Nevada Governor Signs Vote-by-Mail Law Despite Threat from Trump
Roz Brown/Cynthia Bishop Jonas, Public News Service – NV
LAS VEGAS — Legislation to expand Nevada’s vote-by-mail for the November election was signed by Gov. Steve Sisolak late Monday, despite attacks by President Donald Trump earlier in the day. During a special session on Sunday, the Nevada Senate approved implementation of a mail-in voting system.
In a tweet following the action, Trump called it a “late-night coup” and said it should be met with “immediate litigation.” Sondra Cosgrove, president of the League of Women Voters of Nevada, said the group supports broader vote-by-mail this year because Nevadans should not be put at risk of contracting or spreading COVID-19.
“We want to make sure they have a voting option that lessens or mitigates that risk,” Cosgrove said. “And so obviously when you’re talking about a pandemic and people really can’t be close to each other, mail-in voting is going to be the way we want them to go.”
Cosgrove added that voting by mail is not a requirement as polling sites also will be open, though there may be fewer of them.
The Trump administration has argued universal vote-by-mail could lead to fraud. But states where it’s allowed – including Colorado and Utah – report little-to-no evidence of election fraud.
Nevada conducted its first all-mail election in June after election leaders agreed the pandemic posed a significant risk to poll workers and voter safety. Cosgrove said for this year only, the new law means everyone will be sent a ballot without needing to request one.
“So, what we’re doing is not permanent. It’s going to be written into our law saying that when we’re under an emergency order, this will be the election process that we follow,” she said.
California, Vermont and other states also are proactively sending mail-in ballots to voters because of the pandemic. In a statement, Sisolak said he’s confident local clerks and registrars, “will run a safe, fair and accessible election” in November.
