Bloomberg Businessweek - USA (2020-09-07)

61

BLOOMBERG BUSINESSWEEK

4. THE VOTE

YES

TO

1

AND

ANY

2

OF

2-4

NO

TO

1

AND

ANY

1

OF

2-4

VOTERS

SUCCEED

AT

VOTING

BY

MAIL

Good

news:

Large

numbers

of

voters

are

able

to

vote

by

mail

successfully,

which

should

reduce

the

burden

on

polling

places

and

ensure

that

people

are

able

to

vote

on

Nov.

3,

even

if

there

is

a

last-minute

spike

in

coronavirus

cases

in

their

area.

VOTERS

STRUGGLE

TO

VOTE

BY

MAIL

Many

voters

struggle

to

vote

by

mail,

meaning

they

will

end

up

having

to

vote

on

Election

Day,

leading

to

longer

lines

at

polling

places.

Those

who

mailed

their

ballots

late,

forgot

to

sign,

or

had

a

signature

that

didn’t

match

the

one

on

file

risk

not

having

their

votes

counted

at

all.

3.

Voters

remember

to

sign

their

ballots

and

ballot

envelopes

and

return

the

ballots

promptly.

4.

There

are

drop

boxes

for

ballots

in

many

communities,

and

they’re

distributed

equitably.

YES

Ballot distribution is smooth, which means the ballots can be returned faster.

NO

Lower-staffed election offices, in particular, aren’t able to

process a flood of applications. Ballot distribution is slow.

Some would-be mail-in voters decide to vote in person instead,

increasing the risk of long lines on Nov. 3.

N O

Many more ballots than usual are disqualified for lack of a signature, arriving late, or other technical problems.

YES

Voters take extra care.

YES

Officials collect more ballots from drop boxes.

NO

Fewer drop boxes mean voters don’t have as many options to return their ballots.