Voting by mail that holds the key November 4, 11:12
In the US early voting, you can vote directly at a designated ballot, or you can vote by filling out the mailed ballot and returning it, or by posting it in a dedicated post.
Significant increase
According to a summary of the "American Election Project" by Professor Michael McDonald of the University of Florida, who is analyzing the voting situation, it is estimated that at least 65.24 million people in the United States voted by mail ballot as of November 3, and the polling place The number of people who visited and voted was about 35.92 million, and the number of votes cast before the deadline was 101.16 million.
This is 1.7 times the number of 58 million people in 2016, which is 73.4% of the total number of votes cast in the previous election, including the election day.
Professor McDonald said that early voting, including postal voting, has increased record-breaking in this election, and the total number of votes including that day has reached a record high of 160.2 million, with a turnout of 67. It shows the prospect of reaching%.
The factor is postal voting
A major factor in the significant increase in early voting is the expansion of the use of postal voting.
In the United States, the postal voting system varies from state to state, but according to various surveys, in response to the spread of the new coronavirus, more than 30 states in the United States have taken measures to make postal voting easier to use as an infection prevention measure. I will.
Specifically, until now, the use was permitted only when there were unavoidable circumstances such as work or illness, but if it is because of infection prevention measures, anyone can use it, or all those who have registered as voters are unconditional. We are relaxing it so that it can be used at.
In addition, the number of states that made it possible to automatically send ballots for postal voting to all registered voters was 3 in the last 2016 presidential election, but this time it has expanded to 10 states and the capital Washington. ..
Increasing trouble
On the other hand, problems are occurring one after another due to sudden changes in the system and a large increase in users.
In eastern New York and Midwest Ohio, errors were found on ballots and reply envelopes, and procedures were taken to resend them.
Also, in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, which is a fierce battle state, after a litigation battle between the two camps, when voting by mail, the ballot called "naked ballot" that replied without double-sealing the ballot is invalidated. The ruling was presented by the State Supreme Court, pointing out that tens of thousands of votes, including those already voted, could be invalidated.
Difference in correspondence to postal voting
Regarding postal voting, the Democratic Party's Biden camp is calling for the active use of postal voting as a countermeasure against the infection of the new corona virus, and insists that if the postal voting is stamped in time, it should be accepted even after the election day. I am.
On the other hand, the Trump camp has repeatedly insisted that postal voting may cause problems in identity verification, leading to fraud such as voting twice before and on the day of the deadline, and opposes acceptance after the election day. I will.
Proceedings one after another
As a result, a series of proceedings were filed over how long the postal ballots would be accepted, and in the fierce battle state of Midwestern Wisconsin, the Democratic Party asked the court to extend the deadline to six days after the ballot counting date, which was once approved, but the Republican Party As a result of the appeal, the Federal Supreme Court ruled that the extension would not be granted.
In Minnesota, it was valid until November 10th, but Republican officials filed a complaint that it was invalid if it arrived the day after the election day.
The Federal Court of Appeals said on the 29th of last month that it could be invalidated, making it unusual for state officials to call for no further use of postal voting.
According to the website that summarizes the status of the proceedings in the United States, as of the 1st of this month, there were 328 proceedings in 45 states and other countries over changes in the voting system.
Vote counting troubles and prolongation
In the future, what is expected to be confusing is whether to validate or invalidate votes that arrive after the election day.
President Trump said on the 1st that it was a problem to accept after the election day and was willing to quit the proceedings.
According to various surveys, at least 20 states in the United States accept arrivals after the election day with the postmark valid on the election day or the day before, and some states accept it up to 20 days later.
On the other hand, depending on the state, even if the ballot arrives before the deadline, it cannot be started until the day of the ballot, so it is expected that it will take several days to several weeks until all the ballot counting results are available.
Is the election result a trial?
Furthermore, it has been pointed out that there is a problem with the posture of Japan Post, which is responsible for collecting and delivering mail votes.
Japan Post has been reducing the number of machines that sort mail, saying that it will reduce costs under management reforms.
It has also been pointed out that due to this effect, the arrival of a large number of postal votes may not be in time and may be invalidated.
It has also been pointed out that if the Trump camp, which claims to be fraudulent in mail voting, goes to court, the court battle will continue for a long time and the results will not be finalized.