[EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal

Fri Apr 10 10:23:04 PDT 2020

This is one of those rare moments when I think Jim and Rick have a degree
of agreement. They both seem to think that ballots should not be mailed out
to every registered voter but only to those who request them.

In California it's easy to get a "vote-by-mail" ballot or to sign up for
permanent "vote-by-mail" status. See
https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/voter-registration/vote-mail/#apply. We
get an application in the mail every time there is an election that
includes a vote-by-mail application form:

"You may use the application printed on the voter information guide that is
mailed to you by your county elections official prior to every election.
You may also visit or write to your county elections official for an
application or you may use the California Vote-By-Mail Ballot Application
(PDF)."

Mark

[image: Pepperdine wordmark]*Caruso School of Law*

*Mark S. Scarberry*

*Professor of Lawmark.scarberry at pepperdine.edu
<mark.scarberry at pepperdine.edu>*

On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 11:06 AM James Bopp Jr <jboppjr at aol.com> wrote:

> I hate to spoil a kumbaya moment, but there are serious considerations
> here that just don't seem to be getting attention.
>
> First, vote fraud protections, that are ubiquitous with absentee and in
> person voting procedures, are often stripped away in most mail in ballot
> schemes.  These fraud prevention measures are designed to protect the
> constitutional right to vote by preventing vote dilution: the dilution of
> the vote of eligible, registered voters by the votes of illegal voters.
> Failure to have adequate fraud protection measures violates the right to
> vote.
>
> Second, "mail in balloting," as I understand it and use it, differs most
> importantly from "absentee balloting" by not requiring a prior application
> to obtain the ballot.  In "mail in balloting," ballots are just mail
> wholesale to all registered voters.
>
> Third, requiring a prior application to receive an absentee ballot is a
> very important, even critical, protection against vote fraud.  It ensure
> that the person is actually alive, what the person's current address is,
> and provides an audit trail.  A prior application also allows election
> official and others time to verify the voter's eligibility, existence, etc.
>
> Fourth, as a result, absentee ballot return rate is very high.
>
> Fifth, wholesale mailing of ballots to all registered voter also has 2 big
> problems of its own.:
>
> (1) there are many registered voters who are current ineligible or not at
> the address indicated on the rolls.  Thus, we are flooding the state with
> ballots readily available for fraudulent use. This violates the rights of
> eligible registered voters by diluting their votes. and
>
> (2) there are also eligible, registered voters who will not get a mailed
> ballot, because they have moved or are on an "inactive" list.  These
> eligible, registered voters won't have the option of in person voting and
> thus will have to fulfill burdensome requirement to timely get a ballot
> mailed to them that other eligible registered voters don't have to
> fulfill.  This is an unconstitutional burden on their right to vote.
>
> Sixth, these scheme often eliminate in person voting.  In person voting
> procedures have substantial fraud prevention measures and also serve as a
> safety valve for those who find this is the only way they have available to
> vote.  Denying them that option also violates their right to vote.
>
> And whether one wants to flood a state with mailed ballots in order to
> facilitate vote fraud, which Republicans fear, or because vote fraud is a
> fantasy, which Democrats believe, there is just more to this.  My view is
> that a prior application is a necessity, that other reasonable fraud
> protection measures are needed, but that absentee voting can be no cause.
>
> So at least we agree on something.  Jim Bopp
>
> *James Bopp, Jr.*
> Attorney
> The Bopp Law Firm, PC | www.bopplaw.com
> The National Building | 1 South 6th Street | Terre Haute, IN 47807
> voice: (812) 232-2434 ext. 22 | fax: (812) 235-3685 | cell: (812) 243-0825
> | jboppjr at aol.com
>
> Sent from AOL Desktop
> <https://discover.aol.com/products-and-services/aol-desktop-for-windows>
> In a message dated 4/9/2020 1:15:10 PM US Eastern Standard Time,
> sean at impactpolicymanagement.com writes:
>
> Also
> https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/mar/24/conservatives-must-get-behind-vote-by-mail-options/
>
>
>
> Sean
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* Ilya Shapiro <IShapiro at cato.org>
> *Sent:* Thursday, April 9, 2020 12:31 PM
> *To:* Sean Parnell <sean at impactpolicymanagement.com>; 'David Segal' <
> davidadamsegal at gmail.com>; 'John Tanner' <john.k.tanner at gmail.com>
