Lauren WeinsteinThanks to Trump, something like 75% of the post offices in the U.S. will no longer give a postmark on the day a letter or package is mailed (unless you wait in line at the post office and ask for one specifically at the counter). If you're not within 50 miles of a major sorting center, you lose. If your mail-in ballot requires a postmark by election day, and you mail it on election day, and you're in one of the Loser post offices, your vote won't count. Anything else tied to a postmark date will be similarly affected. Trump's new mail policy for the Loser post offices: All the outbound mail sits at the post office until the next morning, and won't be routinely postmarked until it reaches a sorting center then.
PC@lauren Why is a mail-in system needed? Is it that far in between the places where you can go and vote?
Ben S.@PC_se @lauren you may not be able to stand in line for several hours if you are disabled or immunocompromised, have a job that won't let you (or that you can't afford to) skip out on, live in a place without decent public transportation, don't have a polling place within several miles or with lines short enough to vote in, etc. - each of which are very common circumstances in the US due to public policy heavily favoring the investor class and minority repression.
@PC_se @lauren I forgot to mention that we also have little time and poor capacity to understand politics because we are all distracted by work while downing in medical and educational debt, while also poorly educated and inundated by propaganda from news and social media that has been captured by billionaires. Everyone here *feels* that something is deeply wrong, but half of us are convinced by the rich that it's caused by the existence of brown and trans people.
@HunterZ @lauren It was very noticeable during last election. Less than half of the population that is allowed to vote did vote. And worse! Is that Trump had less than 50% of the votes from those who voted. That's a clear sign that your system does not work. When less than a forth of the people can vote someone into office in a country that is a major player in the global politics and affects all lives in Europe depending on who gets picked. That's extremely serious failure of a system.
@PC_se @lauren yes, our society has been badly corroded by greed, and now we're flirting with decent into fascism and authoritarianism as a means of keeping the poor and working classes in line. It's terrifying. We can't even be 100% certain that there will be another presidential election. Meanwhile, states are leaning into gerrymandering in order to entrench their positions.
I don't know if we'll collectively wake up before it's too late to keep this ship from sinking. I hope so.
@PC_se @HunterZ Another issue is that elections in the U.S. virtually always take place during ordinary workdays, that is, Tuesdays. There is no federal law requiring workers be given time off to vote. About half the states have laws about this, that vary widely in particulars (paid? unpaid? how much time? etc.) making use of those laws risky at best for many workers.
@lauren @PC_se it's so frustratingly hypocritical that we structure all this stuff in a way that creates so much friction on voting, and then complain about poor voter turnout.
Mail-in voting lets folks fill out ballots on their own time. You can even fill them out incrementally and do research as you go.