Russia: Coronavirus Threat Delays Vote to Keep Putin in Power | Charles Maynes/VoA News

President Vladimir Putin acknowledged Russia’s growing crisis surrounding the spread of the novel coronavirus — postponing a constitutional referendum whose key provision provides a path for the longtime Russian leader to retain power beyond the end of his current term and far into the next decade. The nationwide vote was to have taken place in April. “The absolute priority for us is the health, life and safety of people. Therefore, I believe that the vote should be postponed until a later date,” said Putin in a hastily scheduled address to the nation on Wednesday. The decision came as a government task force said the number of suspected coronavirus cases in Russia surged past the 800 mark, with the government embracing tighter restrictions and acknowledging the deaths of two elderly patients due to complications from the virus. This marked the first time Russia attributed deaths to a global contagion. “What is happening today in many Western countries, both in Europe and overseas, can become our immediate future,” warned Putin. “We must understand that Russia, simply because of its geographic location, cannot isolate itself from the threat.”

National: Stimulus Money to Protect Elections Falls Short, Critics Say | Michael Wines/The New York Times

The $2 trillion stimulus package that appeared likely to be approved by the Senate on Wednesday contains $400 million to address one of the most uncertain impacts of the coronavirus outbreak — its potential to wreak havoc with voting, including the presidential election in November. The figure falls far short of what state officials and voting rights experts have said is needed to ensure a safe and accurate count if the virus keeps millions of people away from polling places in primary elections and on Election Day. The $400 million in the stimulus package is one-fifth of the $2 billion that voting experts said was needed and that some Democrats had sought. The money could only be used to help states create and staff new polling places to reduce crowding, or to increase opportunities to register online and vote by mail, according to a Senate official who declined to be named because he was not authorized to talk about specifics of the legislation. Voting-rights advocates said the money was a shadow of the amount needed to ensure that the November general election goes smoothly if the pandemic has not ebbed. “It’s a start, but inadequate to the crisis,” Michael Waldman, the president of the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University, said of the proposal. “If Congress doesn’t provide full funding, we could have a fiasco in November.”

National: Vote-by-Mail Gains Momentum, But It’s Not Fast, Cheap, or Easy | Ryan Teague Beckwith/Bloomberg

The coronavirus outbreak that has forced Americans to retreat to their homes and brought the economy to a standstill also threatens to upend the presidential election. Multiple states have rescheduled their spring primaries as the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 keeps climbing. Some polling places in states that held primaries on March 17 were hastily closed; at others, workers scrambled to disinfect voting machines and keep people 6 feet apart in line. Voters were encouraged by officials to avoid the health risks of in-person voting entirely—by casting their ballots by mail. The pandemic has prompted new attempts to expand mail-in voting, a trend that has been slowly building over the last two decades. A bill introduced on March 18 by Oregon Senator Ron Wyden—the first U.S. senator elected in a statewide mail-in election—and Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar would require states to allow mail-in and early voting during a pandemic or natural disaster and would provide funding for the cost of ballots and postage, among other things. The stimulus bill passed on March 25 includes $400 million for states to allow vote by mail, expand early voting and online registration, and hire more workers, but it doesn’t include a mandate.

National: Cybersecurity Experts Say Hacking Risk Is High for Mobile Voting | Kartikay Mehrotra/Bloomberg

While Senators Amy Klobuchar and Ron Wyden push to expand vote-by-mail programs, a small group of companies argue for an alternative, one they claim will boost voter participation nationwide: mobile voting. Jurisdictions in at least 15 states are planning to use mobile balloting in a limited capacity in 2020 to account for overseas voters and those with disabilities. Proponents of a digital electorate hope the coronavirus spurs adoption of their technology. The virus has provided an “opportunity,” says Bradley Tusk, chief executive officer of Tusk Holdings and a supporter of mobile voting: “People are being told by the government not to congregate, and that’s a pretty clear directive not to go vote.” Tusk, who says he hasn’t invested in any mobile voting companies, has spent “in the low seven figures” helping local governments cover the costs of adopting the systems. Massachusetts Institute of Technology doctoral student Michael Specter describes Tusk’s position as a “false dichotomy” that ignores postal ballots. He and his colleagues say mobile voting technology is unproven and opens the door to cyber risks. A mobile voting app called Voatz has already been used in federal, local, and partywide elections in Denver, Oregon, Utah, and West Virginia. In a paper published in March, cybersecurity research firm Trail of Bits discovered 79 flaws in the Voatz system, including one that allows someone armed with the proper credentials to alter votes. The paper, funded in part by Tusk and Voatz, expanded on findings published in February by Specter and his MIT colleague James Koppel.

