So, why is Trump Promoting Absentee Ballots vs. Vote-By-Mail?

[berni_mccoy]

I don't get it...

His supporters are rabidly saying vote-in-person or go absentee ballot. How do they expect that absentee ballot to be counted if the mail isn't running....?

Still scratching my head on this one.

[rzemanfl]

1. He and Melanie are voting absentee in Florida. Plus he is a lying asshole motherfucker. n/t

[stillcool]

2. I think he's doing it in certain states...

like red states. Who knows...maybe the GOP has a mailing list for registered Republicans

Voters in North Carolina have received absentee ballot request forms in the mail with Trump's face on them
CNN Expansion, Fernando Alfonso
By Fernando Alfonso III, CNN

Updated 4:32 PM ET, Sun August 16, 2020


(CNN)Given the crisis facing the United States Postal Service before a presidential election, the last thing John Herter expected to receive in the mail Saturday was an absentee ballot request form with President Donald Trump's face on it.

"Is this a joke?" Herter said his wife told him as she opened up the mailer to reveal a photo of Trump grinning underneath the words, "Are you going to let the Democrats silence you? Act now to stand with President Trump."
--------------
While it is common for candidates and political parties to send mail to voters, especially those who don't have access to TV or the internet, Real Facts NC, a non-profit dedicated to researching and telling the stories about issues facing North Carolinians, has never seen a mailer like this before, messaging director Jazmynne Williams told CNN.
https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/16/politics/postal-service-trump-absentee-ballot-request-mail-usps/index.html

[Hoyt]

3. His concern is those states who just mail out ballots to every registered voter without a specific

request for a ballot.

Although the risk is still small, I do think that kind of voting does have a slightly higher risk of someone getting another person's ballot and returning it. Years ago I read that between 15 and 20% of people move each year. While it may be a bit less now with CV19, there is still a small chance someone might receive someone else's ballot and return it marked and with a forged signature.

My question is, why do trump and GOPers think Democrats are most likely to cheat, when it's just normal practice for trump, McConnell, etc.

Truthfully, there is less chance of a ballot going to the wrong person if one has to request a ballot a month or two ahead of time, verify their address, etc.

If trump were not such an ass and poor communicator, he should have made the distinction clear much earlier, assuming he even understood there was a distinction.

[subterranean]

4. To forge a signature, you need a copy of the real signature.

Someone who receives a ballot for a person who previously lived at that address is unlikely to have a copy of the former resident's signature to forge. If they try to vote with the ballot anyway, it will probably be rejected because the signature doesn't match.

It's also possible that someone might receive a ballot for a family member who recently died, or a child who moved away (I've read anecdotal accounts of that), but how many of them are going to vote in their family member's name, forge their signature and risk being charged with a felony? Not enough to make a difference, I would guess.

Trump's alleged concerns might be valid if anyone could mail in any ballot they find and have it be counted, with no safeguards in place, but that's just not how it works. The various efforts by his party to cheat by denying people their right to vote will dwarf the scale of any voting fraud by individuals.