SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Sept. 4, 2020 (Gephardt Daily) — Mail-in balloting is a safe bet in Utah, but in other states, not so much. That’s the word from 3rd District Representative John Curtis, who, while expressing great confidence in Utah’s mail-in voting system — something that’s been in place for years — is worried other states are ill-prepared.
In a Gephardt Daily “Newsmaker” interview, Curtis voiced his trepidation over states that say they will fulfill requests for mail-in ballots until just four days before the election. Curtis said the odds of those ballots being delivered, filled out by voters, and returned by Nov. 3 are slim-to-none and rural areas would be especially impacted.
“I have no doubt the state of Utah has the people and the systems in place to handle this effectively. I do have worries that other states have not been as responsible and they need to be accountable for that. If they don’t have a good system, a system that people can trust and count on, that’s a problem.”
Curtis said it frustrated him that poor election planning in different states was the real threat to an accurate and timely vote count and the postal service was being blamed. He said if something goes wrong with the vote, it will be frustrating for all Americans.
“I think most people sense an election that is going to be very close and we need confidence in every district in every state that we’re getting good information on a somewhat timely basis.”
When asked how long he thought it might take to tally the Nov. 3 vote, including mail-in ballots, Curtis predicted the process would take days, even weeks, before the outcome of the presidential race and others are known.
Regardless of how the voting goes, Curtis predicted one outcome: “You’re not going to have these election results the next morning. That’s just the reality.”
To hear more of Congressman Curtis’ “Newsmaker’ interview,” click on the video player above.
