Washingtonian Mail by a Washingtonian Male

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By Evan Shelton

In case you have not heard, America is having an election this year. I imagine most readers know but since about 100 million Americans did not vote in 2016, I feel it is worth reminding people. As we near this upcoming election and as COVID19 continues to loom large in our daily lives, voting by mail has come under increased scrutiny and debate.

First off, please know that as a Washingtonian, I am bias. Very bias. You see, Washingtonians have been voting by mail for 15 years. Democrats and Republicans love it. It is immensely popular, easy to do, free and SAFE! The result is higher turnout, more accurate counts and less voter fraud.

Immensely popular? You better believe it. The largely conservative driven attack on voting by mail is not shared by Washingtonians. Even conservative Washingtonians. There is simply too much evidence of the eyes and ears to deny the benefits of voting by mail. Further, Washington’s current Secretary of State, Kim Wyman—who oversees elections—is a Republican and avid supporter of voting by mail.

But how easy is it? Really easy. Like really easy. Washington also has automatic registration so upon being eligible to vote, your ballot is sent to your known address along with a voter’s guide. The ballot is as easy as any standardized test to fill out and requires a signature on the outside of the envelope. That’s it. Then either drop it in any mailbox or walk it to your nearest ballot drop box.

Free you say? Yes, free. Our ballots come with prepaid postage. But maybe you are having trouble finding a mailbox? Like maybe some corrupt politician hires a CEO of a competitor of USPS as Postmaster General, and that guy starts removing mailboxes (just speaking hypothetically). Well, that is not so bad in Washington. We can just drop our ballot off at one of the many ballot drop boxes. And I do mean many. In Thurston County—population 290,000, there are 29 drop boxes. They are in outside public areas and open 24 hours a day.

But how safe can it be? Very safe and in more ways than one. Not only does voting by mail help constituents stay safe by avoiding crowded polling stations during a pandemic but there is also less fraud. Despite what many politicians would lead Americans to believe, voting by mail is way more secure than voting in person. Right off the bat, it spreads out the votes being received by the counters. Arriving in a steady stream over weeks rather than a rush in a few days. It also prevents polling stations from closing early, opening late or creating barriers for people of certain backgrounds or ethnicities. A recent study found that the likelihood of fraud committed by voting by mail was 0.0025%.

So here we Washingtonians are, yet again. Staring east with a feeling of deep confusion. Voting by mail is popular, easy, free and safe and every Washingtonian, conservative and liberal alike seem to see this.

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