National: Coronavirus response includes $400 million in election assistance. Will it be enough? | Bridget Bowman/Roll Call

A sweeping federal spending package responding to the new coronavirus pandemic will include millions to help states administer elections, but some fear it will not be enough to prevent chaos in November. The enormous spending bill expected to be released Wednesday morning will include $400 million in election assistance, according to two sources who have seen a summary of the bill from appropriators. That figure is still a fraction of the $2 billion the Brennan Center for Justice estimated is necessary for states to prepare for a surge of voters casting ballots by mail and to ensure safe in-person voting. Ben Hovland, the chairman of the Election Assistance Commission, said on Tuesday before the deal was announced that it is difficult to determine how much federal assistance is necessary to prepare states for November. “From what I’ve been hearing from state and local election officials around the country, I think the number is closer to $2 billion,” he added. Election officials are already scrambling to adjust to the pandemic, postponing primaries and stressing absentee voting options so voters can avoid polling places. To curb the spread of the virus, public health officials have recommended gatherings not exceed 10 people.

National: Senate stimulus package includes $400 million to help run elections amid the pandemic | Amy Gardner and Mike DeBonis /The Washington Post

A $2 trillion stimulus deal reached in the Senate on Wednesday includes $400 million of election assistance for states now racing to protect voting from possible disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic — far less than Democrats said would be necessary to prepare for November’s elections. The money will be distributed through the federal Election Assistance Commission, and states will be required to report back to the EAC on how they plan to spend the money “to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus.” The Senate language, which faces a vote in the House as early as Thursday, does not include any of the mandates that Democrats had hoped to impose on states as a condition of receiving the money. Those include requiring them to make mail-in voting available to everyone and, if an election is held during a national emergency, sending a mail-in ballot to every registered voter. Senate Republicans had balked at those requirements, saying that elections should be administered by state and local governments. A GOP summary of the bill said that Senate Democrats were seeking to “override state control of elections and create a federal mandate for early and mail-in-voting.”

National: States surge mail-in voting for delayed primaries as coronavirus pandemic intensifies | Joseph Marks/The Washington Post

States including Georgia, West Virginia and Ohio are rushing to dramatically ramp up mail-in voting for primary contests during the coronavirus pandemic — even with no guarantee Congress will help foot the bill. Those states are all planning to spend millions of dollars to send absentee ballot applications to all their registered voters in anticipation of largely mail-in primaries that will be unlike any their states have ever conducted. The efforts come as congressional leaders continue to wrangle over whether the federal government should help states increase mail-in voting amid the pandemic and if Democrats can use the crisis to mandate reforms to improve ballot access and security. Senate leaders announced an agreement early today on a $2 trillion stimulus bill to respond to the pandemic but have yet to release details on whether the bill contains new election funding. Senators are likely to vote on the measure later today but House action could take longer. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) (told NBC News’s Andrea Mitchell yesterday the deal then under discussion fell far short of the $4 billion Democrats requested for election officials, but her office didn’t answer queries about what actually made it into the deal. The state efforts mark a huge logistical and financial undertaking by officials struggling to protect democratic processes under conditions that make in-person voting extremely difficult if not dangerous.

National: Stimulus Bill Has $400 Million in Election Help for States | Alyza Sebenius and Erik Wasson/Bloomberg

The U.S. economic stimulus package will include $400 million to help states grapple with 2020 voting amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to two people familiar with the bill. The funds would allow states to increase the ability to vote by mail, and expand early voting and on-line registration. The provision would also make in-person voting safer by allowing states to create additional voting facilities and increase the number of poll workers, according to a Senate aide who has seen a summary of the legislation but declined to be identified discussing the matter. The Trump administration struck a deal early Wednesday with Senate Democrats and Republicans on an historic rescue package with more than $2 trillion in spending and tax breaks to bolster the hobbled U.S. economy and fund a nationwide effort to stem the coronavirus. The bill does not create a national requirement for voting by mail, which some Democrats had asked for but Republicans objected to. It calls on states to make decisions about how best to prepare voting in 2020.

