Category: Politics

Back in July, I wrote about the ballot application I received and the likelihood (or lack thereof) of increased incidents of voter fraud due to an increase in mail-in ballots. Having received and returned my ballot, I stand by my assessment that mail-in ballots are unlikely to result in extensive voter fraud.

This is my first time voting by mail, so I wasn’t sure what to expect with the application or ballot. As I mentioned in my previous post, the ballot application required information about me, the registered voter, that was not included on the application form, decreasing the potential for fraud. The envelope was also marked with “Return Service Requested,” which would result in the application being returned to the sender if I was no longer a valid addressee at this location.

My ballot arrived two days after the first date it could be mailed… not bad for a post office that’s being deliberately sabotaged by a political appointee. I sat on it a couple days, not because I didn’t know where my votes would go, but because I wanted to take the time to read the instructions and extra papers that came with the ballot. I read through the instructions, which were fairly straightforward: darken the square (they were actually rectangles) with a black ink pen, don’t overvote (mark more candidates than votes are allowed for a position), sign & date the envelope provided (presumably after adding the completed ballot to it), and ballots must be postmarked by election day.

I noted the inclusion of an affidavit of hand delivery if I decided to send my ballot with another person to be dropped off, rather than mailed, as well as an affidavit of assisted voter for voters who are unable to complete the ballot themselves due to disabilities or language difficulties. With more than a month to the election, I opted to mail my ballot back in the postage paid envelope, and I don’t need assistance completing it, so I set aside both of these affidavits. Noting also that if I had decided to vote in person, I would need to take my mailed ballot with me or sign an affidavit stating I hadn’t received it; voting multiple times is not allowed.

While the ballot itself is, of course, anonymous, the envelope is trackable: it includes a barcode, several numbers, and my name. I signed up for ballot tracking, so I was notified by e-mail when it was received. I was told it was accepted: the name & barcode allowed officials to compare my signature on the envelope with my voter registration record.

Between the ballot application and the ballot itself, in order to commit extensive voter fraud via mail-in voting, somebody would need the birthdates and signatures for a large number of registered voters and a way to intercept their mail. The possibility of someone (the alleged foreign interference) mass-producing and completing ballots is even less likely, given that ballots typically include everything from federal, state, and local elections – my ballot is not necessarily the same as someone else in the same city because of how district lines are drawn. And even ballot harvesting – collecting other people’s ballots (and potentially completing them) – is unlikely, because it requires a large number of registered voters who are either ignorant of the political process or willing to relinquish their vote to someone else’s control. (That and a political consultant allegedly tried ballot harvesting in the 2018 election… and got caught.)

All in all, the possibilities for mail-in voting fraud are slim, likely to be identifiable, and unlikely to have an impact on this election cycle.

P.S.: Early voting has started. Remember to vote.

1. End gerrymandering – Have you ever wonder why someone on the next block is displaying a sign for a different candidate from the same party during the general election? They could be voting in a different district. Take a look at this map of the 18 congressional districts in Illinois for the US House of Representatives. Just scroll down and look at the weird shapes, like the 4th, 6th, and 7th (were they trying to draw a couple of the Great Lakes sideways?) districts. These are districts drawn specifically to create voting blocks, rather than for any logical campaign or representation needs. I realize each district needs a comparable number of voters, but this is absurd.
2. Publicly funded campaigns
   Why should you be rich or good at fundraising to run for office? Much like the issue with career politicians, the amount of money needed to campaign encourages people who are out of touch with middle and lower class citizens to run for office; the average citizen can’t afford to fund a political campaign. As an alternate, remove private money from the campaigning process – give each candidate for a position the same amount of money or material: a set number of ads, mailers, etc., all based on the geographic range of the campaign (a local judge needs less advertising than a presidential campaign). Run all promotional materials through a common site where supporters can purchase them – a face mask (now a thing for political campaigns) for one candidate will cost the same as another, with the intent that it covers the cost rather than generating a profit for the campaign. This would have an added benefit of moving away from our two party system. Make our public servants campaign on issues rather than funds.
3. Automatic voter registration
   We provide the government our information – mostly importantly, our current address – every year when we file taxes. They should also have information on whether the person filing taxes is a citizen; if not, it’s a simple checkbox to add to an overly complicated form. So why should we jump through varying hoops by state for voter registration when the government already has the relevant information? Voting is both a right, but it’s also an obligation, and it should be encouraged.
4. Election day holiday or expanded early/mail voting options
   I don’t actually think both of these are necessary. I know other countries schedule election day as a holiday or on weekends to encourage voting, and I thought it was a great idea when I first heard of it. I think the early and mail voting options override that need, since having a month or two of voting options certainly supersedes trying to cram everybody into a voting line on a single day.

