Soldiers were first: How and why the states started and now handle early and absentee voting

The predetermination process is officially underway successful galore states crossed the country, but however voters are casting ballots differs by state. The archetypal successful idiosyncratic votes were formed Friday successful 3 states. In Minnesota and South Dakota, absentee voters were capable to caput to the polls. In Virginia immoderate registered elector tin present formed a ballot. Several states person present sent absentee ballots to voters surviving overseas oregon serving successful the military.

The archetypal mail-in ballots volition spell retired Saturday successful Maryland and New Jersey.

"Vote early. Vote absentee. Vote connected Election Day. Do immoderate you want, but you person to vote," erstwhile President Donald Trump told rally-goers astatine an August rally successful Atlanta.

With much options for voting than ever, statesmanlike campaigns are treating each time like Election Day.

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"Your dependable is your ballot North Carolina. And you are going to marque each the quality successful the result of this race," Vice President Harris said astatine a Greensboro, North Carolina Rally connected September 12.

The archetypal large aboriginal voting practices day backmost to the Civil War. Many soldiers were warring retired of authorities but were allowed to formed votes arsenic if they were contiguous astatine the polls. By World War II, each authorities allowed soldiers to ballot absentee.

"At the opening of the 20th century, radical started to recognize we person a mobile population. We person radical retired connected the railroads, gathering the railroads crossed the country, radical who question for business. And slowly, authorities by state, we introduced this enactment for radical with a crushed for voting by mail," said John Fortier, a elder chap astatine the American Enterprise Institute.

Starting successful the 1970s, immoderate states began to connection mail-in voting for each registered voters, with nary excuse required.

"In 1978, California was the archetypal authorities to person no excuse absentee voting," Fortier said. "California and immoderate different places started to think, well, let's marque it much convenient."

Voters capable retired their ballots astatine a polling presumption during Massachusetts authorities superior voting connected Tuesday.

Some states besides began to let constricted in-person absentee voting. Texas and Tennessee were among the first.

By the 2000 election, 21 states allowed each registered voters to formed ballots by message if they wished to bash so. Arkansas joined Tennessee and Texas successful allowing in-person aboriginal voting without an excuse. Every different authorities had a ballot by message enactment for absentee voters who provided an excuse arsenic to wherefore they could not marque it to their polling determination connected predetermination day. Yet, conscionable 14% of ballots were formed aboriginal successful 2000.

"Both of those trends [vote by message and successful idiosyncratic absentee aboriginal voting] person truly stepped up and moved up truly each twelvemonth until they jumped up precise dramatically again successful 2020," Fortier said.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the percent of aboriginal votes formed roseate to 69%. Mississippi was the lone authorities to necessitate an excuse for voters to formed a ballot early. Texas and Tennessee, on with Louisiana and Indiana offered in-person aboriginal voting. Every different authorities allowed mail-in ballots.  Nine states and Washington, DC held each message elections successful which each registered voters were sent a ballot.

"2020 was an bonzer twelvemonth wherever we saw this immense leap up, adjacent saw precise antithetic opinions of Democrats and Republicans astir whether you should ballot by mail," Fortier said.

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While the Trump Campaign has tried to marque a propulsion to get voters to formed ballots by mail, the erstwhile president has expressed disapproval for each message elections.

"You person to person an honorable voting strategy because, you know, you don't person an honorable voting system. They nonstop retired millions and millions of ballots. They spell each implicit the place," former President Trump said successful Rancho Palos Verdes, California connected September 13. "Some radical get 2, 3, 4 oregon 5. You person a precise dishonest strategy implicit here. If I ran with an honorable ballot antagonistic successful California, I would triumph California."

Eight states and Washington, DC inactive person all-mail elections. New Jersey inactive permits the signifier successful tiny jurisdictions.

"There truly is nary 1 size fits all," Fortier said. "We person states similar Oregon and Washington, who are fundamentally 100% voting by mail. There are astir nary polling places. We person immoderate states successful the northeast and immoderate successful the Deep South who truly look overmuch much traditional."

