Action 240 - Don’t mail your ballot
Action 240 – Don’t MAIL your ballot!
Background: A whistleblower just risked their life to expose an illegal act by the USPS (1) which, in defiance of a court order, is busily developing plans to go ahead with suppression of vote-by-mail. This article is very worth reading. It will reinforce your resolve to do everything you can to right the ship of state before it sinks.
Suppressing vote-by-mail is not insurmountable in Maine, but think of the ramifications in a state like Oregon with 100% vote by mail. Since adoption of mail-in voting systems, in-person voting sites have been shut down to varying degrees depending on state, with very little time remaining before November 3 to reconstitute the polling sites, tabulating machines, poll workers etc. If we thought lines were already too long, just wait until this November! Determined voters will abandon voting by mail, and instead show up at the polls. This does not have to be an issue in Maine, if we do the simple things suggested below.
Actions:
Vote early to help out on election day. Absentee ballots are available from your Town Registrar (usually town clerk) around October 3 or 5. The Secretary of State has a list of those people with contact info. (2)
Don’t mail your completed ballot! If you are voting early or absentee, either hand your ballot to your town registrar in person, or drop it in your town’s official ballot drop box. (Don’t neglect to sign the envelope!) If you already requested your ballot to be mailed to you, try instead to pick one up in person from your town registrar. If you are experiencing a delay in receiving your ballot, see if you can track its progress here (3)
As a fallback, make plans to show up at the polls. Don’t worry, if you vote in person before your mailed ballot arrives or is opened, your vote will still count – once – because the registrar always marks off the voters as soon as their ballot is handed to them. And if your mailed ballot got there and was logged in first, your registrar knows that you will have voted already, and you won’t get another ballot.
Help anyone in your town to get to the polls on November 3! If you are able to, set aside the day for transporting house-bound and disabled voters to the polling place. Local Democratic committees should start compiling a list of people who will need this assistance, and make arrangements to help specific people at specific times. Consult with your local social service agency. One brilliant example I read about this morning: someone rented a van to bring a large number of seniors who could not drive. This reminds me of something I witnessed as a poll watcher in the June primary in Machias. A large white van arrived with a dozen or so very healthy-looking men, all of whom took the Republican ballot. If the Repubs can do this for the physically able, surely Dems can do this for our seniors and disabled.
Become familiar with the electronic voting option. This is available for voters who can self-certify that they have a disability preventing them from completing a paper ballot independently. (4) If you have a neighbor or friend who needs this assistance, be prepared to offer it – computer familiarity is essential.
Volunteer to be a poll watcher. Contact the League of Women Voters (5), or the Maine Democratic Party (6).
IT’S ALL HANDS ON DECK THIS NOVEMBER 3
References:
(1) https://www.defiance.news/p/someone-just-risked-their-life-to?utm_campaign=email-half-post&r=2ycvh&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email &/or https://www.defiance.news/p/someone-just-risked-their-life-to
(2) https://www.maine.gov/sos/elections-voting/find-a-municipal-clerk-or-registrar
(3) https://absenteeballotrequest.sos.maine.gov/BallotTracker/BallotTracker(4) https://www.maine.gov/sos/elections-voting/accessible-voting
(5) https://www.lwvme.org/Volunteer
(6) https://www.mobilize.us/mainedems/event/1010953/