Now is the time for election reform

One thing every American should be able to agree on is that in our democracy all people are provided an equal opportunity to cast a ballot. It is one of the foundations of our country. But clearly that didn’t happen in the last election. Our elected officials bickered over how to provide a safe election amid the coronavirus pandemic, but in the final hours before the polls opened, decided it would be business as usual at the polling places. Tens of thousands of people were disenfranchised from the process and tens of thousands more were forced to risk their personal health in order to vote. Dozens of people got sick after going to their polling place. Many people, most in fact, voted absentee. But some requested ballots were never received. Batches of ballots were found undelivered. This is why election reform is needed. Some lawmakers are pushing a plan that would allow all registered voters to vote safely in November by requiring the state to send every voter an absentee ballot. People could still vote in person if they wanted. Some polls would still be open, to allow people to register, and to vote. The Elections Commission would work with the Postal Service to ensure ballots are better tracked. These common sense reforms should be adopted now, so we’re not still fighting about it on the eve of the next election.