about mail voting too.
Which should be a safe convenient way to vote during a pandemic.

[Baked Potato]

51. We are voting early, in person.

[Totally Tunsie]

52. I've applied for my mail-in ballot, and most likely will return by mail.

If USPS situation escalates, I can drop it off at the Board of Canvassers Office in my city.

RI has a very good ballot tracking system in place, so I can check to confirm it has been received. We've also gained Early Voting due to COVID precautions, but I think that's out if a mail-in has already been requested. Instructions in that case say to contact the Board, so perhaps they make adjustments if necessary.

[vapor2]

54. A gal with the Idaho postal union

stated that the postal system is NOT BROKEN but you should mail your ballot EARLY!! I live in NV and will drop mine off at a designated drop box. IT is suing our state but he will lose this case and is doing his best to destroy our right to vote. I am also filing a complaint about Louis Dejoy as I do ebay and he's screwing my business.

[jorgevlorgan]

55. I think everybody as much as possible in swing states should early vote.

That is the safest bet at this point. We need the victory on election day
We cannot wait for the ballots to be counted before knowing who won.

[Kamala4TheWin]

56. I never considered voting by mail

But then again I’ve never had to stand in line for hours to vote

[OhioBlue]

57. yes, I had planned to vote by mail-in ballot and hand deliver to BOE

but thinking about receiving the ballot in the mail, the fact that Ohio SOS just stated he will not allow additional drop boxes... I'm worried about 1. delay in receiving ballot and 2. a long line at BOE. Since I live in a small, conservative precinct I think I will vote in person. I doubt the machines will be screwed with since the vote will be majority R and the lines won't be long.

[LisaL]

64. Sounds like a plan.

But boards of election should have a drop off box, so you don't have to wait in line to drop the ballot-I very much doubt there would be long lines to drop absentee ballots into the drop off box-but of course the ballot has to get to you first.

[Luciferous]

58. No because we can drop our ballots off at the clerk's office or in the drop-off box out front.

I did just volunteer to be a poll worker though because fuck Trump and his slimy, dirty, under-handed tactics to try and steal yet another election!!!

[LiberalBrooke]

59. I will not vote by mail this year.

I am convinced that those evil people will do something to keep our votes from getting there. I have done campaign calls promoting voting by mail but just cannot do that now. It is truly sad. The USPS is a service that has always been there. Just another thing Joe and Kamala will have to fix.

[MFM008]

60. WA

Is vote by mail but i put mine in a ballot box at our town library.

[gldstwmn]

61. I drive up to a drop box

at the library by my house. There's no lines, no muss no fuss. It takes less than 5 minutes.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

63. I live in New Mexico, and we have remarkably good early voting here.

Rarely are there lines, and I could start checking it out on day one, and only walk in to vote when there's hardly anyone else there.

Another thing I like about my favorite early voting place is that when someone is voting for the first time, they raise a cheer for that person.

[Crunchy Frog]

65. Yes. We've decided to do early voting instead.

[Vivienne235729]

66. nope. I checked with my county recorder's office and everything should be

going as planned. Normally, I vote by mail. This year, I will walk my ballot down to the office myself if the ballot drop boxes are not available. But I am not mailing it. I will do my part to ease the congestion. If, for some reason, I don't get the ballot, I will be on the phone w the recorder's office immediately. 10/7/20 is when ballots go out and it is on my calendar. Gotta vote EARLY this year. Worse comes to worse, I will be voting down at my polling center. I already have a plan for that too in case it is a mess.

I am not playing around. I am in it to win it. I am gonna vote come hell or high water. And you can bet your sweet ass, if I have to go stand in any long ass lines, I will be coordinating a group to go down to vote, make it fun, and ensure accountability.

[Sugarcoated]

67. My son and I have decided to vote in person as well

Husband will still vote by mail so he doesn't have to rush home from work. He's afraid what if he gets a flat tire or there's an accident on the turnpike. He works 10 hour days and has an hour commute. Voting ends at 8 here in PA.

The main reason for me is, I want the state called for Biden that night.

[retread]

68. In August primary here in Florida we were able to research and fill in our ballots, send the

completed to the Supervisor of Elections, and check to verify they were received and counted. All done weeks before early voting began!

So yes! We are strongly considering voting via mail-in. The key is to do it as early as possible.

We have already made most decisions. No R's and if it's a "non partisan" race, research party affiliations b4 voting.
The only time consumers will be the amendments which usually clutter the ballot.

[WePurrsevere]

69. I'm mobility impaired and last year finally signed up to vote absentee...

But scary as this pandemic is this year I may have to push to vote in person again because I just don't trust the local mail to get my ballot there in time. (Thankfully we live in northern NY where cases are lower.. well, ATM at least.)

States have some power granted to them by the constitution and need to take action on this issue so people won't worry about their vote not counting if it's mailed in time. Heck, I'm up for them creating laws for this bull and taking action against the Trump appointed Post Master General for creating this situation too.

I'm just so darn angry over this crap. My right to vote and have my voted COUNT is something people have fought and died for. Those trying to circumvent that right belong rotting in jail, not in positions of power.

[dansolo]

70. We should be pushing more for early voting

The issue with in-person voting has a lot to do with the long lines forcing people to be gathered together for long periods of time. Early voting can mitigate that without having to rely on the mail, especially if Republicans get their way and require that ballots must be received by election day.

[LisaL]

72. Some states only vote by mail.

What are they supposed to do without a functional post office? Early voting is good, but in states like OH it doesn't mitigate long lines, since there is only one early voting location per county. My county has over a million people, and one early voting location. So that early voting results in long lines and people being forced to be gathered together for long periods of time.
Vote by mail is the safest thing to do during a pandemic, but you need a functional post office for that.

[Tracer]

71. I am going to vote early and in person.

I don't want to take the chance that a mail-in ballot might not get counted.

My polling place is walking distance and I'm sure that it will have all the standard Covid precautions in place.

[Duppers]

73. Me too.

Masked & distancing.

Will tell folks who get too close that I'm waiting for the results of my test.

[Meowmee]

74. We are

I have had covid, no guarantee of immunity though and I don’t have antibodies apparently, I may have t cell immunity. I am thinking of vip this time. We have a small polling place with not so many voters. It usually only takes 5 minutes or so. I can wear a mask, goggles, gloves etc. I will reevaluate closer to the day. I will apply for a mail in anyway. You are allowed to do both, only one will be counted. I am worried about my father doing this, but I think it will be safe with a mask and goggles etc.