Do we really want vote-by-mail and computer?

[LAS14]

Should we be worried about the households with an abusive patriarch that will end up casting 2 two or more votes for Trumpites when most should be voting with the #MeToo movement? That is, what authoritarian, abusive male will "let" his partner vote secretly, her way?

Maybe not a problem. But if not, why not?

tia
las

[WeekiWater]

1. What you describe would be voter fraud. At least it sounds like it to me.

I think it's always better to make voting more convenient.

[LAS14]

4. Well, it would certainly be voter fraud. But it wouldn't be found out...

..., at least in an individual way. Would it be frequent enough to worry about?

[hlthe2b]

2. I think voting by mail is "generally" fine because the signature is on file...

Anyone who tries to issue a ballot for someone else would have to forge signature or be abusive enough to coerce them, the latter something that could happen even at the polls.

I think rebelling politically with a confidential ballot is a time-worn "solution" of (especially) women against their dominant opinionated husbands. I've long suspected my late mother always voted Dem in opposition to my more conservative father--decades ago. And, I think that is typical-- then and now.

[LAS14]

5. I don't see how coercion could happen at the polls.

No other party can see how you vote.

[hlthe2b]

6. Coercion happens in the home... Do you think that has historically ended for many behind curtain?

As I clearly said, my Dad was quite influential with my Mom in terms of poltics, but I suspect strongly she voted her own mind in the booth. Decades ago, this was typical of many marriages and households. I'm NOT AT ALL implying dominance equates to abuse in the relationship but in past decades many wives were strongly influenced by the husband. Still the case in many areas of the country. Whether or not that influence is strong enough to prevent independent thought/action in the booth (or with their mail-in ballot) --when no one else is around-- is the question.

[Totally Tunsie]

9. Unless...

[MineralMan]

3. Yes, that could happen, but it's not the only problem.

Vote by mail is very successful where it is already in use. It increases participation, and no real problems have been detected. Signatures are required on the outer envelope in most cases, so that works to help prevent people voting for someone else.

Email voting or website voting has a much different problem. Verification of who the voter is is a primary issue. So is hacking and alteration of results. Security is a real issue with computer or cell-phone voting. Governments often do a very poor job of software design and security. Outsourcing such applications to private enterprises has its own risks, too.

We're all very concerned about voting machines and vote manipulation. Doing it on the internet would create even more questions in everyone's mind about accuracy and manipulation, I'm sure.

[SoCalNative]

7. Personally, after 37 years of voting

the excitement of actually casting a ballot in person is no longer there. I prefer the vote by mail option and have been using it for sometime as a permanent absentee voter. It's far easier, I can take my time to do my research, track whether or not my ballot has arrived at the county registrar-recorders office, and even track when it has been verified and accepted.

[2naSalit]

8. We have that in my state too

and I use it for the same reasons.

[shanti]

10. There are probably some men

who fill out their wife/partner's ballot for them and make them sign it. What can we do about it though?

[DrDan]

11. yes we want it - I have been voting that way for years - plan to continue -

convenient - not locked into a schedule - I can mark my ballot as I decide on a candidate or how I decide an issue - I am not locked into marking my ballot in one "sitting"

[brooklynite]

12. For every voting system you can imagine, there's an objection to it...

[LanternWaste]

16. Much as every post you can imagine, there's an irrelevant reponse to it...

[Retrograde]

13. Yes. Yes, we do.

I'm a permanent vote-by-mail voter here in California (we have the options of being a permanent mail voter, voting by mail in specific elections, or voting in person), and since our ballots typically run to 7 pages it makes things easy and convenient. My husband and I filled out our ballots last night: we discuss the issues and candidates ("Can you make head of tail out of Prop N?&quot and usually but not always agree. We don't look at each other's ballots because IMHO that's not ethical.

Now I'm off to drop the ballots in the mail - the county even paid the postage this time!

[JCMach1]

14. Abusive spouse could do that now with absentee ballot...

[JCMach1]

15. And yes I want blockchain voting with paper trail...

Can eventually be moved into an app in the future...

[Sunsky]

17. I don't trust vote by mail for other reasons

I believe it's easy to tamper with the votes. Is there a way to check if my vote has been received or if my vote is challenged for any reason? According to the official tally in 2016 most of the "unreturned" VBM ballots in FL were from Democrats. I don't believe that. In Broward county over 41,000 Democratic VBM ballots were not returned.

You've made a valid point. I have never thought about that.