Thank you for everything you’re doing to help flip Florida for Biden/Harris. I just checked my spreadsheet, and you’ve collectively picked up more than 19,000 postcards from my front porch. Incredible effort. More importantly, Florida Democrats now lead Republicans by almost 700,000 Vote by Mail requests.
On the topic of postal service delays: Like you, I have been growing concerned about what this Administration is doing to the USPS in advance of the elections. I’ve been questioning the wisdom of encouraging voters to register to vote by mail if the ballots are not going to get delivered in time.
While I have no more insight than any of you do, here are my thoughts on this topic:
- It seems to me that the volume of mail represented by requests for ballots or the ballots themselves is quite small compared to the total volume of mail being handled by the USPS. Think of how many pieces of mail and packages you receive on an average day. If you’re in an area with a competitive campaign, you’ll be flooded with mailings by the candidates. I struggle to see how the ballot materials will overwhelm the system.
- I am sure that the individual postal workers will do everything in their power to get the applications and ballots delivered on time and securely. They are on our side. And we should be on theirs.
- That’s not to say that I think that the Administration isn’t trying to slow down the mail. But I suspect that their actual goal is to spread fear, doubt, and uncertainty so that people don’t trust the system. This, to me, is most concerning. (They’ve been cultivating mistrust in many governmental institutions over the past 4 years. All part of a pattern.)
- What we’re encouraging Floridians to do is to register for VBM. This will give them a CHOICE. If the pandemic is in full swing in October, having their ballot in hand with the option to vote by mail will be absolutely critical.
- I suspect that there will be a major push to encourage voters to mail their ballots as early as possible to blunt any impact of a postal system slowdown.
- In many communities, voters can drop off their ballots at their town/city halls instead of mailing them.
- I trust paper ballots over fully electronic voting machines. Paper ballot scanners: OK. Touch-screen: Not OK.
- For these reasons, I decided to order additional postcards.