The same reason we leave mail in a trashcan on the street, we used to live in a civilized society where people respected the law and didn’t break into or destroy federal property.

this is what you get when people can't take time off of work to vote because there's no national pressure to give workers time to vote 🙃

Yeah. It is amazing like so much of American democracy.

I put letters in a box on the street too, then they magically reappear a long way away

Instead of one protected by three oaps who also hand out the little pencil?

We dropped ours off at the box when we went to the post office to apply for the kids' passports last week. I got a text from our Secretary of State's office later that afternoon confirming it was received and already counted. It was great

Yup they’ve been out there in the rain for like two weeks. Thing is built like a tank though, like 1/3inch welded steel plates with the tiniest little slit that could only fit the standard ballot envelope. The come and pick them up with a fork lift and put them on a flatbed because they’re so heavy

They’re not bad, actually; and you can submit the ballot in one of the ballot drop boxes or in a regular post box There are folks registering voters in close proximity to the boxes too… so someone’s watching them There was a Mail theft this week, however… from a Mail truck 🤬

i mean all we do here in the Netherlands is put them in trashcans in buildings on a specific day

The drop box where I used to work had to be monitored constantly until someone from the county came by to pick it up I send my ballots by mail all the time though and I get a text message when it's received and my signature is verified

Because we have a sect of society who benefits from making it as hard as possible for the working class to vote...

It's similar to dropping your mail in the same fashion. We vote by mail where I live and just dropped mine this morning! 🤣

It's like price segmentation but for voting. You know how many goods have an expensive plus version that's slightly better than the regular one but in practice about the same? Voters have a range of options from least secure (but easy) to more secure (but requires waiting).

Yes it is extremely convenient. That is why Republicans hate it. When more people are able to vote, Republicans lose.

The comparison illustrates an ignorance of the realities of election drop boxes. The ones I have encountered and used are built like a bullet-proof armored truck and kept locked. They more resemble the night depository of a bank than a trashcan. But go on, keep undermining faith in the system.

Theyre so convenient, especially for disabled folks, and very monitored in most places. We can also mail them directly in our state, but then you run into mail delay issues.

~* laughing in Brazilian *~

The one I use is the size of a small SUV, is bolted into place and surrounded by bollards, and is situated next to the local police precinct and almost certainly video-monitored. I wouldn't use a postal box, that seems like it has a lot of ways to be mishandled

You do know the ballot can be tracked after. Nice try though.

A lot of things about the US can be described as "legitimately insane", but they still happen.

Easily errm fiddled with.

what is a mailbox but a trashcan for words

There's probably a practical reason they're not in post-offices, for instance...

Only ever voted early and only ever by drop boxes. Maybe one time by normal mailbox. At least in our state they make tracking it very easy. When the people in power want people to vote it makes things better.

It's called a "BALLOT BOX", not a trashcan. Say it with me slowly: BALLOT BOX.

I thought it was just me. No way would I not vote in person. Technically early voting is absentee in GA but I can verify receipt.

It sounds like it works the same way in the UK though, is a postbox not a trashcan on the street? 🙂 “Voters return their postal ballots together with postal voting statements filled in with their date of birth and signature either by post or by hand” en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absente...

I wouldn't call them a trash can, but it is pretty crazy that we're able to do this. Mail-in ballots and their drop boxes are so incredibly convenient!

It's not a real democracy so it doesn't really matter.

Some of them are in stores.

In my defense I do drop my ballot off at the drop box that is in front of the police station. I figure it's probably the safest one.

"Supporting a third party? You might as well be throwing your vote away."

Some states don’t even have the option to vote in person you have to trust the mail

Maybe a test case for the future is Voting via the AtProtocol!! Should be an easy React application.

I already got in trouble for disparaging mail-in/dropbox voters, but this feels like a safer space… Vote in person, you cowards! *unless you have a good excuse