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After 2 Disappointing Election Cycles, Republican Leaders Have A Choice: Roll Back Early Voting And Mail-In Ballots Or Learn To Take Advantage Of Them
The Federalist ^ | 11/14/2022 | Eddie Scarry

Posted on 11/14/2022 11:27:29 AM PST by SeekAndFind

There isn’t just one reason for the midterm shortcomings but none are more important than the party’s neglect in adapting to our new jungle of an election process.

Republicans apparently learned very little from the 2020 election which turned voting and vote counting into a chaotic multi-week affair, all to the great advantage of Democrats.

After finding their party blown out of the water by early votes and mail-in ballots, both vastly expanded to accommodate the pandemic hysteria, elected GOP leaders seem to have thought to themselves, “Well, better luck next time!”

And here we are. In an election year that should have seen major gains for Republicans across the board, the party failed to take the Senate, could still (a week after Election Day) fail to secure the House, and is now on life support for the governorship in Arizona. There isn’t just one reason for the shortcomings but none are more important than the party’s neglect in adapting to our new jungle of an election process.

For the past two years, every Republican should have been either attempting to beat back the flood of “no excuse” mail-in ballots saturating swing states, or building up a party network that could adapt to it. There were some efforts to manage the mail-in voting problem in Arizona and Georgia but otherwise the party said its prayers and hoped for the best heading into the midterms.

We see how that strategy turned out. Democrats once again turned on the ignition and their army of activists began knocking on doors and dialing up their reliable voters to be sure that every single one of them knew the time to vote was now. Whether it was three weeks or a month before actual Election Day, it didn’t matter. Now. In response, Republicans donned a toothy smile and told their voters to keep Tuesday open. Wait in line— no matter how long it takes.

True, Republicans tend to be a lot more motivated than Democrats to vote in a non-presidential campaign year. They’re happy to drive to the booth and wait their turn. But the new reality is that elections are happening for weeks before the designated day for official in-person voting. That’s a lot of time for dedicated activists to call or visit the homes of their voters, no matter how unmotivated they are, and tell them that they don’t have to wait at all. They can cast their ballot right now. Want me to do it for you?!

Where is Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel on this? Where is National Republican Congressional Committee Chair Tom Emmer? Where is National Republican Senatorial Committee Chair Rick Scott? They’re the ones responsible for leading on these things but they did nothing. Now they’re cheerfully making plans for their future leadership positions and fundraising operations.

If elected Republicans aren’t prepared to roll all of it back to the pre-pandemic way of doing things — I know, the media will call you racist, boo-hoo — then they’ll have to adapt and develop their own way of pushing their voters to cast ballots for weeks leading up to Election Day. That’s what Democrats are doing and it’s working.


Eddie Scarry is the D.C. columnist at The Federalist and author of "Liberal Misery: How the Hateful Left Sucks Joy Out of Everything and Everyone."



TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Front Page News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: mailinballots; republicans; voterfraud
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1 posted on 11/14/2022 11:27:29 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

This isn’t about early voting. It’s about outright fraud and the Republicrats are in on it.


2 posted on 11/14/2022 11:29:42 AM PST by T.B. Yoits
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To: SeekAndFind

I hear this all the time-we should play by the same rules.

No, we shouldn’t. Those rules, put in place to intentionally weaken the voting process by the Left, should not be worked around.

They should be removed. Playing by “those rules” only guarantees an election process that is more stupid and crooked than it is today.

We won’t be able to “out-left” Leftists. And trying to play by their rules would be a conclusion gleefully accepted by them.


3 posted on 11/14/2022 11:30:54 AM PST by rlmorel (Nolnah's Razor: Never attribute to incompetence that which is adequately explained by malice.)
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To: SeekAndFind
Early voting? Yes, absolutely, IN PERSON.

The Dems just might know that if their peeps vote early, all they need to do is to mess with things on election day.

Mail in ballots? No! (thanks anyhoo).

Too much reliance on a longer chain of custody of the ballots.

4 posted on 11/14/2022 11:31:25 AM PST by Seaplaner (Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never...in nothing, great or small...Winston Churchill)
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To: T.B. Yoits

RE: It’s about outright fraud and the Republicrats are in on it.

The problem is — How do we prove it beyond reasonable doubt, other that the usual “Because I say so”.


