I just flunked Vote by Mail...or did it flunk me?

[bobpark56]

I completed my 2-sided Pennsylvania primary ballot today, using black ink as instructed to fill in the little ovals. Problem: The ink bled trough the paper, so every filled-in oval now appears on both sides of the ballot. I'll bet this ballot gets tossed. What won't our politicians think of next?

 

[bbodb1]

I completed my 2-sided Pennsylvania primary ballot today, using black ink as instructed to fill in the little ovals. Problem: The ink bled trough the paper, so every filled-in oval now appears on both sides of the ballot. I'll bet this ballot gets tossed. What won't our politicians think of next?

A design by Chad is on your horizon....

 

[turkel]

I voted by mail once. Put my ballot in the mail while on vacation. When I got home the now no longer relevant ballot was in my mailbox.

 

[klpca]

I have been voting by mail for probably 20+ years as we frequently travel in November. It's really no big deal. You can either mail it in early, or drop it off at a polling place or the office of the registrar. In our state @bobpark56 the normal process would be to take your now spoiled ballot to a polling place and exchange it for a fresh one. I suppose if it was 100% vote by mail you would have to go to the Registrar of Voters office to do the same, but I have no direct knowledge.

 

[geist1223]

Oregon has had vote by mail for all elections and voters for years. This year the State even paid the Postage. No big deal.

 

[Luanne]

I voted by mail for our primary. We can go to the Sec of State website and track our ballot, like when it was requested, when it was mailed out, and when they receive it back. I just checked and my ballot was received on 5/20.

 

[bbodb1]

Oregon has had vote by mail for all elections and voters for years. This year the State even paid the Postage. No big deal.

You would think this could / should be a model for other states....

 

[sue1947]

I've voted by mail for 30 years in WA. It was a hybrid system with polling places still open for some, but anybody who wanted could get on the absentee voter list and get their ballots by mail. I could either mail in the ballot or drop it in one of the many drop boxes, usually at city halls or libraries. Convenient and easy and, most important, it allowed me the time to make a more informed vote. Our primary in March was total vote by mail with postage paid and it ran smoothly in spite of the pandemic.

It's really a no-brainer. It's more efficient and cost efficient to run. Try it, you'll like it.

 

[DavidnRobin]

San Mateo and Napa Counties (in CA) have been sending every Registered Voter a Mail-in Ballot. We have been voting by mail for years. Now all CA counties are catching up - finally. Odd to me though - that voter turnout remains the same between counties.
Fraud is negligible (by far) compared to Suppression. Actual vote fraud is rare - especially as a percentage - this is fact.
What group benefits from this disinformation to prevent (suppress) mail-in balloting? Mail-in voting makes sense especially now with the risk of C-19,

(Political comment removed)


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[bbodb1]

I voted by mail for our primary. We can go to the Sec of State website and track our ballot, like when it was requested, when it was mailed out, and when they receive it back. I just checked and my ballot was received on 5/20.

Reading your post again @Luanne made me wonder - since you can track your ballot, I assume you must have been given some sort of identifying code for that ballot. If that is correct, when you see the ballot is/was received, does it also allow you to see how your votes were recorded on each question asked and/or race you voted in?

 

[pedro47]

I am surprise you were not ask to used a #2 black pencil.

Ink can bleed on a paper form. IMO.

 

[Luanne]

Reading your post again @Luanne made me wonder - since you can track your ballot, I assume you must have been given some sort of identifying code for that ballot. If that is correct, when you see the ballot is/was received, does it also allow you to see how your votes were recorded on each question asked and/or race you voted in?

No tracking code. On the website I put in my first and last name, date of birth and county I live it. It pulls back my voter registration info, and then there is a tab where I can check the status of my absentee ballot.

I can see my voting history, only showing which elections I voted in, and where I voted. Does not show how I voted.

 

[bbodb1]

I am surprise you were not ask to used a #2 black pencil.

Ink can bleed on a paper form. IMO.

My first thought when black ink was mentioned - and bled through - was a Sharpie was used.
I've never had black Bic pens run through paper in my experience. @bobpark56 - just what kind of black pen were you using? Was the ballot printed on some sort of weird paper?

 

[bbodb1]

No tracking code. On the website I put in my first and last name, date of birth and county I live it. It pulls back my voter registration info, and then there is a tab where I can check the status of my absentee ballot.

I can see my voting history, only showing which elections I voted in, and where I voted. Does not show how I voted.

Thanks for that info @Luanne - I would have to think a real confidence boost to the mail in process would be to allow you (the voter) to see how your ballot was interpreted and counted.
Maybe a future enhancement.....

The thought also occurred to me about the necessity of mail in balloting in some western states given the physical distance many people may be from a polling place. I recall driving through parts of New Mexico and Arizona and being amazed at the distance between towns. You almost could not hold an election without mail in balloting in many western United States.

 

[Luanne]

Thanks for that info @Luanne - I would have to think a real confidence boost to the mail in process would be to allow you (the voter) to see how your ballot was interpreted and counted.
Maybe a future enhancement.....