P.S.: Early voting has started. Remember to vote.

The political process in the United States is, as in many places, flawed. Of course, it’s flawed in unique ways, given that each country’s government is different. I have some thoughts on ways it can be improved, specifically in terms of our elections, some of which I’ve heard from other sources.

1. Abolish the Electoral College
   The purpose of the United States Electoral College was to balance the quantity of free men in the northern states with the number of slaves populating the southern states; slaves were counted as three-fifths of a person for determining electoral college votes and representation in the House of Representatives. The Electoral College should have been abolished when slavery was; the benefit it provides now is to presidential candidates who can tailor their campaign promises on a few swing state issues, instead of working towards serving the country as a whole.
   While you could argue that it benefits sparsely populated states like Wyoming, as a state Wyoming has only voted for a Democratic candidate once in the last 50 years; as a result, it’s likely to be ignored by all candidates. It certainly doesn’t benefit Democratic voters in a “red” state, or Republication voters in a “blue” state – their votes are effectively ignored. Eliminating the Electoral College would mean every vote really counts.
   
2. Term limits
   We have a problem with career politicians who stay in the same position for decades. When an election rolls around, they benefit from name recognition, which a new candidate – either from the same party in primaries, or in the general election – is typically lacking. The problem with career politicians is the tendency to lose touch with the average person, as they get dragged into the inter-partisan bickering, never-ending fundraising, and professional lobbying efforts. How can these people possibly represent us, the “little guys,” if they’re busy building their wealth instead of remembering that they are public servants?
   
3. Campaign duration limits
   It’s September 2020, six weeks to the general election, but it feels like we’ve been hearing about this Presidential election forever. Well, we have… Andrew Yang announced his Democratic candidacy on November 6, 2017; and according to Wikipedia, the first Republican candidate announced his intention on April 15, 2019. (This feels like misinformation, since the current president actually started his 2020 campaign ads back in 2017.) Is it any wonder that the voting public is burnt out on the election news? I suggest restricting when the campaign for each position can start – maybe give the primaries one month before that election, and two months of campaigning before the general election. Give us a break, and let our politicians actually do the work we’re paying them for instead of spending their time campaigning.
   
4. One Primary date
   Related to the ridiculous ongoing campaign season is the sprawling range of primary dates. By the time the last states vote, the primary is already effectively done… it’s just another way that voters are disenfranchised. In 2020, with some states having to push their Presidential primary dates back because of the pandemic, the primaries ranged from February to July; by the time Delaware, New Jersey, and Louisiana voted, there was only one Democratic candidate in the race.

I know that’s a bit more than two cents worth of thoughts… in fact, I have more, coming next week. I think these changes would drastically improve our political process and make our politicians better public servants.

P.S.: Early voting has started already in some states. Remember to vote.

With around-the-clock news and social media, the world was watching as the United States (among others) federal government floundered epically in the face of COVID-19. The world saw armed protestors rally against their elected officials, because their need for a haircut or a meal out is apparently more important than preserving lives.

The world was watching as the news came to light that an African American man, Ahmaud Arbery, who was running through a residential neighborhood, was killed by two armed vigilantes while their friend filmed the attack, and the local prosecutors sat on the case for over two months before arresting the attackers.

The world watched as a white (now ex-)police officer kneeled on the neck of George Floyd, an African American man, ignoring his cries for help and beyond the point when he became unresponsive. Three other officers, also since fired from their jobs, allowed this murder.

And now the world watches as the response to peaceful protests against systemic police brutality against minorities is… systemic police brutality. Reporters have been arrested and assaulted, including being shot with pepper balls. A CNN reporter was arrested – on camera – while visibly wearing his press credentials. And they’re seeing the protests turn into riots each evening, as the crowd shifts from the legitimate protestors to the rabble-rousers.

What the world isn’t seeing – I couldn’t even find this on our national news sites, much less international ones – is the clean-up effort, as volunteers flock to the Twin Cities. These people, the helpers, are the ones to watch. They’re the ones who understand that they live in the community and need to help each other. (It also lends credence to the accusation by Minnesota’s governor that most of the damage was done by non-residents. Who would show up the next day to clean up what they destroyed?)

Watch the police officers whose immediate response is to condemn the murder for what it was, and are trained to de-escalate situations instead of intensifying them. Watch the officers who listened to the protestors and joined them, recognizing the validity of the complaints. These are the officers who signed up to serve and protect everybody. These are the officers we need.

It’s what George Floyd needed – if just one officer of the three watching had done something right, his murder could have been prevented.