Early voting should be off the marquee
Maryland House and Senate Republicans issued a joint statement yesterday opposing the constitutional amendment authorizing early voting in Maryland. Ballot Question 1 authorizes voters to vote as early as ten days prior to Election Day, permits voters to vote outside of the district and precinct in which they are registered and authorizes absentee ballot on demand.
With allegations of voter registration fraud mounting in other jurisdictions across the country, safeguarding the legitimacy of this year’s election is a concern among party leaders.
House Minority Leader Anthony O’Donnell
“Early voting without the appropriate safeguards threatens the legitimacy of our elections. This amendment not only authorizes early voting but also allows people to vote anywhere in the State, regardless of where they were registered. Given that Maryland does not require photo identification for voting, this provision is ripe for fraud. We call on the citizens of Maryland to protect the integrity of their elections and reject this constitutional amendment.”
Furthermore,
“There has been no significant increase in voter turnout in those states that have implemented early voting,” said Senate Minority Leader Allan Kittleman. “Why take such a risk that could threaten the credibility of our voting system when there is little to no benefit? We cannot jeopardize the integrity of our elections merely for the purpose of convenience.”
“Maryland does not need early voting,” said Minority Whip Christopher Shank. “We already have provisions for absentee balloting. If you are unable to vote at the polls on Election Day you may request an absentee ballot and mail in your vote. This makes the entire early voting system both duplicative and unnecessary.”
“Early voting will push another unfunded mandate on local governments, requiring higher staffing and operational costs to open polling places for up to ten days prior to Election Day,” said Senate Minority Whip Nancy Jacobs. “As we saw in February’s Primary Election, local election boards are already having major difficulties finding election judges for a single Election Day. How are they going to be able to find them for additional days?”
Increasing operational costs have never been cause to derail any Democratic program presented to the public in Maryland.
But for the Democrats in the General Assembly in 2005 and 2006, who voted to increase opportunity for voter fraud by placing an amendment to the state constitution on the ballot, this decision borders on criminal behavior, especially when multiple jurisdictions across the nation are reporting record numbers of fraudulent new voter registrations on the eve of the most significant presidential election in recent history.
The fix could be in for the election itself, but the Maryland GOP is in agreement here: No changing the state constitution over early voting.
Now, if we can just get a fix on the principles, we might be able to start to repair the deficit….