5 posted on 11/14/2022 11:31:36 AM PST by SeekAndFind
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To: SeekAndFind

The article is correct. There should not be early and extensive mail voting.
If it will continue, then duh why aren’t we doing it?


6 posted on 11/14/2022 11:32:35 AM PST by Williams (Stop Tolerating The Intolerant)
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To: SeekAndFind

Its the fraud. 😣


7 posted on 11/14/2022 11:36:23 AM PST by Georgia Girl 2 (The only purpose of a pistol is to fight your way back to the rifle you should never have dropped)
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To: SeekAndFind

You can build in all kinds of controls, but clever people will always find ways around them so they can make money.

People are people.

People have desires and they act on them.

If you are going to eliminate voter cheating, then you are going to have to change a lot of people’s acts that they base on their desires.

You stop voter cheating by punishing the acts of the voting cheaters.


8 posted on 11/14/2022 11:36:49 AM PST by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer” )
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To: SeekAndFind

I think we need to prove that the the GOP leadership actually wants to win first. They really act like they don’t want to. They really need to be purged and replaced with people that fight for the country.


9 posted on 11/14/2022 11:38:04 AM PST by Dutch Boy (The only thing worse than having something taken from you is to have it returned broken. )
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To: blueunicorn6

And you punish these voting cheaters severely.

Not probation.

Severe punishment.

It is only by correction that behavior is changed.


10 posted on 11/14/2022 11:39:07 AM PST by blueunicorn6 ("A crack shot and a good dancer” )
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To: rlmorel

Everyone agrees with you but it’s not a practical solution.

You can’t fix the election system unless you have political power, you don’t gain political power unless you win elections, and you don’t win elections by tying one hand behind your back.

You don’t deal with mass mail in voting in some meaningful way Republicans will end up being nothing more than a local party and have not national power.


11 posted on 11/14/2022 11:39:49 AM PST by srmanuel (I)
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To: rlmorel

Well it’s a catch 22 right now. Can’t get the changed needed until we get people elected to do so and that’s not going to happen under the new rules. Therefor, we start playing by the new rules.


12 posted on 11/14/2022 11:39:49 AM PST by Pollard (Worm & GMO Free - some call us purebloods)
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To: SeekAndFind

The GOP is rudderless, cowering spineless assistant Democrats. Sometimes I think a 3rd party is the way to go and the GOP would just wither away after many join the Dems.


13 posted on 11/14/2022 11:40:20 AM PST by 1Old Pro
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To: SeekAndFind

RE-REGISTER EVERYONE AND REQUIRE CITIZENSHIP PROOF ...EVERY FOUR YEARS


14 posted on 11/14/2022 11:40:44 AM PST by goodnesswins (The Chinese are teaching calculus to their 3rd graders while ours are trying to pick a pronoun.)
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To: SeekAndFind

They also need to pour millions into getting conservatives elected to Secretary of State in each state. Soros did that, to control the election process and it paid off big time.


15 posted on 11/14/2022 11:41:04 AM PST by Calvin Cooledge
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To: T.B. Yoits

Right. This is folly. GOP areas are too sparsely populated to compete in the ballot harvesting game.


16 posted on 11/14/2022 11:41:45 AM PST by alstewartfan ("She looks like she's 19 years old, sitting there like a lady with her legs crossed." Creepy Joe)
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To: rlmorel

I agree...playing Dems games creates chaos


17 posted on 11/14/2022 11:42:01 AM PST by goodnesswins (The Chinese are teaching calculus to their 3rd graders while ours are trying to pick a pronoun.)
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To: SeekAndFind

Haha, it’s not going to change. Repubs are too ritcheous and dems are too crooked. They both like it just the way it is. Better get used to it, because it will NOT change until a 3rd party blows everything up. Yup, harvest ballots, vote early and often. When 50 million people do it.....THEN IT WILL CHANGE


18 posted on 11/14/2022 11:42:03 AM PST by GenX4Real
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To: SeekAndFind

Did everyone notice that the Dems out fundraised and spent the GOP? What right leaning conservative would ever donate to the assistant Dem party? Maybe it’s time for some party introspection.


19 posted on 11/14/2022 11:42:04 AM PST by 1Old Pro
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To: SeekAndFind

This is the world we live in.... fix the cheatable system or learn how to cheat.

The ol’ cant beat em join em!


20 posted on 11/14/2022 11:42:23 AM PST by MrRelevant
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