National: New Documentary Debuting Tonight Explores Weaknesses In U.S. Election Technology | Jane Levere/Forbes

In advance of the 2020 Presidential election,  a new documentary, Kill Chain: The Cyber War on American’s Elections, debuting tonight on HBO, takes a deep dive into the weaknesses of today’s election technology, investigating the startling vulnerabilities in America’s voting systems and the alarming risks they pose to our democracy. From filmmakers Simon Ardizzone, Russell Michaels and Sarah Teale, the team behind HBO’s 2006 documentary Hacking Democracy, the film follows Finnish hacker and cyber security expert Harri Hursti as he travels around the world and across the U.S. to show how our election systems remain dangerously unprotected. As the film uncovers, despite official claims to the contrary, individuals and foreign states can employ an array of simple, low-cost techniques to gain access to voting systems at any stage – from voter registration databases to actual election results to malware that can be widely distributed and anonymously activated without detection at any point.

Delaware: Governor postpones presidential primary to June due to coronavirus | Sarah Gamard/Delaware News Journal

Delaware’s presidential primary is getting postponed due to the spread of the coronavirus. Following suit of neighboring states, Gov. John Carney on Tuesday moved Delaware’s election date to June 2.  The presidential primary election is for registered Democrats and registered Republicans to choose their parties’ presidential nominees for the general election that, so far, is still scheduled for Nov. 3. The move, which came the same afternoon that Delaware health officials confirmed more than 100 cases of the coronavirus in the state, doesn’t come as a surprise because other states have also postponed their elections to the summer. Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island have postponed elections set for the same day. Officials in New York and Pennsylvania, which also have April 28 primary dates, are reportedly considering following suit. Other states such as Kentucky, Louisiana and Georgia have also postponed their elections. Delawareans will be able to use social distancing due to coronavirus as a valid reason to vote by absentee ballot, according to a Tuesday news release announcing the postponement.

Georgia: Voting rights groups oppose Georgia bill to fight long lines | Mark Niesse/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

At first, a bill to fight long lines and open more voting locations seemed like it could win broad-based support. After all, who wants to be stuck in lines? Then came the backlash.A voting rights group called the proposal “the anti-voting rights bill of 2020.” Democrats in the state Senate said voters would still go to their old precincts, where they’d be unable to cast a ballot. They say the bill would discourage turnout instead of increasing it.The legislation, Senate Bill 463, would require election officials to add precincts, poll workers or voting equipment if voters had to wait in line for more than an hour before checking in to vote in the previous election. Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and Republicans say the measure would give voters more access to the polls. At least 214 precincts closed in Georgia from 2012 to 2018, according to research by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Voting rights groups should welcome expanded access to polling locations and shorter lines, Deputy Secretary of State Jordan Fuchs said. “Now it’s clear that some are all talk, no action,” Fuchs said. “They just want a talking point.”

Idaho: Secretary of State asks Idaho voters to use absentee ballots | Corey Evan/Independent-Enterprise

As the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 continues, the Idaho Secretary of State is encouraging voters in Idaho to use absentee ballots for the May 19 election. Christine Poe, Deputy Election Clerk for Payette County, said that every effort would be made to preserve election integrity. “The State of Idaho and all counties do all we can insure that when a voter goes to the polls or absentee votes by mail or in person, that privacy and integrity are priorities,” said Poe via email on March 20. “Mail ballot absentees are processed by an election official in our office and personally delivered to the post office for mailing. A new registrant is required to show ID and proof of residency to order to request an absentee ballot.  [For] a voter that is already registered, our office will compare signatures with our records. When ballots are returned, our office will place the ballots in a locked ballot box until the evening of May 19, when our staff will remove the voted ballot envelope from the signed affidavit envelope. Only when all the affidavit envelopes are all opened will we begin to open the voted envelopes, so as not to associate any ballot with any voter. We will then run the ballots thru our tabulating machines to get the final voting results.”

Indiana: Election Commission makes changes to smooth June 2 primary | Chris Sikich/Indianapolis Star

The Indiana Election Commission on Wednesday OK’d several changes that Gov. Eric Holcomb, Secretary of State Connie Lawson and Republican and Democratic leaders recommended at a news conference last week. Holcomb signed an executive order Friday to move the primary election from May 5 to June 2 and asked the commission to make several changes to smooth that process, most notably allowing all voters to cast absentee ballots by mail. The commission also acknowledged doing so could delay election results and asked local election boards to count votes by June 12.  “As we take precautions to protect Hoosiers from the threat of COVID-19, it is vitally important to protect citizens’ right to vote,” Lawson said in a prepared statement. “I am pleased that our bipartisan recommendations have been adopted, and I thank the Indiana Election Commission for their expeditious work.”

