Eric Holder: Coronavirus is 'an opportunity’ to permanently change US voting system

[Teh One Who Knocks]

by Andrew Mark Miller - Washington Examiner


https://i.imgur.com/XTobCMGl.jpg

Former President Barack Obama’s Attorney General Eric Holder acknowledged that he sees the coronavirus as “an opportunity” to change the way U.S. citizens vote forever.

“Coronavirus gives us an opportunity to revamp our electoral system so that it permanently becomes more inclusive and becomes easier for the American people to access,” Holder told Time magazine.

Holder went on to say that he supports shifting toward a system with more mail-in ballots.

“There has to be a sea change in our thinking there,” he said when asked how important he thinks mail-in ballots will be going forward. “Allow people to access their primary American right by voting at home. It’s not as if this is an untried concept. Oregon has been doing this for years. But we have to make sure that we’re being sensitive to the needs of poor communities and communities of color by doing things like having prepaid postage on envelopes. Construct a system so that you’ve got expanded in-person voting, you’ve got expanded at-home voting and expanded no-excuse absentee vote-at-home measures.”

Holder said he believes that these changes during the coronavirus crisis will help “enhance our democracy.”

Democrats across the country have been pushing for increased mail-in voting during the coronavirus crisis despite reports over the past week suggesting over 28 million mail-in ballots have been lost in the past 10 years and that thousands of ineligible voters could possibly receive mail-in ballots, including many dead people.

Fox News host Tucker Carlson said on his show this week he believes these efforts to push mail-in voting are part of a broader effort on behalf of Democrats to “encourage” voter fraud to win elections.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued a sentiment similar to Holder’s claim that increased mail-in voting is a positive step forward for democracy.

House Majority Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn joined Holder in expressing the opinion that the coronavirus provides political opportunities in a conference call in March, when he reportedly referred to the coronavirus relief package as a “tremendous opportunity to restructure things to fit our vision.”

[Griffin]

This should make it much easier for the manipulators behind the curtain to rig the electoral process and place their puppets where they want.

[PorkChopSandwiches]

Simma down, you dont work for us anymore

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Simma down, you dont work for us anymore

Did he ever really work for "us" though?

[perrhaps]

Simma down, you dont work for us anymore

He never thought he did. Instead, he believed (like most of DC) that we worked to pay taxes to fund him.

[RBP]

He never thought he did. Instead, he believed (like most of DC) that we worked to pay taxes to fund him.

Shit your mouth and pay your pizzo.

[Godfather]

Are you guys not normally allowed to mail in ballots? We can always apply to if we're going to be on vacation or something during an election. Obviously you still need to send proof of ID to get the ballot slip (never done it so I'm not totally sure on the process, but my folks have).

[perrhaps]

Are you guys not normally allowed to mail in ballots? We can always apply to if we're going to be on vacation or something during an election. Obviously you still need to send proof of ID to get the ballot slip (never done it so I'm not totally sure on the process, but my folks have).

Can't speak for the other 49 states, but we can here in PA, because absentee ballots are available with no questions asked.

Ironically, I just received a mailer from the state GOP with a form to request my "Official Republican Party absentee ballot for the upcoming primary, even though I changed my party affiliation to "Independent" 7 months ago. No concerns about voter fraud here.

[DemonGeminiX]

Can't speak for the other 49 states, but we can here in PA, because absentee ballots are available with no questions asked.

Ironically, I just received a mailer from the state GOP with a form to request my "Official Republican Party absentee ballot for the upcoming primary, even though I changed my party affiliation to "Independent" 7 months ago. No concerns about voter fraud here.

Why are you automatically assuming fraud regarding what amounts to an advertisement? The PA state GOP doesn't control the PA election. If it didn't come from the state department that controls the elections then it's no more than an advertisement. They probably have seen that you changed your affiliation and are just trying to win you back.


Are you guys not normally allowed to mail in ballots? We can always apply to if we're going to be on vacation or something during an election. Obviously you still need to send proof of ID to get the ballot slip (never done it so I'm not totally sure on the process, but my folks have).

It depends on the state. The states control the elections. Some states have conditions for mail-in absentee ballots, some don't. Honestly, there's a lot more opportunities for fraud with mail in absentee ballots than there are with a show up and vote in person at a polling station system, provided that you're not handing your ballot to a human being at the polling station and are putting your vote in some kind of tallying machine. Human beings are fallible and biased. However, because of the risk of the coronavirus, I'll be doing an absentee vote for the first time this year; I usually show up to a polling station. But I'm disabled, so I'm eligible to mail in an absentee ballot for each of the year's elections in Georgia. The disabled, the elderly, and military native to Georgia are all eligible for mail-in absentee voting in Georgia. Everybody else has to show up to a polling station.

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Colorado is a mail in voting state. You can go to the actual polling station on voting day to vote if you want, but by doing that you would be filling out a provisional ballot.