> *Cc:* 'Election Law Listserv' <law-election at uci.edu>
> *Subject:* RE: [EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal
>
>
>
> See further Henry Olsen’s latest column,
> https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/08/theres-plenty-room-compromise-mail-in-voting-get-it-done/
>
>
>
> Ilya Shapiro
>
> Director
>
> Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies
>
> Cato Institute
>
> 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW
>
> Washington, DC  20001
>
> tel. (202) 218-4600
>
> cel. (202) 577-1134
>
> ishapiro at cato.org
>
> Bio/clips: https://www.cato.org/people/ilya-shapiro
>
> Twitter: www.twitter.com/ishapiro
>
> SSRN: http://ssrn.com/author=1382023
>
>
>
> *Cato Supreme Court Review*:  http://www.cato.org/supreme-court-review
>
>
>
> Watch our 18th Annual Constitution Day Conference, Sept. 17, 2019:
>
> https://www.cato.org/events/18th-annual-constitution-day
>
>
>
> *From:* Law-election *On Behalf Of *Sean Parnell
> *Sent:* Thursday, April 09, 2020 12:00 PM
> *To:* 'David Segal' <davidadamsegal at gmail.com>; 'John Tanner' <
> john.k.tanner at gmail.com>
> *Cc:* 'Election Law Listserv' <law-election at uci.edu>
> *Subject:* Re: [EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal
>
>
>
> Well, you’ve already got a number of right-of-center groups who have in
> one way or another indicated some interest in expanded
> absentee/vote-by-mail options (per Jim Bopp’s earlier e-mail, these are not
> the same thing) – when I scroll to the bottom of this e-mail I note it’s
> someone from Cato commenting favorably on an article at National Review
> Online that is itself favorable to such policies. And I’ve spoken with a
> few right-of-center groups that are generally favorable to the idea, though
> of course there are some bright red lines for them. I suppose the corollary
> is: are there any groups we’d consider to be aligned with the left that
> would be willing to back such a compromise, or willing to accept that the
> federal government should support but not mandate expanded
> absentee/vote-by-mail options?
>
>
>
> Sean
>
>
>
>
>
> *From:* Law-election <law-election-bounces at department-lists.uci.edu> *On
> Behalf Of *David Segal
> *Sent:* Thursday, April 9, 2020 11:21 AM
> *To:* John Tanner <john.k.tanner at gmail.com>
> *Cc:* Election Law Listserv <law-election at uci.edu>
> *Subject:* Re: [EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal
>
>
>
> Are there any interest groups that we'd consider to be aligned with the
> right that are, or seem as though they might be willing, to back this or
> similar proposals?
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 11:05 AM John Tanner <john.k.tanner at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> To get a federal bill you need for both sides to be able to declare
> victory.  Adding a one-time ban on vote harvesting would be one way — and I
> have seen it first hand eith white candidates harvesting black votes
> against black candidates.
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>
>
> On Apr 9, 2020, at 10:52 AM, Steve Kolbert <steve.kolbert at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>
>
> My question about the proposal: what impact (if any) will drive-through
> voting have on line/queue management?  A line of 50 voters on foot snaking
> around a building corner is much different than a line of 50 (or 200!)
> voters in their vehicles clogging up nearby public roads.
>
>
> Communication with incoming voters may also be an issue.  It's one thing
> to put a "Vote Here" sign (or two, or three) in a parking lot. But when the
> line of cars snakes two (or ten) blocks, incoming voters may not initially
> understand that this backed-up traffic is all waiting to vote.  So these
> new voters may attempt to head straight to the polling place, then have to
> exit and re-route back to the end of the line of vehicles.  I can envision
> this creating a further traffic build-up.
>
>
> I imagine that, with some test-runs and practice, drive-through voting
> might eventually become a well-oiled machine.  But we're talking about
> trying it on a large scale for the first time in the largest election held
> every four years.  Growing pains are inevitable, and the scale of the
> election has the potential to magnify them.  (Of course, there may not be
> any better options.)
>
>
> Steve Kolbert
>
> (202) 422-2588
>
> steve.kolbert at gmail.com
>
> @Pronounce_the_T
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 9:48 AM Mark <markrush7983 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hi all--
>
>
> The proposal is beyond reasonable and wise.  Yet, alas, it may fail due to
> the septic state of politics in the USA.
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 9:43 AM Jeff Hauser <jeffhauser at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> " We need another Bauer-Ginsberg commission or some such"
>
>