Maryland: Elections board to recommend no in-person voting for June primary | Emily Opilo/Baltimore Sun

The State Board of Elections is recommending that there be no in-person voting for the June 2 primary due to the new coronavirus pandemic, pushing citizens to mail-in or drop-off ballots that would be sent to every one of Maryland’s more than 4 million voters. Leaning on advice from state health officials, who said they could not guarantee protective equipment for poll workers, board members opted Wednesday against allowing in-person voting — even under limited circumstances. State election officials presented that path, along with other choices, at an online meeting of the board. Under the current plan, which remains in draft form but must be submitted by April 3 to Gov. Larry Hogan, all eligible voters would receive ballots by mail before June 2. Voters could then cast those ballots by mail, using a postage-paid envelope included with the ballot, or place them in drop boxes at locations yet to be determined. The five-member board was ordered last week to submit the plan to the governor as part of his executive order to postpone the state’s April 28 primary. At the same time, the governor ordered a special general election for the 7th Congressional District, also slated for April 28, to be held on schedule but by mail only. He stopped short of making a decision on the mechanics of the June 2 primary, but ordered the upcoming report from the board.

Montana: Governor: Counties can choose to hold all-mail primary | Holly Michels/Bozeman Daily Chronicle

Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, under the powers of an emergency declaration he made earlier this month, told counties on Wednesday they can choose to conduct an all-mail election in June. He also expanded early voting. The moves come as Montana is dealing with the spread of the COVID-19 virus, which had hit 53 cases statewide by midafternoon Wednesday. Bullock is also requiring counties to implement measures to ensure social distancing during voter registration and voting. Bullock has previously closed public K-12 schools and some business where people gather. Some candidates in the 2020 election had called on the state to move to an all-mail primary, which is June 2. Bullock’s order does not go that far, but allows the option should counties choose to do so. Montanans can also request absentee ballots to vote by mail.

Nevada: Nevadans to mail in ballots for June’s primary because of COVID-19 | James DeHaven/Reno Gazette Journal

Nevada will hold a nearly all-mail primary election in June, adding to a growing tally of states that have postponed or canceled in-person voting during the coronavirus outbreak. Secretary of State Barbara Cegavske, the state’s top elections official, on Tuesday announced her office would mail absentee ballots to all of the Silver State’s active voters, who will mark their candidate choices at home before returning ballots in the mail or at a designated county drop-off location. Cegavske says the virus-prevention effort will only apply to the June 9 primary, and not November’s general election. “Because of the many uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the immediate need to begin preparations for the 2020 primary election, it became necessary for me to take action regarding how the election will be conducted,” Cegavske said in a statement.  “Based on extensive conversations with Nevada’s 17 county election officials, we have jointly determined that the best option for the primary election is to conduct an all-mail election.”

Ohio: Lawmakers sets all-mail primary election through April 28; legal challenge still possible | Andrew J. Tobias/Cleveland Plain Dealer

Ohio lawmakers on Wednesday approved a plan for an all-mail primary election running through April 28, the state legislature’s fix to wrap things up after the original March 17 Election Day was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. The bipartisan plan, approved unanimously by the House and Senate, would send postcards to every Ohioan with instructions on how to apply for an absentee ballot. Anyone who hasn’t cast an early ballot already would have to print off a paper application, or call their county elections and request one be mailed to them, and mail it in. Elections officials then would mail an empty ballot with a postage-paid envelope. Voters would have until April 27 to mail it back or drop it off at at a curbside county ballot box, and votes would be counted on April 28. The plan now heads to Gov. Mike DeWine, who is expected to sign it. The legislature’s plan likely would make moot a lawsuit filed by the Ohio Democratic Party in the Ohio Supreme Court. But it might not be the last legal word on the issue. A coalition of voter-rights groups said the legislature’s plan is unacceptable, saying it would disenfranchise wide swaths of voters. As the Senate was voting Wednesday, they suggested they might sue if the plan isn’t changed.

