[EM] Supreme Court Won't Rule on Vote-By-Mail

[DEMOREP1 at aol.com]

Supreme Court Won't Rule on Vote-By-Mail

WASHINGTON (AP) - The Supreme Court refused Monday to weigh in on the 
legality of voting by mail.
 
The court passed up a chance to review Oregon's one-of-a-kind program, which 
has eliminated most polling places. The system gets more people involved in 
elections, Oregon leaders contend. Voters have multiple days, not just one, 
to make their choices.
 
Some residents challenged the process, arguing that it violates federal 
election laws that spell out how states handle federal elections. The law 
says that congressional and presidential elections must take place on the 
same day in November.
 
A ruling could have affected about 20 states that have vote-by-mail 
procedures and many other states where the subject is being considered.
 
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals signed off on Oregon's system last 
year. The court said that since Oregon did not count the mail-in votes until 
election day, the voting was not improper.
 
Oregon is the only state that has ended precinct polling, but more than half 
of voters in Washington state also cast their ballots by mail. Oregon voters 
approved the mail voting in 1998. In 2000, about 80 percent of voters cast 
votes that way, the court was told.
 
Some other states that have some form of unrestricted early voting are 
Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, 
Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and 
Wyoming, the court was told.
 
The case is Decker v. Bradbury, 01-732.

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