This is from a thread posted yesterday by Demeter. The thread can be found here:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=103&topic_id=183320 http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_prof__ro_060104_oregon_s_all_mail_vo.htmJanuary 4, 2006
Oregon's All-Mail Voting:
The Best Voting System in the Nation!
by Prof. Robert D. Fischer
Oregon, with slightly more than two million registered voters, is the
only state with all-mail voting. All elections in Oregon are vote by
mail. The only reason that we Oregonians have this system is that
voters here insisted upon it, and took the initiative to make it
happen.
Why we love it so
The reasons for the Oregon system's popularity with the voters are not
difficult to understand. It is far more convenient to vote at your own
kitchen table than to go to a local precinct and stand in line to vote.
Everyone can fit voting into their schedule no matter how busy they
are. Voters have at least two weeks to vote, and that allows plenty of
time to study the voters' pamphlet, and to research and discuss the
issues. Another big advantage to voters is that they do not have to be
physically present on that one day designated as Election Day. The
study cited above showed that women with small children, the disabled,
young people on the go, and retirees, are all more likely to vote by
mail than at a precinct.
Election supervisors like it because mail in voting actually improves
voter turnout. In the 2004 election, almost 87% of Oregon's registered
voters cast ballots. The study cited above also showed that neither of
the two major parties gained an advantage from mail in voting.
Mail-in balloting allows for centralized supervision and control of
ballot processing in county elections offices, and permits election
officials to maintain uniformity of standards, and strict compliance
with law throughout the state.
Taxpayers have good reason to like the system, too. The cost of
conducting all-mail elections is one-third to one-half the cost of
polling place elections. For example, the May 1994 polling place
election cost Oregon taxpayers $4.33 per ballot. The May 1995 vote by
mail election cost only $1.24 per ballot. The reason is
obvious: Oregon does not have to recruit, hire, train, and supervise
thousands of precinct workers.
In addition to being more convenient for the voters, advantageous to
election officials, and much cheaper for the taxpayers, mail in voting
offers greater security over ballots, and guarantees the integrity of
the ballot count. Oregon does not suffer from the hassles of
understaffed, relocated, or closed precincts, or battles over
provisional ballots, recalcitrant, too few, or missing voting machines.
Best of all, with mail in balloting, massive voter fraud is virtually
impossible. There are no easily hacked touch screen voting machines,
and there is a permanent paper trail.
====================================================
Robert D. Fischer, Ph.D., is Professor Emeritus from California State
University - Fresno, where he was the Director of the Peace and
Conflict Studies Program. He is active with the Bandon Bill of Rights
Defense Committee, and the Oregon Coast Peace Wave. bobfi@verizon.net .
edit to fix link