The rules governing how mail-in voting works and how ballots can be rejected differ state by state. In a close election, this could prove pivotal to deciding who wins.
Articles on Voting by mail
Displaying 21 - 34 of 34 articles
Scholars explain how they know people can trust vote-by-mail systems.
It’s not just whether the US Postal Service can handle the load. In 2020 primaries, states have had trouble distributing, collecting and counting mailed-in ballots.
The mail-in voting process has several built-in safeguards that make it hard for one person to vote fraudulently, and even more difficult to commit large-scale voter fraud.
Oregon’s experience shows that mail-in voting can be safe and secure, providing accurate and reliable results the public can be confident in.
Voting at home is safe from fraud and disease, but gives up a key advantage of in-person voting at official polling places: a secure, safe environment where everyone can cast their ballot secretly.
In lawsuits across the country, the GOP and Trump campaign are trying to stop or dramatically curtail mail-in voting. Courts have largely sided with them, threatening massive disenfranchisement.
Double-check that you’re registered, find out where and when you can vote, make a plan and tell your friends. Set a reminder on your calendar, and make sure you actually vote.
With a Republican donor at its head and a president opposed to it, the crippling of the United States Postal Service may play a significant role in this year’s election.
It’s a myth that Black voters represent monolithic support for Democrats. A recent survey shows that young Black Americans in swing states have big reservations about Joe Biden, Democrats and voting.
Voters across the nation should prepare for similar circumstances in their communities – but there is still time for them to demand better from their officials.
Voting by mail is rarely subject to fraud, does not give an advantage to one political party over another and can in fact inspire public confidence in the voting process.
In many states, any voter can ask for an absentee ballot and mail it in – but in others, there are stricter rules about who can vote by mail.
Most states have rules that could preserve the integrity of an election while also allowing social distancing.
Top contributors
-
Law Professor in Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Election Law, University of Memphis
-
President, Dickinson College
-
Executive Director of the Sine Institute of Policy and Politics, American University
-
Assistant Professor of Government, Connecticut College
-
Associate Professor of Political Science, The College at Brockport, State University of New York
-
College of Business, Government and Law, Flinders University
-
Ph.D. Candidate in Public Policy, University of California, Berkeley
-
Clinical Professor of Law, Director of the International Human Rights Clinic, Rutgers University - Newark
-
Assistant Professor of American Politics, Mississippi State University
-
Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Washington
-
Professor Emerita of Political Science, University of Oregon
-
Assistant Professor of Political Science/Policy Studies, Grinnell College
-
Professor of Political Science, University of Rochester
-
Lead Academic Teacher - Politics & Social Science (Swinburne Online), Swinburne University of Technology
-
Justice Thurgood Marshall Distinguished Professor of Law, University of Virginia