Pennsylvania: Lawmakers vote to delay primary until June 2 over coronavirus | Associated Press

Pennsylvania lawmakers voted Wednesday to delay the state’s primary election by five weeks to June 2, potentially past the spike of the state’s spreading coronavirus cases. The measure passed both chambers of the Republican-controlled state Legislature on Wednesday and Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, said he will sign it. As a result, Pennsylvania will join more than 10 states in delaying primaries. It comes just a few months after Wolf and lawmakers approved legislation giving every voter the ability to mail in a ballot. Under the bill, Pennsylvania would hold its primary election June 2, instead of April 28, when the state could be in the thick of a surge of COVID-19 cases. Wolf’s administration has steadfastly refused to publicly discuss projections for when it believes the surge of cases will peak, however. But training and recruiting poll workers during that time could prove impossible, lawmakers say.

Wisconsin: Frustration over refusal to delay April 7 election spurs lawsuit | Todd Richmond/Associated Press

Local officials’ frustration with Gov. Tony Evers’ refusal to order any changes to Wisconsin’s presidential primary to protect people from the coronavirus reached new heights as the city of Green Bay sued to stop in-person voting and leaders in River Falls questioned how the election can proceed. The virus has infected nearly 600 people in Wisconsin and killed seven. Models show that without stricter social distancing measures, as many as 22,000 people could contract the virus and as many as 1,500 could die by April 8. The April 7 election features a Wisconsin Supreme Court race and hundreds of local races, in addition to the presidential primary. A number of states have postponed their presidential primaries, but Evers, a Democrat, has refused to delay Wisconsin’s election. Many local officials’ terms end in mid-April and delaying the election would leave those offices vacant, the governor has said. Republican legislative leaders said Wednesday they want the election to go on as scheduled as well and maintain that Evers can’t unilaterally adjust its parameters.

National: U.S. Election Technology Remains Vulnerable | Ann R. Thryft/EE Times

The threat of interference with our election systems became a major issue following the 2016 election. Media coverage focused on social media influences by foreign nation-states and other bad actors, and on voting machine insecurities. Yet at least as far back as the 2000 election, cybersecurity experts were warning us that election system infrastructure is vulnerable to getting hacked. In 2018, the US federal government allocated $380 million in federal funding for states to begin improving cybersecurity. Most states have used some of this money to update their election systems and processes, according to a report by the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC). But this is a huge job, because the attack surface in election systems is vast and complex, much more so than the those in both an IT network and an industrial control, or operational technology, network. In 2020, another $425 million was allocated to EAC to distribute for additional election security measures. That body is now telling states they can use those funds instead for disinfecting the polls due to the Covid-19 coronavirus. Meanwhile, there’s growing concern that Russia and other nation states will try to interfere in the 2020 presidential election. A new report by the Brennan Center for Justice found that Russia’s social media-driven election interference is both “more brazen” and more difficult to detect than it was in 2016.

National: Mail-in election mandates from Congress could be ‘recipe for disaster,’ says top state official | Joseph Marks/The Washington Post

State and local officials are warning that congressional efforts to prepare states for a possible national surge in mail-in voting in November may result in chaos instead of smoother balloting. They say more federal funding for such an effort, currently being debated as part of the $1.8 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill stuck in Congress, could overwhelm election officials with just seven months left to prepare for a presidential and congressional elections. Federal mandates for a largely mail-in election could well be a “recipe for disaster,” Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate (R), president of the National Association of Secretaries of State (NASS), told me. Pate worries there may inadequate machinery to process ballots, poorly trained poll workers and a confused voting public. “You have 50 states with different levels of resources and history of how they do voting,” he said. “I want to caution Congress that there is no one-size plan that fits all of us.” The problem is symptomatic of the divide between Washington, where efforts to protect elections against myriad threats tend to happen in last minute compromises, compared with states and localities where it’s common to spend years developing new voting procedures and to lock them in place many months before elections. “Congress always seems to operate on a crisis basis, and sometimes that doesn’t work in reality,” Vermont Secretary of State Jim Condos, who served as NASS president until 2019, told me.

