According to reports so far, there were no major glitches in last Tuesday’s elections in Mississippi — no serious allegations of hacking into voting machines or otherwise manipulating them to affect the outcome.
But there were long lines at some precincts, and the lack of a paper trail in many of them could have raised questions in races where there were razor-thin margins, such as the Senate race in Florida.
Although Tuesday’s turnout was larger than usual for a midterm election, it was still less than what it will be in next year’s statewide elections and the 2020 elections, when the president will be on the ballot.
In many Mississippi counties the touch screen voting machines may seem reliable, but the lack of any paper backup still makes them vulnerable, especially as they age. And with any electronic equipment there is always the possibility of malfunction or total breakdown.
For these reasons and others — including convenience to voters and savings in replacing old equipment — Mississippi should start moving toward early voting with mail-in ballots.
The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that at least “22 states have provisions allowing certain elections to be conducted entirely by mail. For these elections, all registered voters receive a ballot in the mail. The voter marks the ballot, puts it in a secrecy envelope or sleeve and then into a separate mailing envelope, signs an affidavit on the exterior of the mailing envelope, and returns the package via mail or by dropping it off.”
Two states, Oregon and Washington, hold all elections by mail. In Colorado all voters are mailed a ballot, but they can choose to vote at an in-person center during the early voting period or on election day.
Nineteen other states, not including Mississippi, have some form of balloting by mail.
Actually, there are a few votes cast by mail in Mississippi, so it isn’t an entirely revolutionary idea. Voters included within the Uniform and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act, including members of the military and overseas citizens, may vote by mail in this state.
NCSL reports that “generally, states begin with providing all-mail elections only in certain circumstances, and then add additional opportunities as citizens become familiar with procedures. Oregon’s vote-by-mail timeline includes four times that the Legislature acted prior to the 1998 citizens’ vote that made Oregon the first all-mail election state.”
Plenty of arguments can be made for and against the idea.
Some of the advantages listed by NCSL include voter convenience and satisfaction, financial savings by eliminating polling stations and voter turnout.
Possible disadvantages include tradition (it removes the civic experience of voting with neighbors at a polling place), security concerns and the cost of printing paper ballots.
There are other arguments on both sides.
Balloting by mail isn’t something Mississippi should jump neck deep into at once, and given the reluctance in this tradition-bound state to change anything, it won’t do that. But it is an idea worth trying.
