This past Sunday, we asked readers of The Spy to share views about voting in 2020. We received a strong response from the readers and picked up divided views in the community based on party preferences.
First, readers responded to the question of just how they would prefer to vote. Overall, 62% were strongly or somewhat in favor of voting with a mail in ballot. And, 48% strongly favored vote by mail. When it came to voting at their polling place, 21% were strongly or somewhat favorable among all respondents.
However, the differences based on political party preferences were considerable. 75% of Democrats favored voting by mail with only 11% favoring voting in their polling place. With Republicans, 27% favored mail ballots to 62% who favored voting in their polling place.
There was agreement across the board about not changing the date of the election (99%).
There is similar agreement about voting with 100% of Democrats indicating they are extremely likely to vote and 93% of Republicans indicating extremely likely.
The comments had one common theme. “This is the most important election in my lifetime,” was the most often used phrase regardless of how people expressed themselves regarding support or opposition to the President. And, it was the President that all who commented focused on.
Feels like this will be an election for the record books from our perspective!
Richard Skinner says
Thank you for providing the opportunity to glean public attitudes about the coming election. Set aside the partisanship that is a dominant force in American politics, one that does not brook a diversity of views so much as consigns persons who disagree about what the past nearly-four years have been about. i do not think it too much to suggest that what is at stake in the 2020 election is as much about democracy itself as it is about Democrat, Republican and Independent. There are those who see in the recent past the need to express a clear voice against and resistant to the large-scale social, economic and political change taking place in America, just as there are some who see much-needed change to expand the rights of citizens which have, in their eyes, been thwarted by their fellow citizens’ champion. It will be a consequential election, one that will lead those who come behind us wondering, “What were the stakes?” For me, the stakes are democracy.
Mike Huffstetler says
Voting by absentee ballot is fine because the voter affirmatively requests the ballot and his/her name and address and signature are verified to be consistent with the existing voter registration records in order for that person to receive an absentee ballot.
Voting by mailing out absentee ballots, or worse yet, actual ballots, to all individuals on “known to be inaccurate” voter registration lists is an invitation for fraud, total chaos and total confusion on election night.
The reason the vast majority of Democrats are in favor of this approach is that they don’t care if VP Joe Biden & Senator Kamala Harris steal the election from President Donald Trump & VP Mike Pence, as long as President Trump is out of power. To the Democrats, all that matters is power, not fairness!
I challenge any person who opposes such to give me one valid reason, based on the voting requirements of the US Constitution (i.e., being a US Citizen and having attained the age of 18), why a National Voter ID is not required to vote in the US (Note: stealing an election is not a valid reason, nor is purported voter suppression, which we all know is complete nonsense)? That National Voter ID should be required to vote in person or by mail (by sending a copy along with your absentee ballot).
Its time, once and for all, to end the inconsistent voting requirements among different states, especially with respect to a Presidential or Congressional election! With a National Voter ID we could actually have universal mail-in voting without the concern of fraud, corruption, chaos and confusion!