I have voted by mail in Georgia since they do not require an excuse to do so. I'm planning to vote by mail again this November. I expect I will continue to vote by mail in every election for as long as the coronavirus remains unchecked. I will work to make sure as many Democrats as possible also vote by mail.
Who Trump appoints to head the USPS does not sway my position.
A story about a postal worker throwing away mail does not sway my position.
Cutbacks on USPS overtime do not sway my position.
Stories about how some voters didn't mail their ballots back on time do not sway my position.
Stats showing how many voters don't properly complete their mail-in ballots do not sway my position.
I will vote by mail. I will keep advocating that other Democrats vote by mail.
Because, what is the alternative?
This November will see a repeat of other elections held since March. Drastically reduced numbers of polling places. Longer lines than ever. Dangerous physical closeness conditions.
Not helping Democrats vote by mail will mean fewer Democrats voting. Fewer Democrats voting will mean more Republicans will win.
I must trust our elected Democratic leaders to exercise their oversight and legislative duties. I must trust the amazing men and women of the USPS to blow the whistle on any malfeasance. I must trust the legions of civil service workers who have made their careers on shared values that support the public good. I must trust the many organizations that have voter education among their guiding principles to inform voters of the best timing for mailing their ballots and how to follow their state's rules for completing one properly. And finally, I must trust the voters to pay attention and follow instructions.
I will not slow down, pause, or stop advocating that Democrats vote by mail. I will not become distracted by the GOP ploy to sow seeds of distrust in voting by mail.
This is what they want. They want Democrats to carry their message. They want us to be so overcome with anxiety and worry that we abandon our years-long plans to vote by mail in greater numbers. They know, without a doubt, that if they can curb our vote by mail enthusiasm, they stand a much better chance of winning more races.
We have to be smarter than that. We have to clearly see that among the choices voters will have, voting by mail is the safest, surest way for us to run the numbers high enough to defeat them.
In past years, people had concerns about deliberately confusing ballot design, voting machine tampering, unfriendly touch screen technology, improper poll worker conduct, and other potential snags for in-person voting. But, we voted in person anyway.
We had to trust the people whose jobs it was to oversee fair elections. We had to trust organizations who stood up election protection initiatives. We had to trust voters to know their rights and to call out problems. We had to trust poll workers and elections office staff to blow the whistle when they saw wrongdoing.
But, we didn't tell people to stop voting.
And we should not tell people not to vote by mail.
I have heard from many #PostcardsToVoters writers concerned about news headlines and issues have them questioning vote by mail overall. That's why I am sharing my thoughts on the matter here.
We have been doing the right thing for two years solid with respect to enrolling more Florida Democrats in Vote By Mail. The Politico article a couple of weeks ago showed how Florida Democrats now enjoy a 302,000-voter advantage in VBM enrollment. The GOP knows they're up against the ropes here. Their only hope is to spread doubt and find ways for our own people to kick the legs out from under this effort.
Don't fall for it. instead...
Write on!
Join the tens of thousands of #PostcardsToVoters volunteers who have, since June 2018, written over one million fun, friendly notes of encouragement to Florida Democrats in all 67 counties to enroll in Vote By Mail. Text JOIN to (484) 275-2229 or email us at Join@TonyTheDemocrat.org