Q&A – Should We Ban Vote by Mail Ballots?
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
Social: @brianmuddradio
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Today’s entry: @brianmuddradio Are you going to change your stance on vote by mail ballots because of Trump just like DeSantis just did?
Bottom Line: Questions like this are fun for two reasons. One because I enjoy addressing and breaking down the issues of the day and two because it’s the perfect illustration of critics only hearing what they choose to. I’ll address that aspect of this but first let’s dive into what President Trump has said and what he’s getting ready to do.
After speaking out against the integrity of vote by mail ballots on Friday and Monday, President Trump posted this on Truth Social: I am going to lead a movement to get rid of MAIL-IN BALLOTS, and also, while we’re at it, Highly “Inaccurate,” Very Expensive, and Seriously Controversial VOTING MACHINES, which cost Ten Times more than accurate and sophisticated Watermark Paper, which is faster, and leaves NO DOUBT, at the end of the evening, as to who WON, and who LOST, the Election. We are now the only Country in the World that uses Mail-In Voting. All others gave it up because of the MASSIVE VOTER FRAUD ENCOUNTERED. WE WILL BEGIN THIS EFFORT, WHICH WILL BE STRONGLY OPPOSED BY THE DEMOCRATS BECAUSE THEY CHEAT AT LEVELS NEVER SEEN BEFORE, by signing an EXECUTIVE ORDER to help bring HONESTY to the 2026 Midterm Elections. Remember, the States are merely an “agent” for the Federal Government in counting and tabulating the votes. They must do what the Federal Government, as represented by the President of the United States, tells them, FOR THE GOOD OF OUR COUNTRY, to do.
That’s obviously provocative, especially with about a third of all votes in last year’s presidential election cycle being cast by mail. Before diving further into this, a little housekeeping.
It’s incorrect to suggest the U.S. is the only country with mail-in-ballots. There are 34 countries that currently allow for mail-in voting too. Now with that said, the over-arching point of what he’s saying is correct. There are 197 recognized countries in the world – which means that the United States is in the vast minority of the world, with only 17% of countries, in the allowance for mail-in voting. And it is also true that election integrity is the reason why this is the case. So, on this issue Trump is literally wrong, but principally correct. That’s the jumping off point for this conversation and analysis.
As I’ve updated and shared many times over the years the U.S. has consistently ranked worst or second to worst in election integrity in the developed world. Not according to me, or to Trump or to DeSantis but according to the most comprehensive ongoing study into these matters in the world...Harvard’s Electoral Integrity Project. This includes the United States ranking 55th world-wide in election integrity with an integrity score of 64 out of 100. The 64 score ties us with Mexico and places us several points behind countries like Trinidad and Tobago, the Dominican Republic, Columbia and Jamacia. So that’s the next important point for anyone who argues that there aren’t election integrity issues. They either aren’t informed or like lax election integrity and are lying through their teeth. That brings me to the facts about mail in voting and what I said specifically about it as recently as the last time I covered it on Halloween last year.
Quoting myself: The fact remains it’s still best to vote in person, whether that’s early or on Election Day. A study conducted several years ago by the ACLU found mailed in ballots were ten times less likely to be tabulated than votes cast in person (predominantly due to errors made by voters, like not signing a ballot or mismatched signatures, etc.). In total, an average of 1% of vote by mail ballots historically haven’t been tabulated because they didn’t arrive to election supervisors in time or because of the user errors that can come up. That’s a big number of votes that’s commonly totaled over 20,000 ballots – or larger than the winning margin in some statewide contests historically – let alone the potential impact in local elections.
So yes, the best practice is to vote in person when possible. But for those who need to vote by mail, the best practice is to track a ballot’s status online to ensure that it’s tabulated.
And that’s independent of ballot harvesting and other integrity concerns. That has always been my position. I’ve never missed an election since becoming eligible to vote in 1998 and I’ve always voted in person. I would gladly support an end to mailed in ballots. Now, with that said I also believe in playing the game the way that the game is played and that’s where you’re likely attempting to find inconsistencies. But they aren’t there.
So, for example, I believe that the NFL should enforce rules the way that they used to. I believe that a player should get two steps and should be able to send a quarterback into next week – as long as they don’t they don’t lead with, or target their head. I believe that any receiver who clearly possesses the ball for any length of time with two feet on the ground and loses the ball has fumbled. But because the NFL treats quarterbacks like their babies doesn’t mean I don’t want the game called that way for both teams on the field. So yes, for example I’ve encouraged Republican voters to make sure they vote however they can and for the party to even ballot harvest in states where it’s legal to do so. If you don’t play the game the way the game is played you lose. And frankly that’s why Trump lost in 2020.
But what that doesn’t mean is that we shouldn’t create the best possible rules that allow for the most accurate election results. That’s why Trump is right, DeSantis is right, Harvard is right and it’s why I’ve been completely intellectually consistent. There are two sides to stories and one side to facts. Those are the facts.