As the novel coronavirus pandemic rages on and we get closer to the November presidential election, many progressives are focused on getting support and enthusiasm up behind presumptive Democratic nominee former Vice President Joe Biden. Another issue for progressives to get behind, however, comes down to the literal act of voting itself. Namely: How can we make it safe for both voters and poll workers as this pandemic shows no sign of slowing down in the United States? One popular consideration is to vote by mail. And for the older people who make up a large portion of our poll workers and our voters, this could be huge protection as the virus continues to roar. How would this work in practice? Let’s break down the details below.
Interestingly, according to the Election Assistance Commission, the majority of poll workers in 2018 were over 60 years old. While we know COVID-19 can affect anyone, we also know that older populations are particularly vulnerable to the virus. Poll workers know that too, and some have (understandably) begun calling out, which can lead to fewer polling locations, which can lead to longer lines and waiting periods. Mind you, some polling locations have faced absurdly difficult wait times even before a pandemic hit the nation; making the literal act of voting as inaccessible as possible has been a longtime tactic to suppress brown and Black voters.
Campaign Action
One example of younger poll workers stepping up as older workers excused themselves because of the virus happened in Georgia. As local outlet WARE reported, for example, Cobb County promoted some younger poll workers to be supervisors, as well as hired and trained new workers including dozens of recent graduates and college students. Of course, this is not to say it’s easy; newer workers are, well, new, and may make mistakes or simply not have as much training or experience. On top of that, voters who do show up for in-person voting (or call with questions, and so on) may have extra confusion or concerns in terms of virus prevention. It’s a steep learning curve, but one that could save lives.
As Daily Kos covered, people will show up to vote. In Wisconsin’s primary, for example, voters showed up in spite of both the pandemic and the rain. Shortly thereafter, Wisconsin traced at least seven cases of COVID-19 to the in-person voting structure.
The bigger picture solution? Making it accessible and secure for people to vote by mail. According to a recent research study from Pew, we know that 70% of Americans across political aisles support having vote-by-mail as an option for anyone who desires it. We also know that 33 states offer no-excuse absentee voting; however, that’s not the same thing as having a universal vote-by-mail system in place. Over at Prism, Anoa Changa offers a deep dive into the differences (and why it matters so much).
And though Donald Trump is obsessed with the notion that voting by mail raises risk for voter fraud, that claim is unfounded.
Now, that’s not to say that a universal vote-by-mail system is something we can pull off effortlessly. In fact, as NPR reports, at least 65,000 ballots from the primary elections did not actually count. Why? They contained user errors (like forgetting to sign your name in the right place) or were simply mailed too late. There’s also the reality that for many people, voting by mail will be entirely new, which may increase simple errors. Without a universal vote-by-mail system, too, things can get extra confusing; if your cousin in another state, for example, tells you they sent in your ballot and did XYZ, you might feel relief and do the same. But if your area actually has a different deadline—such as that the ballot needs to be received by a certain date, not sent by it—your vote might not be counted.
So where are we now? Some states have already expanded voters’ access to vote-by-mail systems. Others have announced they’ll have more polling stations available in the hope that people can be more spread out and have longer wait times (though of course, the question about older poll workers either calling out or risking their health is still a big one in that scenario). As Greta Rainbow wrote over at Prism, the big picture of voting rights is that voters don’t need pizza while they wait in wildly long lines (especially if they’re risking their literal lives to be there)—what they need is an overhaul of the electoral system. As the nation faces a global pandemic without real guidance from the federal administration, universal vote-by-mail is one step closer to getting people’s voices heard while keeping all involved safer.