The bill working it’s way through the California Assembly to
make San Benito County a test site for all-mail elections is worth
passing.
The bill working it’s way through the California Assembly to make San Benito County a test site for all-mail elections is worth passing.
Pundits, politicians and political watchers have long bemoaned the slide in voter participation. Now, AB 867 would make San Benito and six other counties guinea pigs for all-mail elections – a test aimed at increasing voter turnout and lowering election costs. The test run would last until through 2011, at which time the state would analyze the results and decide whether to make it a statewide program.
The bill was inspired by the success of Oregon’s all-mail ballot instituted in 1998. It’s success there makes it worthy of trying here. Our neighbor to the north was 10th in the nation for voter turnout before going to the mail ballot system, and had the fourth-highest voter turnout afterwards.
In San Benito County, 78 percent of voters have gone to polls during an exciting or heated a race. Other races, however, only draw 40 of voters to the polls. Also, a typical election costs San Benito County about $50,000. The all-mail system would shave an estimated 30 percent off that bill.
Still, there are a number of concerns that must be adequately addressed to make this a success. There seems to be a potential for general sloppiness when turning ballots over to the United States Postal Service, not the most efficient of government agencies. So, we want clear guidelines to address:
A process to verify that ballots are received
The post office’s ability to handle the increase in mail
Delivering the ballots to elections officials in a timely fashion
With those precautions in place, a test run to see how the system would work seems to be an experiment worth trying. Voting by mail would mean people could cast their vote on their own schedules without having to take time out of their busy workday to go to the polls or stand in long lines once they get there. It also would mean people could study the issues and cast their votes in the privacy of their homes without feeling rushed.
The possibility of increasing voter turnout and cutting down on election costs in our county make this a worthwhile experiment. If it does work, then we will have done a valuable public service for ourselves and the state of California. If doesn’t, San Benito can return to punch cards in 2011.