> Haha yeah that was a resounding success!
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 9:29 AM Ilya Shapiro <IShapiro at cato.org> wrote:
>
> Holding small business loans hostage to election funding is not a way to
> enhance confidence in whatever crisis-related tweaks are necessary. Either
> this stuff passes on its own terms or it shouldn’t pass. The concern isn’t
> about “voting rights” as such—the pre-corona “suppression” meme/myth is not
> something Republicans will magically now sign onto—but having functioning
> elections and avoiding the Wisconsin game of chicken where nobody wins
> (even if the supreme courts were 100% correct in their legal rulings). We
> need another Bauer-Ginsberg commission or some such, un-sexy technocratic
> reforms to help election administration, not ideological ones that
> reinforce priors. The Kleinfeld proposal is consistent with that (and the
> Kleinfeld siblings are themselves on opposite partisan sides, albeit
> narrowly straddling the divide).
>
>
>
> Ilya Shapiro
>
> Director
>
> Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies
>
> Cato Institute
>
> 1000 Massachusetts Ave. NW
>
> Washington, DC  20001
>
> tel. (202) 218-4600
>
> cel. (202) 577-1134
>
> ishapiro at cato.org
>
> Bio/clips: https://www.cato.org/people/ilya-shapiro
>
> Twitter: www.twitter.com/ishapiro
>
> SSRN: http://ssrn.com/author=1382023
>
>
>
> *Cato Supreme Court Review*:  http://www.cato.org/supreme-court-review
>
>
>
> Watch our 18th Annual Constitution Day Conference, Sept. 17, 2019:
>
> https://www.cato.org/events/18th-annual-constitution-day
>
>
>
> *From:* Law-election *On Behalf Of *Jeff Hauser
> *Sent:* Thursday, April 09, 2020 8:56 AM
> *To:* Sean Parnell <sean at impactpolicymanagement.com>
> *Cc:* Election Law Listserv <law-election at uci.edu>
> *Subject:* Re: [EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal
>
>
>
> " Federal funding would no doubt help make the decision to expand absentee
> voting easier, but lack of funding is not an absolute barrier."
>
>
> The literature on "states rights" and the history of access to voting in
> this country strongly suggests federal action is necessary. House Democrats
> are necessary to keeping GOP leaning business owners/equity holders afloat,
> and it strikes me as both necessary and proper that funding such efforts be
> tied to de facto voting rights.
>
>
>
> On Thu, Apr 9, 2020 at 8:47 AM Sean Parnell <
> sean at impactpolicymanagement.com> wrote:
>
> It’s probably worth noting that states generally fund and run their own
> elections, so there’s no real need to go through McConnell and Trump to
> expand absentee voting and other options. Federal funding would no doubt
> help make the decision to expand absentee voting easier, but lack of
> funding is not an absolute barrier.
>
>
>
> Sean Parnell
>
>
>
> *From:* Law-election <law-election-bounces at department-lists.uci.edu> *On
> Behalf Of *David Segal
> *Sent:* Wednesday, April 8, 2020 10:29 PM
> *To:* Eric J Segall <esegall at gsu.edu>
> *Cc:* Election Law Listserv <law-election at uci.edu>
> *Subject:* Re: [EL] Kleinfelds’ proposal
>
>
>
> It's good that they are pushing and I think a patchwork of purple, and
> even some red, states might implement procedures along these lines. (Hard
> to imagine that all would, which might implicate the POTUS race and would
> certainly have impacts on Congress and state and local races.)
>
>
> But it's very hard for me to see a path under any circumstances through
> McConnell and Trump, even if Congressional Ds prioritize this more in
> negotiations.
>
>
> Do other folks here think otherwise, re: the politics of the bulk of
> R-controlled states and Congress, and if so would you be able to speak to
> what it looks like in more detail?
>
>
>
>
> On Wed, Apr 8, 2020 at 9:59 PM Eric J Segall <esegall at gsu.edu> wrote:
>
> Yes. excellent piece, great ideas, and thanks Ilya for supporting it.
>
>
> Best,
>
>
> Eric
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
>
>
> On Apr 8, 2020, at 8:28 PM, Ilya Shapiro <IShapiro at cato.org> wrote:
>
> I thought this was solid and would get bipartisan support:
>
>
>
> https://www.nationalreview.com/2020/04/coronavirus-response-holding-elections-during-pandemic/
> <https://nam03.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationalreview.com%2F2020%2F04%2Fcoronavirus-response-holding-elections-during-pandemic%2F&data=02%7C01%7Cesegall%40gsu.edu%7C119d6d922e124261fa9008d7dc1cf8fa%7C515ad73d8d5e4169895c9789dc742a70%7C0%7C0%7C637219889314052158&sdata=4s3OdhFO8WLQxHc0JJqmIRohy3lAafOZxuD09D9fQSY%3D&reserved=0>
>
> Ilya Shapiro
>
> Director
>
> Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies
>
> Cato Institute
>
> 1000 Mass. Ave. NW
>
> Washington, DC 20001
>
> (o) 202-218-4600
>
> (c) 202-577-1134
>
> Twitter: @ishapiro
>
> http://www.cato.org/people/shapiro.html
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