When you get your ballot in the mail, after you fill it out, you can either mail it back (which costs you the price of postage plus the delay in your ballot going thru the mail) or you can drop them off in secure ballot drop boxes in your precinct (which is what I usually do). On the ballot return envelope there's a place to put your email address so that you can be notified when your ballot has been officially received. And once they have your email address associated with your voter name and address, they will also email you to let you know when your ballot is in the mail and on the way to you.

[perrhaps]

Why are you automatically assuming fraud regarding what amounts to an advertisement? The PA state GOP doesn't control the PA election. If it didn't come from the state department that controls the elections then it's no more than an advertisement. They probably have seen that you changed your affiliation and are just trying to win you back.



It depends on the state. The states control the elections. Some states have conditions for mail-in absentee ballots, some don't. Honestly, there's a lot more opportunities for fraud with mail in absentee ballots than there are with a show up and vote in person at a polling station system, provided that you're not handing your ballot to a human being at the polling station and are putting your vote in some kind of tallying machine. Human beings are fallible and biased. However, because of the risk of the coronavirus, I'll be doing an absentee vote for the first time this year; I usually show up to a polling station. But I'm disabled, so I'm eligible to mail in an absentee ballot for each of the year's elections in Georgia. The disabled, the elderly, and military native to Georgia are all eligible for mail-in absentee voting in Georgia. Everybody else has to show up to a polling station.

First, I'm not concerned about fraud. It's Trump who keeps saying that people should vote in person, because once you allow voting by mail, "funny things start happening".

Second, all registered Republicans as of April 2019 got this mailer.

[DemonGeminiX]

First, I'm not concerned about fraud. It's Trump who keeps saying that people should vote in person, because once you allow voting by mail, "funny things start happening".

Second, all registered Republicans as of April 2019 got this mailer.

So I misread your statement?

[perrhaps]

Colorado is a mail in voting state. You can go to the actual polling station on voting day to vote if you want, but by doing that you would be filling out a provisional ballot.

When you get your ballot in the mail, after you fill it out, you can either mail it back (which costs you the price of postage plus the delay in your ballot going thru the mail) or you can drop them off in secure ballot drop boxes in your precinct (which is what I usually do). On the ballot return envelope there's a place to put your email address so that you can be notified when your ballot has been officially received. And once they have your email address associated with your voter name and address, they will also email you to let you know when your ballot is in the mail and on the way to you.

Interesting. How much time is there between the ballots being mailed, and election day?

[Teh One Who Knocks]

Interesting. How much time is there between the ballots being mailed, and election day?I would say it's about 3 to 4 weeks in advance of voting day that you receive your ballot. That way you have enough time to do your research (if any) before you fill it out and ample time to put it in the mail if you want.

There is a cut off time for mailing it back though. When it gets to the Thursday before election day (if I remember right) you can no longer mail it in. You either have to drop it off in person on election day or put it in one of the secure drop boxes. However if you wait until the Monday before or election day, then you must drop it off in person.

[perrhaps]

So I misread your statement?

More likely that I expressed myself poorly (see Wife for numerous other examples).

I just found it ironic that while Trump and other GOP leaders seem to want to clamp down on voting by mail, our state GOP party seems to be endorsing the opposite.

[DemonGeminiX]

More likely that I expressed myself poorly (see Wife for numerous other examples).

I just found it ironic that while Trump and other GOP leaders seem to want to clamp down on voting by mail, our state GOP party seems to be endorsing the opposite.

In my opinion (if that's worth anything to you, and I understand if it's not), mail-in voting is precarious as people have to handle them, and I'm sorry to say, but I just don't trust people. I've seen news reports of too many elections in the past where the mail-in ballots were excluded, or ballots that had certain party line votes were excluded, and intentionally. I thought that GA here had/has a good system: you go to the polling station, you get a floppy disk like 'card' that your id is printed on, you insert it into a machine and choose your party preference (if it's a primary) and/or your choice of candidates, you submit your choices and a double check screen pops up with your choices selected asking you if it's correct (if no, go back and fix it, if yes click submit), the machine imprints your choices on the disk, you take the disk and hand it to the poll worker and they insert it into a machine that uploads it to a central server, and you're done.

I'm not sure if the voting system is completely secure, but in the decade and a half we've been using it, there's never been a complaint.

[perrhaps]

I certainly see your point, but there are times when an absentee ballot should be made available, like when you know well in advance that work or a vacation will have you out of the area on election day.

[Pony]

I certainly see your point, but there are times when an absentee ballot should be made available, like when you know well in advance that work or a vacation will have you out of the area on election day.

For certain circumstances, I agree but there needs to be strict identity checks.

And ballot harvesting should not be legal.

[perrhaps]

Yes, I don't see any justification for ballot harvesting.

[PorkChopSandwiches]

I have voted absentee (by mail) for as long as I can remember. I hated going to the polling stations.

[deebakes]

And when was the last time your vote mattered? :lol:

[PorkChopSandwiches]

In CA, not often. In the local elections sometimes