The thought also occurred to me about the necessity of mail in balloting in some western states given the physical distance many people may be from a polling place. I recall driving through parts of New Mexico and Arizona and being amazed at the distance between towns. You almost could not hold an election without mail in balloting in many western United States.

Curious as to what you mean by how the ballot was interpreted?

 

[bbodb1]

Curious as to what you mean by how the ballot was interpreted?

As I noted earlier, and building off some of the earlier issues noted in this thread, wouldn't it be ideal to be able to see how your ballot was actually counted? Meaning that if your ballot had 10 different questions or races, you could log in and see how your ballot was counted (interpreted) for each of the 10 different questions or races.

This would help address concerns about stray marks invalidating a ballot, how did the computer actually count my response to each question or race on the ballot, were all of my responses actually recorded.....

 

[DeniseM]

Folks - Thank you for choosing the high road in this thread!

 

[Luanne]

As I noted earlier, and building off some of the earlier issues noted in this thread, wouldn't it be ideal to be able to see how your ballot was actually counted? Meaning that if your ballot had 10 different questions or races, you could log in and see how your ballot was counted (interpreted) for each of the 10 different questions or races.

This would help address concerns about stray marks invalidating a ballot, how did the computer actually count my response to each question or race on the ballot, were all of my responses actually recorded.....

In order for me to see how my vote was interpreted it would require a lot more than they track now. And honestly, I assume my ballot will be interpreted and counted correctly. I don't know the mechanism of how they track the ballot today, but it's mostly when the request was made online or received by mail, when the absentee ballot was mailed out, and when the ballot was received by the county clerk. That should be a simple check list type of thing. To actually go in and "read" the ballot would take a lot more programming.

 

[PigsDad]

Oregon has had vote by mail for all elections and voters for years. This year the State even paid the Postage. No big deal.

Same situation in Colorado. I haven't been to a polling place to vote in probably 20+ years.

Kurt

 

[Luanne]

The New Mexico Secretary of State wanted to send ballots out to all registered voters but was shot down by the courts. So instead they mailed our absentee ballot requests to all registered voters. I requested mine online. The ballot itself had the postage paid.

 

[Conan]

To get a mail-in/absentee ballot in Connecticut you need to certify (affirm? swear? I don’t recall the details) that you’ll be out of the State on Election Day. I’m hoping they’ll change that.

Edited to add: "False statement in absentee balloting is a class D felony."

 

[bbodb1]

In order for me to see how my vote was interpreted it would require a lot more than they track now. And honestly, I assume my ballot will be interpreted and counted correctly. I don't know the mechanism of how they track the ballot today, but it's mostly when the request was made online or received by mail, when the absentee ballot was mailed out, and when the ballot was received by the county clerk. That should be a simple check list type of thing. To actually go in and "read" the ballot would take a lot more programming.

But consider that functionality has to be occurring somewhere after the ballot is received ..... unless (and I hope this is NOT the case) the ballots are hand counted!..... (ewwww)

You know, just throwing ideas out here, if it were possible to post the results of each ballot read (but maintain ballot anonymity), what a possibility toward generating more open and honest elections.....

Hey, we're idea people here!

 

[isisdave]

I looked at the PA voting site and was surprised that there is no advice about what to do if you spoil your ballot.

In CA, the ballot is more like thin cardboard than paper. It has questions on both sides. The instructions say to use ball-point (not gel) black pen.

An instruction sheet is included, and both there and on the mail-in envelope it says what to do if you spoil (mis-mark) your ballot. In some counties you sign a different line on the envelope, enclose the ballot, and send it in for replacement. Other envelopes just say to call, and I've never had to do that.

I realize that your election is Tuesday and it's probably too late for that, so call your county election office and ask what to do!

@bbodb1, your suggestion (as I understand it) would compromise the secrecy of your ballot. When the clerk receives the sealed envelope, she verifies the name, address, and signature against your registration record; if it matches, the envelope is opened and the ballot removed (I think by machine in most places now). At that point the source of the ballot can no longer be identified.

 

[sue1947]

But consider that functionality has to be occurring somewhere after the ballot is received ..... unless (and I hope this is NOT the case) the ballots are hand counted!..... (ewwww)

You know, just throwing ideas out here, if it were possible to post the results of each ballot read (but maintain ballot anonymity), what a possibility toward generating more open and honest elections.....

Hey, we're idea people here!

"results of each ballot read (but maintain ballot anonymity)". I don't think is realistic. Somebody will hack into it at some point and ID who voted and how and that is a can of worms I don't want to open. Trust the people who run our elections to do a good job.

Sue

 

[bobpark56]

My first thought when black ink was mentioned - and bled through - was a Sharpie was used.
I've never had black Bic pens run through paper in my experience. @bobpark56 - just what kind of black pen were you using? Was the ballot printed on some sort of weird paper?

You got the Sharpie part right!