National: House committee lukewarm on remote voting for Congress | Derek B. Johnson/FCW

A new report from the House Rules Committee expresses skepticism that remote voting in Congress could be conducted securely. The report, written by the Democratic majority staff, said that allowing members to cast votes outside the halls of Congress would represent “one of the biggest rule changes in the last century” and would raise constitutional issues. It also questioned whether technology to facilitate remote voting would be secure from cyber attacks, citing ongoing threats to election security from foreign governments. “In the wake of the 2016 election interference and potential 2020 election interference, implementing a secure method for voting would be critical and require an expert staff dedicated to ensuring there are no foreign or domestic attacks threatening the integrity of a vote by any Member, or threatening the system’s functionality as a whole,” the committee wrote. “Even with such a staff, we may not be able to thwart a cyber-attack that could prevent Congress from acting or delegitimize any vote Members take.”

National: Will COVID-19 force a massive absentee vote in November election? | Louis Jacobson and Amy Sherman/Politifact

The coronavirus pandemic has already forced more than a half dozen states to delay their Democratic primaries, with more states likely to follow. This has raised an urgent question: Could the pandemic still be dangerous enough in November that the general election will have to be held mostly or entirely by mail? On the federal level, Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., have introduced a measure that would greatly increase the role of voting by mail, including the allocation of federal money to purchase equipment and cover printing and mailing costs. The bill would also expand in-person early voting to decrease lines on Election Day. Some election officials, including those who have advocated vote-by-mail for years, say that dramatically expanding mail balloting is feasible, given the amount of time between now and the November election. But making it happen would require aggressive action and governmental cooperation, experts say. “Every state will have to think about the possibility that the November elections will be mostly by mail, or potentially all by mail,” said Ohio State University law professor Edward B. Foley.  While many states now have either all-mail elections or no-excuse absentee voting, those that don’t would have to change their laws to allow “fear of becoming infected” to be counted as a legitimate reason for securing an absentee ballot, he said. For states that aren’t used to counting large numbers of absentee ballots, Foley said, “the ramp-up will be huge.” Still, “if there is political will to create postal voting for the entire nation in time for the November election, it can be done,” said Richard Winger, editor of Ballot Access News.

National: Election officials in both parties call for emergency funding to expand voting by mail before November | Amy Gardner, Elise Viebeck and Joseph Marks/The Washington Post

A bipartisan push to expand mail-in voting is underway across the country as election officials brace for a spike in demand from voters spooked by the coronavirus pandemic — despite Republican reluctance in Washington to help pay for it. House Democrats have asked for as much as $2 billion in emergency funding to distribute to election officials who are scrambling to expand absentee balloting and take other steps to avoid pandemic-related chaos on Election Day in November. Dozens of state and local election officials, both Republican and Democratic, have signaled their desire for the funding — a sign of how the crisis is altering the usually sharply divided politics around voting measures. Still, Republicans in Washington say they are inclined to oppose an effort to include the funding along with new rules on how states run their elections in a $2 trillion coronavirus response package, with some casting the effort as part of a Democratic strategy to try to load up the bill with unrelated pet priorities.

Editorials: Coronavirus could prompt the U.S. to finally improve its voting system | Carl P. Leubsdorf/Dallas Morning News

Long before the coronavirus outbreak, the American voting system was in trouble. The evidence: the long lines and delayed counts that beset states and localities struggling to cope with the country’s growing electorate. But perhaps the current crisis will finally create sufficient concern to do something about it. So far, nine states and territories have delayed primary elections in hopes the virus will ebb sufficiently to enable voters to go safely to polling places and perform their duty as American citizens. The situation has prompted a series of ad hoc proposals. In Wisconsin, the Democratic National Committee filed a lawsuit to extend last week’s registration deadline for the state’s April 7 primary. And in Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine cited health concerns as he abruptly suspended voting on the eve of last week’s primary, a questionable act in even a time of troubles. But if we are to avoid repetitions of this kind of unilateral, undemocratic action, as well as repeated court challenges and a possible electoral disaster in November, far more sweeping steps need to be taken. The goal should be to enable the voting machinery to function in an election that might produce so large a turnout it overwhelms the system, even if current health concerns decline.

Alaska: Emergency law may require Alaskans to vote by mail in August election | James Brooks/Anchorage Daily News

The Alaska Senate approved a proposal Tuesday that would give the lieutenant governor the power to order statewide elections by mail if warranted by the spread of COVID-19. That power was among several the Senate sought to give Alaska’s executive branch as it unanimously approved a sweeping emergency bill intended to address the health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would extend the governor’s declaration of a public health emergency through Sept. 1 and grant him special powers. The bill passed unanimously by the Senate allows by-mail elections only for the August statewide primary and any special election before Sept. 1, such as the proposed recall of Gov. Mike Dunleavy. If the Legislature were to extend the public health emergency through November, the lieutenant governor would have the power to order the November general election to be conducted by mail, also. Anchorage conducts municipal elections by mail and the Alaska Democratic Party is holding a by-mail election for president. The state does not universally conduct elections by mail, although tens of thousands of absentee ballots are cast each election by mail.