For the 2024 election, Alabama and New Hampshire person since shifted to the aforesaid strict requirements arsenic Mississippi. Only absentee voters tin ballot by message with a valid excuse similar illness, surviving retired of authorities oregon moving a displacement that conflicts with polling hours. Democrats person questioned efforts to bounds entree to voting.

(AP, left, AP/Jae C. Hong, apical right, Sarah Rice for The Washington Post via Getty Images, bottommost right)

"Across our nation, we are witnessing a full-on battle connected different hard-fought, hard-won cardinal freedoms and rights similar the state to vote," Vice President Harris said astatine a September 13 Wilkes-Barre, PA Rally.

Since 2020, 7 different states person eliminated message ballots for each voters, and present connection aboriginal successful idiosyncratic voting instead. Overall, 36 proceed to let voters to formed ballots by mail.

"I personally deliberation that determination could beryllium a worth to having immoderate aboriginal voting, but having 4 oregon 5 oregon 6 weeks of aboriginal voting is not needfully amended than having a mates of weeks of in-person aboriginal voting and truly doesn't needfully bring up turnout. And it's inactive truly not immoderate much convenient," Fortier said.

Pennsylvania was thought to statesman sending retired message ballots connected September 16th, but predetermination officials clarified the timeline, saying they planned to statesman processing ballots that day. They noted immoderate delays owed to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s petition to beryllium removed from the November ballot.

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"I bash deliberation radical person a bully instinct that they privation determination to beryllium a ballot there, a tangible carnal ballot. And we've moved successful that absorption with each of our voting exertion to having ballots. But we besides person precise analyzable ballots with galore radical connected the ballot, sometimes ten, 20 races that you're voting for successful a peculiar election. And that truly does mean we request to usage exertion to number them," Fortier said.

The aforesaid ineligible fights person been happening successful North Carolina.

"Unfortunately, each the ballots person been printed, but our Republican Supreme Court said, you've got to destruct each of those ballots and spell backmost and people them again," North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper-D said aft the statesmanlike statement successful Pennsylvania.

North Carolina is expected to nonstop ballots to subject and overseas voters connected Friday. Federal instrumentality requires each ballots going overseas to beryllium sent by September 21. All different North Carolina absentee ballots volition spell retired adjacent week. That’s astir 3 weeks aft the state’s archetypal September 6 deadline for absentee ballots.

'I Voted' stickers beryllium connected a array astatine a polling presumption successful Massachusetts.

Some predetermination officials person expressed interest implicit the mail ballot process and counting the votes, since immoderate states person already sent ballots aboriginal than initially planned. One specified state, Pennsylvania, volition not commencement processing message ballots until 7 a.m. connected Election Day.

"States privation to enactment successful a batch of convenient parts of voting, and they don't needfully deliberation of however they each acceptable together. If you privation to person aboriginal voting astatine galore sites, you tin ballot anywhere, good you request a bully database down the scenes," Fortier said.

While 12 states, including plaything authorities Arizona, volition statesman processing and counting ballots earlier predetermination day, laws forestall those results from being reported until November 5th. 14 states including competitory Minnesota, volition not statesman tallying message ballots until aft polls close.  Toss-up authorities Nevada allows each message elections. The authorities volition inactive number ballots that get up to 4 days pursuing predetermination day, truthful agelong arsenic they are postmarked November 5th.

"I'm an optimist and I deliberation we'll astir apt spot things beryllium somewhat quicker than successful 2020, which was specified an bonzer year," Fortier said. "Arizona has the astir voting by message of immoderate of the states. Perhaps that volition instrumentality a small longer, but I deliberation there's a bully accidental that we'll beryllium capable to cognize the result unless it's precise close."

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Our Fox News Poll from August showed Harris with a 1 constituent pb successful Arizona. The Real Clear Politics  mean shows Trump with conscionable implicit a 1 constituent lead.

"The voting by message is not going to beryllium arsenic precocious oregon arsenic unexpected. And so, I deliberation galore states volition beryllium acceptable for that and beryllium capable to number much quickly," Fortier said. "If we're very, precise close, we're apt to surely spot recounts. We're apt to spot contests. And those things could instrumentality a precise agelong time."