Trump vs. Governors: Vote-By-Mail

Trump’s failed response to coronavirus has been exacerbated by his refusal to work with the governors who are leading our country out of this public health crisis. These governors rightly refused to downplay the threat of the virus, and now they’re openly contradicting Trump on vote-by-mail.

Trump has increasingly isolated himself on vote-by-mail. Democratic and even some Republican governors agree vote-by-mail is an effective tool to help people safely exercise their right to vote. Like everything else in this pandemic, while Trump is lying for his own political benefit, governors are leading the way and saying vote-by-mail is the safest way to vote during a pandemic.

DELAWARE

New York Times: “Gov. John Carney postponed the Delaware presidential primary election to early June through a state of emergency declaration. ‘Delawareans have a basic, fundamental right to vote,’ Mr. Carney said in a statement. ‘Today’s order will preserve that right and allow Delawareans to vote by absentee ballot in the presidential primary on June 2.’ Mr. Carney’s order allows voters concerned about the coronavirus to request an absentee ballot.”

NEW YORK

Wall Street Journal: “Any New York voter will be able to request an absentee ballot for elections in June, an expansion of mail-in voting by Gov. Andrew Cuomo in response to the coronavirus outbreak.”

NEW JERSEY

Philadelphia Inquirer: “In recent weeks, Gov. Phil Murphy has moved to protect voters from being exposed to the coronavirus while carrying out a civic duty. Local elections scheduled in April and May were rescheduled to May 12, Murphy said in mid-March. He ordered them to be held exclusively through vote-by-mail.”

RHODE ISLAND

New York Times: “‘Last week, the Board of Elections requested that the presidential primary election be postponed from April 28 to June 2 and that the election take place primarily by mail ballot,’ Ms. Raimondo said on Twitter. ‘I am following the advice of the Board of Elections, and will sign an executive order to do this.’”

MAINE

Portland Press Herald: “‘Everybody, to a person, remains very concerned about in-person voting on June 9,’ Mills said during a briefing on the state’s response to the pandemic. She said the state would try to reduce person-to-person contact by promoting absentee voting and perhaps using federal funds to put up protective barriers, such as the screens used in many retail stores, to protect voters and election officials in some polling places.”

CALIFORNIA

Los Angeles Times: “California is headed toward its first all-mail statewide election in November to protect voters and precinct workers from the pugnacious coronavirus. … Gov. Gavin Newsom hasn’t announced that California will hold an all-mail election in November, but insiders expect him to soon. … Newsom ordered two special elections on May 12 to be be all-mail events.”

VIRGINIA

Politico: “Northam, Virginia’s Democratic governor, signed a series of bills that make sweeping changes to expand voter access in the state. Virginia is now a no-excuse state for absentee voting, striking a requirement that voters who want to vote absentee have a valid excuse.”

ILLINOIS

Chicago Tribune: “At a recent news conference, Pritzker said increased mail-in voting may be necessary in November. ‘I do think that we’re going to have to look at, for the general election, the idea that we may have to move to a significant amount, or maybe all mail-in ballots, or at least giving people the opportunity to do that,’ he said.”

NEW MEXICO

Governor Lujan Grisham: “I remain confident our state’s primary election can be conducted almost entirely if not entirely through mail to ensure the safest possible exercise of New Mexicans’ right to vote.”

LOUISIANA

The Advocate: “Edwards, during a press conference Tuesday, endorsed an emergency election plan offered by Ardoin to extend early voting from a week to 13 days and expand absentee voting to people affected by the coronavirus, among other measures. The plan, which is slated for a vote by the House and Senate governmental affairs committees Wednesday at the State Capitol, allows several categories of people who don’t normally qualify for absentee ballots to cast their vote by mail.”

KENTUCKY

Louisville Courier Journal: “Gov. Andy Beshear said Wednesday he wants to move forward with plans to expand mail-in voting for Kentucky’s primary because of concerns about the pandemic, though President Donald Trump criticized states pursuing that option. ‘It’s something that I believe for the primary we have to not only be looking very seriously at; we’ve got to be moving forward with the plans for it,’ Beshear said.”

NEVADA

Las Vegas Sun: “[Gov. Steve] Sisolak said the decision to conduct the mail-in voting was unanimous among Cegavske and the county election officials. ‘I will respect her decision as it relates to that,’ Sisolak said.”

NEW HAMPSHIRE

Washington Post: “‘Basically, if you feel more comfortable voting absentee because of the outbreak or your inability or nervousness about just appearing in person to vote, you can vote absentee and obtain an absentee ballot,’ said New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu as he announced Thursday that the state will allow voters to cite the virus as an excuse to cast a mail-in ballot in November.”

MARYLAND

Boston Globe: “On Friday, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, a Republican, ratified the state’s plan to conduct its June 2 primary by mail.”

OHIO

Associated Press: “In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine and Secretary of State Frank LaRose, both Republicans, this week urged the state’s voters to cast ballots via mail in the April 28 primary. The contest was shifted to virtually all-mail last month as the virus outbreak worsened.”

Statehouse News Bureau: “Ohio officials say the state’s vote-by-mail process is safe and not corrupt, in contrast to President Donald Trump’s recent comments during a press briefing and on Twitter. … ‘You know we postponed the election or we expanded the election basically because we didn’t think it was safe, but yes it’s safe for people to vote in Ohio and we’re asking them to do that,’ says DeWine.”

MASSACHUSETTS

Boston Globe: “In Massachusetts, Governor Charlie Baker signed legislation last month allowing communities to do mail-only or expanded absentee voting for all state and local elections through June.”

IDAHO

Idaho Statesman: “With the entire state under a stay-at-home order, coronavirus still surging and Idaho’s primary election just seven weeks away, Gov. Brad Little and Secretary of State Lawerence Denney announced Monday that the election will take place as scheduled with one caveat: People must vote by mail. … ‘Voting absentee is the right thing to do under these circumstances … ,’ Denney said.”

NEBRASKA

Associated Press: “Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts, a Republican, is urging all voters to request absentee ballots for next month’s primary.”