With US President Donald Trump's latest Twitter barrage, it brings the spotlight to a possible shift in mail-in voting. Many Americans are worried that Election Day may become a whole Election week, thus, fueling fear that Trump may use this to question the authenticity of results.
There have been previous warnings issued by state election officials that the safety concerns amidst the COVID-19 pandemic may cause a surge in ballots sent by mail. This may result in the counting of votes lasting longer than expected.
According to VOA News, the state secretary of Michigan, Jocelyn Benson said that this could lead to a delay in the results for several days. She also added that people need to accept that this could be a reality given the current situation and prepare for it.
In addition, Frank LaRose, the Republican state secretary of Ohio asked the public for patience regarding the possible turn out of the election. He added that people should be ready to find out the results of the election a little later than what is usually accustomed that is by the evening of election night.
However, such delays are not uncommon, especially in states where most of the votes come in through the mail.
Nevertheless, Democrats and other election experts said that using mail-in voting may increase the uncertainty in the results. They also added that this could be very worrisome. On top of this, Trump has already claimed that mail-in voting will result in a rigged election and even labeled it as fraudulent.
On top of this, a law professor from the University of California-Irvine, Rick Hasen said that the process could take the election into a problematic turn especially since there is already a high level of anxiety surrounding it due to rampant misinformation.
Being one of the experts who looked into the problems that the electoral system might face amidst the pandemic, Hasen has already met with a group of academics and recommended safety measures for a possible disputed election. During the meeting, a lot of scenarios have played out including candidates who might refuse to give up power.
It can be recalled that Trump has previously stated that he would accept the turn out of the 2020 election no matter if it favors him or not. However, after the coronavirus pandemic started it has brought dramatic change to the way voting in the US will happen.
The Truth
With speculations that mail-in voting may lead to fraud and rigged elections, fact-checking site snopes.com has compiled what is true and not about these claims.
According to an analysis by several experts on elections, mail-in voting is more prone to fraud than voting in person. However, there is no agency that compiles data from each state regarding voter fraud, thus evidence supporting this is rare. In addition, the variations in the requirements for mail-in voting in every state also raises a different issue.
While voters continue to look for alternatives which will keep them safe from the pandemic and also exercise their right to vote, options such as mail-in and absentee voting remain available. However, as the election becomes nearer, many stated are expected to scramble processing the millions of votes that will come in by November.
