As some Washington state residents have voiced concerns, Washington State Republican Party Chairman Jim Walsh said requiring voters to write their party affiliation on the outside of their mail-in ballots is a “questionable design decision.” Ta.
Walsh told Fox News Digital on Friday that the requirement to declare one’s political party is “codified in law” and applies only to primary elections, not general elections.
“The design of the certificate or declaration on the outside of the envelope is a guideline, not state law, and is an administrative decision made by the Washington State Secretary of State in conjunction with local county-level election officials,” he said. Stated. He said.
Walsh added, “It’s not statutory. It’s just a questionable design decision made by the Secretary of State in conjunction with local county election officials.”
Walsh said state Republicans have been trying since 2016 to change the law to require voters to declare their party affiliation “so people can choose to be independent,” but they have been blocked by the Democratic-led Legislature. .
One X user took a photo Ballot envelopes indicate where voters must declare they are a Democrat or Republican, and on Thursday said: I have never had to disclose my party’s manifesto on the outside of my ballot. I don’t feel very good about this. ”
Cartoonist Scott Adams reposted it and wrote, “How can this be real?” Then X’s owner Elon Musk responded, “What!?”
Another voter wrote: “Question – why do I have to write my party affiliation on the outside of the envelope I vote in?”
A third user, X, posted a photo of the envelope and wrote, “Washington state presidential primary ballot…do I have to declare it on the outside of the envelope?!” There is also no option for independents! This way the ballots are thrown out before they are counted! ”
“We’re not big fans of the law, but we understand that it’s the law, and we understand that we have to abide by both state law and some national and party rules,” Walsh said. He spoke to FOX News Digital about this mandate. Declare a party.
He said the “spirit of the law” is to prevent citizens from “gaming the system and trying to be part of one party and vote in the other party’s primaries.” , said he felt there could be genuine security concerns with the bill. The declaration is on the outside of the ballot.
This week, he suggested to Seattle-area radio host Jason Lantz that voters take their ballots to the drop box instead of mailing them.
“Deliver it to the ballot box. Or give it to someone you trust to deliver it to you,” he said.
But Luntz said in an op-ed that “preliminary fraud has no meaning in this election cycle.” Donald Trump will be the nominee, but it is unlikely that any other candidate will come close enough for stealth fraud to take place. And while it is clear that fraud (and mistakes) occur, there is no recent evidence that fraud was widespread enough to change a national election. But voters rightly remember the scandal surrounding the recount between then-gubernatorial candidates Dino Rossi (Republican) and Christine Gregoire (Democrat). ”
The Washington Secretary of State’s office cited examples of protest statements voters wrote on ballots in 2016 to show them the correct way to fill out their ballots, including statements such as “Actually, I…” It was “I’m an independent, but if it makes you happy,” “Don’t tell me what to do. Voters are furious,” “I feel like I’m being forced to choose a party, but… That’s not fair.”
The Secretary of State’s Office says on its website that voters’ party declaration choices will be deleted after 60 days. However, major political parties are asking voters to mark and sign the party manifesto. If you choose to participate, your choice of party will not affect how you vote in future elections. For your vote to be counted, you must mark and sign the party declaration form (box) on the envelope. ”
The office did not say why the declaration was placed on the outside of the ballot. FOX News Digital reached out to the Secretary of State’s Office.
FOX News Digital also reached out to the Washington Democratic Party for comment.
The Washington presidential primary will be held on March 12th.
