Editor’s note: This commentary is by Sue Racanelli of East Montpelier, president of the League of Women Voters of Vermont.
The League of Women Voters, a national nonpartisan organization committed to the responsibility and right of all citizens to vote, stands in favor of the facilitation of mail-in balloting and supports funding levels for the U.S. Postal Service in the U.S. House HEROES Act.
This includes the assurance that every voter can access no-excuse absentee vote-by-mail in federal elections. Not every voter will choose to vote by mail, but the League of Women Voters of Vermont advocates for the right of voters to vote by mail and trust that their ballot will be received on time.
This year, because of the coronavirus, the Postal Service will play an important role in the election as more Americans will opt to vote by mail, receiving and casting their ballots by mail. To do this, we require a fully functioning U.S. Postal Service.
No voter should have to choose between protecting their health and safety and exercising their constitutional right to vote because our government did not fully fund the mechanics that would support their choice to vote at home: the U.S. Postal Service.
The Postal Service is an essential public service that has been on the frontlines of our nation, serving each and every American household. It remains a trusted agency with the American public and delivering absentee ballots is nothing new for it. It is just ONE of the essential functions it performs.
For more than two centuries, American voters in rural communities and people with disabilities have relied on the U.S. Postal Service to vote in every election. The USPS also processes hundreds of millions of absentee ballots from uniformed service members and U.S. citizens living abroad and supports five states (Colorado, Hawaii, Oregon, Utah and Washington) with their mail-in elections. Just as it does for traditionally busy times like the holiday season and Mother’s Day, the postal service can scale its work around the November elections. According to the Election Assistance Commission, about a quarter of ballots cast in the 2018 general elections nationwide were by mail. Undermining the Postal Service’s ability to do its work is a serious blow to democracy.
The recent developments, from attacks on vote-by-mail to scaling back USPS, forecast that this election season could be a long road. The structural changes Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has implemented are creating chaos that is drastically slowing efficiency and services of post offices nationwide, including cutting hours of operation at local branches, changing longstanding delivery protocols, disbanding executives, cutting hours for postal workers, and eliminating equipment used to process mail. Last week at congressional hearings, Postmaster General DeJoy indicated that the USPS would not change the handling of election mail during the 2020 November election. What we are seeing from the postmaster general right now is nothing short of modern-day voter suppression.
This is unacceptable.
Congress must fully fund this government agency and protect our mail infrastructure, ensuring elections in the United States remain free, fair, and accessible.
The League of Women Voters urges Vermonters to take action and contact our Washington delegation: Congressman Peter Welch, Senator Bernie Sanders and Senator Patrick Leahy. Tell them we must protect the Postal Service, prevent its core functions from being undercut, and fully fund the U.S. Postal Service. Voice your support of the proposed federal legislation that will ensure the United States Postal Service will be operating at full capacity now and during the elections.
Peter Welch: welch.house.gov/contact or call 888-605-7270
Bernie Sanders: sanders.senate.gov/contact or call 800-339-9834
Pat Leahy: leahy.senate.gov/contact or call 800-642-3193
