Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS -- (Senate - September 29, 2006)
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By Mr. WYDEN (for himself, Mr. KERRY, and Mr. OBAMA):
S. 4018. A bill to establish a Vote by Mail grant program; to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, when many Americans think of voting, they think of long lines, malfunctioning equipment, closed polls, or even worse, fraud. That's why so many Americans don't bother to vote. But in my home State of Oregon, folks vote by mail and these sorts of problems are a thing of the past.
So today I come to the floor to talk about the sorry state of the Nation's election system and discuss my bill, the Vote by Mail Act of 2006.
There is nothing more fundamental than the right to vote. It is the foundation on which our democracy rests. Weaken the right to vote and you weaken America.
It's been almost 6 years since the 2000 Florida hanging chad debacle. And yet, problems with America's election system--and waning confidence in that system--persist.
This year's primary elections were no exception to the rule:
In Montgomery County, MD, polling places opened late because election officials forgot to distribute the access cards necessary to run the voting machines. Voters resorted to filling out provisional ballots and when those ran out, they used photocopied ballots and even scraps of paper.
Next door, in Prince George's County, MD, a handful of errors--computers incorrectly identifying voters' party affiliation, electronic voter registration lists freezing up, and voting machines failing to transmit data--delayed results of a hotly contested election and may result in a lawsuit.
Long lines, a lack of machines at certain polling places, and other irregularities cast a black mark on Ohio's 2004 Presidential election results. Unfortunately, this year's primary elections were also plagued by problems. In Cuyahoga County, Ohio's largest county, thousands of absentee ballots were incorrectly formatted for electronic scanners and had to be counted by hand. And problems with about 10 percent of the paper ballots cast meant that they couldn't be counted at all.
In Cook County, IL, new voting technology created headaches at hundreds of voting sites around the county, which delayed results in a decisive county board race.
And in Tarrant County, TX, voting machines counted ballots as many as six times, which meant that 100,000 more votes were recorded than were actually cast.
These are just a few recent examples of election system snafus that have raised concerns about voting system accuracy and reliability, concerns that have led some states to reconsider their election plans.
Last week, Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich suggested that the state scrap its new electronic voting system and return to paper ballots. Earlier this year, Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico got rid of his touch-screen voting machines. Connecticut's Secretary of State did the same. Both states have decided to use paper ballots and optical scanners instead of electronic machines.
But as Florida reminds us, paper isn't perfect either and right now--electronic or paper--you can expect there to be lot of problems come November 7th.
Hopefully, these problems won't affect the outcome of any election. I sure hope they don't. But whether they do or not, the Election Day problems that I expect will plague states and counties around the nation will push voter confidence in our election system further into the basement.
It's too late for Congress to do much of anything to fix the problem before the 2006 elections. But we can do something to make sure these problems don't arise ever again.
So today, along with my esteemed colleagues, Senator JOHN KERRY of Massachusetts and Senator BARACK OBAMA of Illinois, I am introducing the Vote by Mail Act of 2006, a bill that will make Election Day problems a thing of the past and quickly and effectively reinvigorate Americans' confidence in their election system and in their democracy.
The bill creates a three year, $110 million grant program to help interested states adopt vote by mail election systems like the one that Oregon voters have been successfully using for some time now.
It's a pretty simple system. Voters get their ballots in the mail. Wherever and whenever they would like, right up to Election Day, voters complete their ballots and return them.
With vote by mail, polls don't open late.
With vote by mail, there aren't any long lines at the polls.
With vote by mail, there's no more confusion about where you are supposed to vote.
There's no more debate about whether you are on the voting rolls--either you get the ballot in the mail, or you don't. If you don't, you have time to contact your election officials to sort it out.
Vote by mail means almost no chance of voter fraud because trained election officials match the signature on each ballot against the signature on each voter's registration card.
No ballot is processed or counted until everyone is satisfied that the two signatures match.
With vote by mail, you've got a paper trail. Each voter marks up his ballot and sends it in. That ballot is counted and then becomes the paper record used in the event of a recount.
With vote by mail, there's much less risk of voter intimidation. That's why a 2003 study of Oregon voters showed that those groups that would likely be most vulnerable to coercion actually prefer vote by mail.
Vote by mail results in more informed voters. Because folks get their ballots weeks before the election, they have the time they need to get educated about the candidates and the issues, and deliberate in a way not possible at a polling place.
Vote by mail leads to huge election costs savings because it gets rid of the need to transport equipment to polling stations and to hire and train poll workers. Oregon has reduced its election-related costs by 30 percent since implementing vote by mail. I expect that other states that adopt vote by mail will see the same results.
Vote by mail can help make the problems of recent elections a thing of the past. In doing so, it will make our elections fairer and help reinstill faith in our democracy.
Vote by mail works. And that's why Senator KERRY and Senator OBAMA and I are introducing the Vote by Mail Act of 2006 today.
It gives States funds that they can use to make the transition away from the traditional voting methods that have led to so many problems, so many concerns, and so little confidence in the American election system.
It gives States funds that they can use to adopt Oregon-style vote by mail with the technical assistance and the guidance of the Election Assistance Commission.
I believe that the Vote by Mail Act of 2006 can fix our election system once and for all.
One final point: the Help Americans Vote Act, also know as HAVA, takes important steps to ensure equal access to voting for all Americans. HAVA's protections are particularly important to voters with disabilities, and it is our responsibility to keep building on that foundation. Nothing in this bill undermines or changes those aspects of HAVA that require vote by mail systems to be just as accessible as any other voting method.
While I think Oregon has proven that people with disabilities can benefit from vote by mail, it is important to keep working with the people who know these issues best to make sure the right to vote is protected. And Senator KERRY, Senator OBAMA, and I look forward to working with disabled and other civil rights organizations, election reform groups, community organizations and the voters themselves to ensure that the Vote by Mail Act of 2006 further promotes access to the polls for individuals with disabilities.
So I urge my colleagues to seriously consider this bill and urge them to support it. Vote by mail has been an enormous success in Oregon. I am sure that other States that adopt it will see the same benefits. This bill helps ensure that States have that opportunity.
I asked for unanimous consent that my statement be printed into the RECORD and I ask for unanimous consent that the text of the Vote by Mail Act of 2006 be printed in the RECORD.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 4018
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