What do you think of "absentee" ballots ?

[kentuck]

There was a time, best as I recollect, that in order to vote absentee, one had to have a legitimate excuse. Like unable to make it to the polls because of illness or disability. Or out of country? But then the Republicans turned it into one of their biggest vote getters. They make certain that all their right-wing radio listeners and potential voters get their ballots well before election and I believe the Repubs now have a decided advantage over Democrats in absentee votes? Does anyone know the specifics on the numbers?

[Guarionex]

1. I don't trust them either

That's like trusting some person to deliver them...

many people didn't even receive absentee ballots...it became a tool of vote suppression, mostly of Democrats...

Don't trust them...I only trust paper-sheet ballots, hand counted, Canada style.

[sweetheart]

2. ... as britain pushes postal balloting...

Postal balloting is considered safe in britain: http://www.stirling.gov.uk/index/council_homepage/council-mps/council-elections-pballots.htm

That said, the royal mai, unlike the US postal service has a
delivery guarantee. In this regard, the day you "send" something
under british law, is legally binding (the receiver is automatically
deemed to be receieving it!)

I'm of two minds on this. One one hand, i think things that make
it easier for voters to vote are good ideas. On the other, when
serious fraud is involved, as with the bush election fraud, a more
substantial way to verify that a vote was counted, would be nice.

Perhaps if each postal ballot had a unique ballot-ID on it, and one
could call in on a special telephone number and verify the ballot was
counted. Then i could post the ballot in early, and verify it. If
it is not counted, then i have a recourse to appeal.

As it stands, anyone can simply roundfile a postal ballot and that
is the end of a vote. Without verification, postal balloting is
precisely what folks like Mugabe Bush seem to like.