[EL] Voting by mail cannot ensure a secret ballot, which is the cornerstone of democracy (The Boston Globe)

[Jurij Toplak]

The Boston Globe published my view of voting by mail. A problem of families or employees voting together has been debated in the rest of the world for a century. In Austria-Hungary, in the early 20th century, voting in groups was a known problem.

Much mail voting takes place at the kitchen table, with family members filling out their ballots together. The elderly and disabled cast their votes alongside their caretakers. The more timid or needy or financially dependent family members, and those in nursing homes, will often follow the advice or expectations of those on whom they depend in order to gain sympathy or favor or to avoid conflict, intimidation, ridicule, or dislike. The US has fought for decades around the world to make sure that women, youth, elderly, and the disabled may all vote in privacy, without a husband or family head looking over their shoulder, because such a circumstance cancels the free and honest expression of a voter’s convictions.

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/05/12/opinion/push-mail-in-vote-gaining-steam-scrutiny/

Jurij
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