I don't know if you received it , but I was most interested in a mailer I received today. I had heard about these offers to assist you in voting, but I had never received one. This particular mailer was oversized, colored, and I'm certain, expensive. It was sent out and paid for by RGA Wisconsin 2010 PAC from Washington D.C. In case you didn't receive it, let me list a few phrases from it:
Vote early by mail
Easy - Secure - Hassle Free - Private
Wisconsin allows any registered voter to VOTE EARLY by mail.
Wisconsin law allows all voters to cast an absentee ballot, meaning you can vote by mail from the comfort of your own home.
I thought that absentee ballots were for those people who were out of town or out of the country on the day of elections, or those who were physically unable to go to a polling place.
What really throws me for a loop is this. The form contains two pre-addressed cards to send to the City of Kiel. It reminds the requestor to apply a stamp. The city, however, when it receives the card must send the ballot to the requestor and pay $ .44 postage and enclose $ .44 postage for the requestor to return it. Therefore, the cost of elections for that voter has gone up $ .88 and that does not include the labor in the process. The local government entity cannot reduce their polling cost expenses, and therefore, this
mail-in voting is just a cost increase.
After doing some research, I found that RGA stands for the Republican Governors Association. I would like to learn more about them and their budget.
Unless this mail-in process is really handled well, I just see it as another vote-early and vote-often opportunity.
In discussing this with a friend of mine in the state of Oregon, he advised that their voting process is done completely by mail. It is also not a flawless process. My friend received his ballot in the mail today, but he also got a ballot for his nephew who lived with him in Oregon for a short time two years ago. His nephew no longer lives in Oregon. If my friend would have desired to vote twice, he could have. (He did not - he shredded it.) I'm sure there were many more errors like this.
This whole scenario tells me that the pendulum has swung too far. To vote should be an honor and a right. If it takes some effort, that only makes it more valuable!
