State Policy Network
Election Integrity in 2020: Insights for state think tanks

With a global pandemic, historic unemployment, and civil unrest, 2020 is one of the most tumultuous and unpredictable election years in decades. Americans are concerned with not only the results of the election, but with the integrity of the process itself.

To provide insight on the threats to election integrity and how Americans are feeling towards the issue, State Policy Network held a webinar with Jason Snead, executive director of the Honest Elections Project, and Brett Loyd, president and CEO of the polling company. SPN’s Carrie Conko facilitated the discussion that touched on how state think tanks can engage on this issue in a productive and constructive way.

Primary election problems foreshadow a bleak picture come November 3

A push for universal vote-by-mail

Policymakers and activists who have long advocated for changes that would alter and undermine the integrity of elections are seizing on the pandemic as an opportunity for reform. For instance, Democrats in Congress are pushing for legislation that would mail ballots to every voter registration on file, even though voter rolls are rife with outdated and inaccurate entries. We’ve also seen some states going to or considering going to vote-by-mail.

Some also claim that this is the time to do away with voter identification laws, “vote harvesting” bans, ballot receipt deadline statutes, absentee ballot witness signature matching laws, and even laws that require voters who want to vote absentee to ask for an absentee vote.

However, many of these proposals are unpopular with Americans since they have the potential to undermine election integrity. For instance, mail ballots are three times more likely to rejected than ballots cast in person for a myriad of reasons, including arriving after the deadline and mismatched signatures.

Americans believe elections need to be fair, honest, and free of fraud

Watch the webinar on SPN’s Member Portal here.

Related resources

The Unnecessary Risks of Mandated and Rushed Vote-by-Mail
Honest Elections Project

Put an End to “Vote Harvesting”
Honest Elections Project

Best Practices for Achieving Integrity in Voter Registration
Public Interest Legal Foundation

Considerations for Election Polling Locations and Voters
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Organization: State Policy Network