California: As Coronavirus threatens general election, California could be example for states expanding vote-by-mail | Casey Tolan/San Jose Mercury News

The coronavirus cases spreading across the country have already overturned the 2020 presidential campaign, forcing multiple states to postpone their primaries and raising fears that the November general election could be marred by the pandemic. Now states are rushing to expand the use of vote-by-mail, laying the groundwork for an unprecedented shift in voting procedures. California, which has massively ramped up its use of mail-in voting over the last few decades, could be a model for others to follow. In Congress, lawmakers are debating a proposal from House Democrats to require states to allow mail-in voting and send $2 billion to election officials to help expand the process as part of a larger coronavirus relief package. But the idea has faced opposition from Republicans who argue that the bill should focus on economic relief, not voting rights. California is ahead of the curve. While less than 20 percent of voters in the 1992 general election cast their ballot by mail, nearly two-thirds did during the 2018 election, according to state data. That’s likely to be even higher this year.

California: The Presidential Election In November May Be Held At Your Mailbox Thanks To COVID-19 | Libby Denkmann/LAist

When governor Newsom signed an executive order last week to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on Southern California elections, he included this provision: counties must send mail-in ballots to all registered voters in three upcoming special elections. The Orange County Registrar has already canceled in-person voting for the Apr. 7 Westminster City Council special recall election. Vote centers were scheduled to open this weekend for that contest. “Pursuant to Governor Gavin Newsom’s Executive Order (N-34-20), the generalized use of in-person voting may present risks to public health and safety in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and could risk undermining social distancing measures imposed by the State Public Health Officer,” O.C. Registrar Neal Kelley said in a statement. These moves give us a glimpse of what the future could hold: voting during a pandemic, when election officials have to weigh the risks of gathering at polling places versus the need to make voting accessible to everyone. “We’re having to adjust exactly how we administer the elections so that we maintain the right to vote but keep everybody as healthy as possible,” said Secretary of State Alex Padilla.

Georgia: All active voters will be mailed absentee ballot request forms | Mark Niesse/The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

All of Georgia’s 6.9 million active voters will be mailed absentee ballot request forms for the May 19 primary, a major push to encourage voting by mail during the coronavirus pandemic, Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger announced Tuesday. The absentee voting effort will allow Georgians to decide on their choices for president and other elected offices from home, without having to visit in-person voting locations where the coronavirus could more easily spread. Early voting and Election Day precincts will remain open. A large number of people voting by mail would be a significant change in the way elections are run in Georgia. While the state has allowed any voter to cast a ballot by mail since 2005, just 7% of voters did so in the 2018 election for governor. The state’s absentee ballot initiative follows an agreement by Raffensperger, a Republican, and the Democratic Party of Georgia to delay the previously scheduled March 24 presidential primary because of the coronavirus. The presidential primary will now be held May 19, along with races for the U.S. Senate, the U.S. House, the Georgia General Assembly and local offices.

Mississippi: Secretary of state’s visit brings up question of potential paper ballot switch | Ray Van Dusen/Monroe Journal

Newly elected Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson has embarked on a listening tour through all of the state’s 82 counties to gather concerns from circuit clerks and election commissioners. He made his Monroe County visit March 9, and one of the talking points was the potential of mandated paper ballots for elections. While he is unsure of what the future may hold with electronic versus paper ballots, Monroe County Circuit Clerk Dana Sloan later said she is preparing if it is mandated. “If it comes through a federal mandate, it would come with funds. I’ve heard rumors of a potential push from Washington about a mandate to bring back paper ballots, but nothing is confirmed. Right now, I just heard there was a possibility but I want to gather as much information as I can to be prepared in case it happens,” she said. Monroe County switched from paper ballots to electronic TSX voting machines in 2006. A ballpark estimate for one scanner at each of Monroe County’s 26 voting precincts and four additional scanners at the four largest ones to tabulate paper ballot results is $285,000.