Tag Archives: absentee voting

Mail-in voting does not cause fraud, but judges are buying the GOP’s argument that it does

Penny Venetis, Rutgers University Newark

The Trump campaign and the Republican National Committee filed lawsuits recently against New Jersey and Nevada to prevent expansive vote-by-mail efforts in those states.

These high-profile lawsuits make the same argument that Republicans have made in many lesser-known lawsuits that were filed around the country during the primary season. In all of these lawsuits, Republicans argue that voting by mail perpetuates fraud – an argument President Donald Trump makes daily, on various media platforms. Continue reading →

‘Just Comes Out and Says It’: Trump Declares Postal Service Can’t Handle Mail-In Voting Because He’s Blocking Funding

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“This is crazy by any standard. The president of the United States is actively trying to sabotage the election.”

By Jake Johnson, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 8-13-2020

President Donald Trump answers a reporter’s question during a news conference Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2020. Photo: White House/flickr

President Donald Trump proclaimed Wednesday that the U.S. Postal Service doesn’t have the capacity to handle an unprecedented increase in mail-in ballots because it lacks funds that his administration is blocking, remarks that were immediately viewed as an open admission of election sabotage by a president who has previously called USPS “a joke.”

During his daily Covid-19 briefing Wednesday evening, Trump dismissed Democratic congressional leaders’ demands for $3.5 billion in election assistance for states and $25 billion for USPS as “ridiculous” and vowed to continue blocking the funds. While USPS leadership insists it has “ample capacity” to meet election needs, postal workers have warned that without emergency funding, the agency could struggle to deliver mail-in ballots on time in November. Continue reading →

‘A Conspiracy to Steal the Election, Folks’: Alarms Sound After Postal Worker Reports Removal of Sorting Machines

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The removal of key equipment from Post Offices should be viewed as nothing less than “sabotage,” said one observer.

By Jake Johnson, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 8-12-2020

Flat sorter machine. Photo: USPS

The head of the Iowa Postal Workers Union alleged Tuesday that mail sorting machines are “being removed” from Post Offices in her state due to new policies imposed by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a major GOP donor to President Donald Trump whose operational changes have resulted in dramatic mail slowdowns across the nation.

Asked by NPR‘s Noel King whether she has felt the impact of DeJoy’s changes, Iowa Postal Workers Union President Kimberly Karol—a 30-year Postal Service veteran—answered in the affirmative, saying “mail is beginning to pile up in our offices, and we’re seeing equipment being removed.” Continue reading →

Watchdog Groups Demand Probe Into ‘Voter Suppression Tactics’ by Postal Service Chief—and Major Trump Donor—Louis DeJoy

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“In his first month on the job, the postmaster general has already taken steps that could undermine efficient voting by mail in November.”

By Jake Johnson, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 7-31-2020

Screenshot: YouTube

Government watchdog groups are demanding that the Senate launch an investigation into “potential voter suppression tactics” by recently appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, a major GOP donor whose operational changes at the U.S. Postal Service have slowed mail delivery across the nation and sparked concerns about mail-in ballots in upcoming elections.

“In his first month on the job, the postmaster general has already taken steps that could undermine efficient voting by mail in November,” wrote Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and Common Cause Wisconsin in a letter (pdf) to Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, which has jurisdiction over USPS. Continue reading →

Trump’s Election Delay Threat Is a Coup in the Making

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Trump’s tweet was a shocking display of his authoritarian impulses and his very serious consideration of means to de-legitimize the November election in order to maintain his grip on power, no matter what.

By Robert Weissman Published 7-30-2020 by Common Dreams

Photo: Gage Skidmore/flickr/CC

Earlier today, U.S. President Donald Trump floated by tweet the idea of delaying the November elections.

This is a coup in the making.

Trump’s tweet—now pinned at the top of his Twitter account—says that “Universal Mail-In Voting” means that “2020 will be the most INACCURATE & FRAUDULENT Election in history.” Thus, he asks, “Delay the Election until people can properly, securely and safely vote???”

