The right to vote must not be taken for granted.
Enshrined by the Founding Fathers and expanded by centuries of activism and court decisions, this fundamental right of American citizens is a bedrock of our republic. With a consequential election just four days away, it is essential for Clark County residents to exercise that right and to defend the rights of others.
The first part of that declaration is self-evident. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt is credited with saying: “Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves, and the only way they could do this is by not voting.” Or as civil rights icon John Lewis reputedly said: “The vote is precious. It is almost sacred. It is the most powerful nonviolent tool we have in a democracy.”
In recent decades, Washington officials have made it easier for citizens to use that tool. Our state has universal vote-by-mail, eliminating the need to stand in line during the work day to cast a vote.
Ballots must be returned by Election Day. If sent by mail, they must be postmarked by Tuesday; no postage is required. They also may be placed in an official drop box by 8 p.m. Tuesday or dropped off at the Clark County Elections Office (1408 Franklin St., Vancouver) by that time.
Ballots dropped in boxes are picked up by teams of two election workers. All ballots then undergo signature verification and are sorted by precinct before being counted. Throughout the process, officials work in teams to prevent fraud. The process is detailed in a video on the Clark County Elections website (https://tinyurl.com/4sp3w78j) and is overseen by trained citizen observers.
While the importance of voting and the security of the system is well-documented, the right to vote is under assault throughout the country.
Locally, that has been demonstrated by recent attacks on ballot drop boxes in Vancouver and Portland. On Monday, nearly 500 ballots were damaged by a fire at a site in Fisher’s Landing.
Rather than decrying the violence and the attempt to disenfranchise voters, Washington State Republicans Chairman Jim Walsh used the occasion to claim that vote-by-mail is insecure. That response is inadequate. But, sadly, it reflects anti-democratic rhetoric that has become all-too-common among Republicans. Lies about election fraud and unproven claims of insecure elections are treated as dogma by many factions of the party.
A reminder: Donald Trump’s lies about the 2020 presidential election were rejected by the courts in some 60 lawsuits. Echoing those lies sows doubt that undermines our nation.
An adequate defense of American democracy demands that we reject any effort to prevent registered voters from participating in a manner that has been approved by lawmakers and the public. It demands that we protect the rights of all our fellow citizens. It demands that we accept the truth – meaning, in this case, that elections are managed with transparency and oversight by members of both major political parties.
All of that reflects a long-term threat to our republic. But the immediate concern involves Tuesday’s election and the need for people to vote. As Abraham Lincoln reputedly said: “Elections belong to the people. It is their decision. If they decided to turn their back on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters.”
If we fail to vote, allowing others to decide how we will be governed, we are certain to get burned.
