By Robert Welton
In the 1966 movie “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, three desperados battle it out to get their hands on $200,000 worth of gold. The Good (Clint Eastwood), The Bad (Lee Van Cleef) and The Ugly (Eli Wallach) are the three main characters. This frontier story provides an interesting way to view Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s election reform bill.
The gold in this tale is an election system that makes it easy for Alaskans to vote, is secure from internal and external threats, and is trusted by Alaskans to deliver an honest count. The system should also encourage as many Alaskans as possible to vote. How does Dunleavy’s bill stack up?
First consider the good.
The governor’s bill adds statutory language requiring the Division of Elections to review voter records and update the master register. The bill will also allow the division to cross check DMV records, U.S. Postal Service mailing address records and other databases to keep our voting lists current.
A routine forensic audit of each precinct tabulator machine, before and after each election is also a good idea. The term “forensic audit” is not a precisely defined term in election administration. So the scope of the audit should be fleshed out, to provide guidance to the Division of Elections.
The bill adds a system to allow voters to track their absentee ballots online. It also spells out a system for voters to “cure” their absentee ballot, should it be rejected for whatever reason. These changes will hopefully increase transparency and trust.
But there are a few bad hombres.
The governor’s bill changes the automatic voter registration of all PFD applications to an “opt-in” system. In 2016, we the people of Alaska approved Ballot Measure 1, which mandated all PFD applications be automatically registered to vote, unless they opt out. According to the Division of Elections, in 2020, 13,608 new voters were registered under the program, and 4,299 of those people voted. The Governor’s bill essentially wads up those votes and throws them into the trash.
Another bad idea that should be culled from the herd is the governor’s attempt to choke off absentee voting. Right now, citizens can request absentee ballots for life. This bill requires voters to reapply for absentee voting every four years. The bill also prohibits municipalities from conducting mail in elections. We shouldn’t erect barriers to voting, when there is no evidence of widespread fraud with mail-in ballots.
The governor’s bill tries to sabotage ranked choice voting, despite voters approving it by ballot initiative in 2020. The bill mandates very wordy, confusing language be added to voter pamphlets. This language will confuse, obfuscate and sow doubt about the integrity of ranked choice voting. Let’s let the system work a few times before trying to undermine it.
What’s Missing?
Election worker intimidation is a rising threat nationwide. Election workers in swing states faced aggressive crowds, assault rifle-toting extremists and death threats. We need to nip this in the bud. There’s nothing in the Governor’s bill to protect election workers from harassment and intimidation.
In last May’s Anchorage mayoral election, election workers faced “unprecedented harassment” per the municipal clerk. The high number of observers also put a strain on the already short-staffed election workers. The Governor’s bill makes it worse, by removing the limit on election observers.
Partisan electoral sabotage is another looming threat. In Colorado, an election worker allowed un-approved access to electronic voting machines. Contents were copied, and shared at the My Pillow guy’s election-themed spectacle. Our previous president famously asked Brad Raffensberger to find 11,780 votes in Georgia. During the last election, Alaskan election officials acted with integrity. What happens though if an extreme partisan like Representative Eastman is given control over election administration? The governor’s bill does nothing to address this risk.
To summarize, the governor’s bill is a mixed bag. I Hope our legislative leaders will amend the bill to keep the good, cut out the bad and include the missing, to get us a gold standard electoral system. Cue the theme music as our hero rides off into the sunset.
• Robert Welton resides in Juneau. Columns, My Turns and Letters to the Editor represent the view of the author, not the view of the Juneau Empire. Have something to say? Here’s how to submit a My Turn or letter.
