Techincally Speaking
By Perry Busby
It seems like in every coronavirus discussion you hear some talking head pontificating about how we, the people, just want to get back to a sense of normalcy. I don’t know about you, but I’ve abandoned any, and all, ideas of going back long ago. First and foremost, attempting to go back to recapture what has passed is an exercise in futility unless you have a 1982 DeLorean and your name is Marty McFly. Secondly, if normalcy means subjecting ourselves to the same inept and visionless leadership that has brought us to where we are now, then not only do I not want to go back, I’m not looking back.
From poorly designed and under resourced unemployment systems, to a badly supervised small business stimulus program, and a testing with more hype than results, this pandemic has shined a spotlight on the lack of oversight and vision by our elected officials.
Our election system became a casualty of this feckless leadership long before COVID-19. Despite numerous reports and congressional hearings with national security and intelligence agencies, little has been done, outside of purchasing upgraded models of poorly designed voting machines, to safeguard our elections. So, you can imagine my surprise when I began to hear politicians, one after another, demand election supervisors expand their Vote-By-Mail (VBM) procedures.
Among the list of alternative voting methods, VBM is the most often used. It is the preferred choice among seniors, military personnel, and citizens with demanding travel schedules.
A breakdown of VBM numbers from the March 17 Presidential Primary Election shows:
- Approximately 199,000 ballots were mailed and 96,341 (48%) were returned and counted.
- 41.5% of the 232,340 votes cast were by VBM.
- 863 VBM ballots were not considered because they did not arrive at the SOE office before the 7:00PM deadline.
- 50% of all rejected VBM ballots were due to no signature.
- 22% of rejected VBM ballots were due to no ballot enclosed in the envelope
- 18% of those initially rejected were corrected and counted.
- 4 were rejected because they were dropped off at the precinct and did not arrive at the SOE office before the 7:00PM deadline.
- 3 were rejected because the voter was deceased. However, it is unclear if those voters died before or after the ballot was mailed.
- 2 were rejected due to civil rights issues, specifically Amendment 4.
These numbers, while relatively good for an election held during the early stages of a pandemic, are only a sampling of the potential problems the SOE office may encounter if it moves forward on a quick-fix solution, with little to no emphasis on education and training.
A possible solution to expanding VBM for the August primary election could be establishing drop-off sites for early voting and election day. Many polling locations were closed in March due to a drop in available poll workers because of health concerns. Even if there is a drop in COVID-19 cases in August, the number of available poll workers may still leave the SOE office scrambling to provide optimal coverage. Creating community drop-off sites, in addition to the 42 early voting locations would enable the SOE office to maintain the number of poll workers it hires and provide a layer of quality control to alleviate some of these preventable issues.
This country spent millions of dollars to remind people about basic hygiene, for over a month. Now politicians want to patch together a system and run an election. Let’s hope our ballot doesn’t end up like that unemployment check we’re still waiting on.
Let me know what you think. Email me at perrybusby03@gmail.com. As always stay tuned to the Westside Gazette for more information about your vote.
Be the first to comment