Continue reading →

Voting Rights Advocates Warn of Impending ‘Disaster’ in Kentucky After Bid to Increase Slashed Number of Polling Sites Fails

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Jefferson County has a population of roughly 767,000 and will have just one polling location.

By Andrea Germanos, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 6-20-2020

Photo: Big Dubya/flickr

Voting rights advocates sounded alarm Friday after a federal judge denied an effort to expand the number of polling places in Kentucky.

The state, which holds a primary election on June 23 in which Democrats will determine the candidate to face off against Sen. Mitch McConnell, will have “[f]ewer than 200 polling places,” reported the Washington Post, “down from 3,700 in a typical election year.” Continue reading →

Federal Judge Upholds Expanded Absentee Ballot Law in Virginia, Blocking Right-Wing Group’s Attempt at Voter Suppression

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“No voter should have to choose between their health and their right to vote during the pandemic.”

By Julia Conley, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 6-1-2020

Photo: Tom Arthur [CC BY-SA 2.0] via Wikimedia Commons

Civil rights advocates applauded a victory for voting rights Monday after a federal judge denied a right-wing group’s request to restrict the use of absentee ballots in Virginia.

The Lawyer’s Committee for Civil Rights Under Law argued last week in favor of upholding the law, passed by Democratic legislators in February, which would allow Virginia voters to use absentee ballots in the 2020 election without providing an excuse. Continue reading →

Growing Number of COVID-19 Cases in Wisconsin Fuels National Demands for Vote-by-Mail

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“Congress is running out of time to ensure that the chaos that happened in Wisconsin doesn’t unfold on a national scale come November.”

By Jessica Corbett, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 4-27-2020

Photo: Don Moynihan/flickr

The increasing number of COVID-19 cases among people who voted in-person for Wisconsin’s April 7 election is fueling demands for Congress to help fund the implementation of expanded vote-by-mail provisions in every state for the rest of this year, particularly for the nation’s general election scheduled for November.

“So far, 36 people who tested COVID-19 positive after April 9 have reported that they voted in person or worked the polls on election day,” Jennifer Miller, a spokeswoman for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, told Politico Monday As the outlet reported: Continue reading →

Calling US Postal Service ‘A Joke,’ Trump Demands Four-Fold Price Hike for Customers Amid Covid-19 Pandemic

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Such a move, say critics, “would be a disaster for millions of Americans who rely on USPS.”

By Jessica Corbett, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 4-24-2020

Postal workers and critics of the Trump administration’s plans to privatize the United States Postal Service (USPS) carried signs at a Los Angeles protest on Oct. 8, 2018. (Photo: Chloe Osmer/Twitter)

President Donald Trump on Friday threatened to withhold all future Covid-19 relief funding from the U.S. Postal Service unless the federal agency dramatically raises its shipping prices—a demand that critics say is ludicrous given the economic calamity the American people and the post office are now facing.

After U.S. Secretary Steven Mnuchin fielded a question about relief funding for USPS from a reporter at the White House during a bill signing ceremony Friday, Trump declared that “the Postal Service is a joke, because they’re handing out packages for Amazon and other internet companies, and every time they bring a package they lose money on it.” Continue reading →

‘A Day That Will Live in Infamy’: This Is What It Looked Like When Wisconsin Forced In-Person Voting During a Pandemic

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“People are being forced to risk their lives to place their vote or fulfill their right as an American to vote.”

By Jessica Corbett, staff writer for Common Dreams. Published 4-7-2020

Photo: Don Moynihan/flickr

As footage of Wisconsin’s crowded polling stations flooded the internet Tuesday, public health officials and civil rights advocates condemned the state’s Supreme Court and Republican legislative leaders for allowing in-person voting during the coronavirus pandemic and thwarting Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ last-minute efforts to address voter safety concerns.

“It’s not going to be a safe election. People are going to get sick from this,” Brook Soltvedt, a 60-year-old textbook editor who is in charge of running the polling place at Thoreau Elementary School in Madison, Wisconsin’s capital, told The Cap Times. Continue reading →

Occupy World Writes

The Movement Continues – Globally

Tag Archives: absentee voting