Letter to the Editor: "Absentee voting process needs reform"

Posted: Sun, Dec 16, 2018 5:14 PM

(The following Letter to the Editor has been submitted by Dominique Bockman of Decorah, one of the 29 voters whose ballots have not been counted):

I am one of the 29 individuals who were disenfranchised after voting by absentee ballot in Iowa House District 55 this past November. I completed all the appropriate steps to ensure my ballot was signed, sealed and mailed on time. However, after the election was over, I was notified that my vote did not count. My envelope had apparently received a US Postal Service bar code, but did not receive a postmark stamp. I also understand that the barcode on my envelope was read by the US Postal Service and was found to have been mailed on time, as was ordered by Iowa District Court Judge Scott Beattie on December 3. I anxiously await the upcoming decision of the court, but I do plead that to ignore my valid vote in this election would be an unconstitutional act.

Today, I am writing to express my concerns regarding the absentee voting process. I am concerned for a few reasons: 1) Even though I completed the absentee voting process correctly and on time, due to US Postal Service neglect in not postmarking my envelope, my ballot was not counted, according to the procedures followed by the Winneshiek County Auditor's Office, where only a valid US Postal Service postmark is used to determine timely mailing of absentee ballots; 2) Iowa law does not define the term "intelligent mail barcode" that is posted on Absentee Ballot envelopes; and 3) Iowa law pertaining to the use of an Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) to trace a ballot's entry into the federal mail system is not mandated upon each county auditor's office where, therefore, inconsistencies exist in the voting process at the county level.

Regardless of how convenient the process was in voting absentee, I am disheartened by how my ballot was handled. I have been discouraged from voting that way again. This concerns me on behalf of so many citizens who may not have the opportunity to vote at the polls. They may be homebound, busy working, or otherwise unable to make it to the polls on Election Day. Because of my experience, I would highly encourage those who have the capacity to travel to a voting place to do so, either on election day or by absentee ballot in person at a county auditor's office during the 29 days prior to an election, as stated by law. I would also encourage those who need to vote by absentee ballot by mail to do so at least 1-2 weeks before the election so the ballot can assuredly be received at the county auditor's office before the election deadline.

With that being said, I also believe the process of determining the timeliness of absentee ballots must be mandated through our legislature, in order for all counties to accept or deny absentee ballots in the same manner. That some counties use an IMb to track a ballot and others use only a postmark, while relying on the inconsistent handling of the envelopes by our US Postal System, is causing a great deal of confusion and numerous interpretations of the law by county auditors across the whole state of Iowa. There must be a foolproof method established for county auditors to implement in order to determine the timeliness of absentee ballots which are received near the election deadline.

For those ballots that are appropriately mailed and, through no fault of one's own, are erroneously handled at the post office, I believe acceptance of ANY US postal marking, stamp, IMb or other bar code should be allowed to suffice as evidence of timely mailing by a constituent. I would not recommend issuing earlier mailing deadlines, or Sure-Count Deadlines, as has been earlier suggested in a proposal by the Clinton County auditor. This method could further disenfranchise voters if the federal mail agency has a mishap. It won't resolve concerns of how the US Postal Service handles the mail. Without mandating how the US Postal Service processes absentee ballots, we can mandate that ANY marking issued by that federal agency (USPS) be deemed acceptable in verifying the receipt date of the envelope into the mail system.

I plead to the Iowa legislature to please address this issue. Let's not allow this kind of ambiguity to continue into our next election. Please find a resolution to this issue for the sake of all citizens who need the option to vote by absentee ballot through the mail. Make their votes count. Make ALL votes count. I was a disenfranchised voter, but I did everything right. Through no fault of my own, I was failed by a failure prone system, which was identified and has been discussed since at least 2011. If constituents must rely on the US Postal Service to handle absentee ballot envelopes through the mail, then let's establish a foolproof way to identify those that are mailed on time, for the sake of every voter. Thank you for your consideration."