President Trump plans executive order in an attempt to end mail-in ballots. How could it affect Central Oregon voters?
Claire Elmer
(Update: Adding video, comments from Sec. of State Tobias Read/ Republican Chair for Deschutes Co. Keith Rockow)
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — President Trump says he plans to sign an executive order ending mail-in ballots nationwide. Opponents say the move would bring major challenges — especially in states like Oregon, where vote-by-mail has been the standard for decades.
Oregon was the first state in the US to adopt vote by mail after President Trump announced intentions to end the system. Many leaders and citizens across the state are pushing back. Secretary of State Tobias Read says Trump’s attempt is not just controversial, it’s unconstitutional.
Tobias Read told KTVZ News, “The Constitution is very clear. It says that states decide how to run elections, and we’re very proud of what we do in Oregon. We’ve seen higher turnout, lower costs, accurate results and we should continue down that path. If our rights to run our own elections are infringed upon we will use every tool at our disposal to make sure that Oregonians get to decide how to run elections.”
Supporters say the system balances convenience and security. Secretary Read argues mail-in voting is essential for many Oregonians, including those with limited transportation options and military members. “Think about rural people. Think about elderly people, people who are working for an hourly wage. Mail-in votes, meet them right where they are in their living room, around their kitchen table, and gives them the chance to engage in that most fundamental of American activities, holding politicians accountable.” said Read
Here in Central Oregon, Deschutes County clerk Steve Dennison says the system has been refined, successful, and the only way Oregonians have voted for over 20 years.
Dennison tells KTVZ News, “100% of the voters vote by mail in Deschutes County and throughout the state of Oregon. We do mail a ballot to every registered voter.”
Dennison spoke of the multiple safeguards to keep ballots secure and logistics to consider if vote by mail were eliminated, such as costs associated with setting up and staffing numerous polling stations.
Dennison told KTVZ News, “All ballots are returned to our offices and reconciled within our four walls, so you’re centralizing the process, which is always going to be something that’s secure, as opposed to something that’s decentralized. I don’t want to say that polling places, uh, polling place elections are not secure, that’s not true, just other considerations, and costs that would go into that. If we’re talking about a big change like this. Who is going to pay for it?”
But not everyone feels confident in the system. Deschutes County Republican Party Chair Keith Rockow has major concerns about flaws he sees with vote-by-mail, and he’s not alone.
Rockow told KTVZ News, “I have a lot of concerns, three specifically, they cover security, transparency, and accountability. Don’t know what’s gonna happen to it once it gets dropped in a mailbox. You don’t know who fills it out. The machines that they are wireless, how secure are they? Can they be accessed from an outside source?”
Rockow believes if everyone works together, arguments regarding cost of in-person voting and transportation issues could be remedied.
Rockow also told us, “If people wanted to get to a polling station, I know we could find a way to get them there. I always have. A healthy group of volunteers wanna do things. Um, I’m sure it would easily find volunteers to work polling places.”
Even as debate over mail-in voting continues nationwide, Oregon officials say the state system is secure, reliable, and here to stay, at least for now.