* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Burnett
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Request for State Action - November 2020 Mail-In Election
For the purpose of requesting that Governor Hogan make the November election a mail-in election, with the option of election day in-person voting, rather than a regular, in-person election.
body
Recitals
Whereas, On Wednesday, July 15, 2020, Governor Hogan ordered the State Board of Elections to run a regular, in-person election in November, with all precincts open for in-person voting, and, to accommodate those voters who might feel it is unsafe to vote in-person, to mail each voter an application for an absentee ballot;
Whereas, The Governor’s order requires the State Board of Elections to, in essence, conduct two elections - a vote by-mail election and an in-person election;
Whereas, This is a herculean task that sets the State up for failure;
Whereas, Primary elections conducted in a variety of states that required vote-by-mail ballot applications cost millions of additional dollars to be spent by those states, overwhelmed election staff with last-minute applications that could not be processed in time for Election Day, and required extending voting hours as applicants, who were unable to vote by-mail, were forced to the polls;
Whereas, Holding a regular in-person election will require people to spend prolonged periods of time indoors waiting to cast their votes, and t...
Click here for full text