WASHINGTON _ Democrats in one of the most pivotal battleground states are pushing past concerns about the efficiency of the Postal Service and making voting by mail a centerpiece of their election mobilization strategy.
Despite a president who has continually maligned the process, Republican lawsuits aimed at restricting the practice, and an edict from former first lady Michelle Obama at last week's Democratic National Convention to "vote in person if we can," Pennsylvania Democrats have settled on a concerted effort to urge their voters to cast ballots through the mail _ a campaign that already appears to be paying dividends.
Democrats in Pennsylvania account for two-thirds of the 1.3 million mail ballot requests that have already been made, according to a top Democratic political data firm. Unlike some Western states that have voted by mail for several election cycles and Florida, which has used the practice for nearly two decades, Pennsylvania is entering uncharted waters this fall, as a no-excuse mail voting law was first signed last October.
"I have utter confidence and I have to say that in the face of a president who is doing everything in his power to undermine our Postal Service," said Rep. Madeleine Dean, a Democrat who represents the Philadelphia suburbs. "What I have confidence in is the postal workers themselves. They are public servants and they're going to get the job done."
Leading Democratic Party figures in Pennsylvania emphasize that although mail voting is the focal point of their strategy, they are still preparing to encourage their voters to submit their ballots in a variety of ways _ part of a complicated, well-funded campaign in a state whose voters have traditionally turned out on Election Day only.
The multi-pronged effort is a partial acknowledgment that some voters _ particularly in the Black community _ are wary about the reliability of the post office and insistent that they vote in the way they always have, these Democrats say. A Muhlenberg College poll released last week found that 64% of all Pennsylvania voters still said they intended to cast their ballot in person.
But Democratic leaders also contend they've remedied the issues that plagued them in the June primary when election officials were overwhelmed by a deluge of mail-in ballot requests during the coronavirus pandemic. It was the first time the state had conducted a mail-in election since a new law authorized the procedure last year and the surge in requests ultimately delayed the tabulation process, which in Philadelphia continued for close to two weeks.
Dean said in Montgomery County _ the third-largest in the state _ commissioners have since used federal funds from the Cares Act to add eight staffers and more technology to help process the vote faster.
"We've learned a lot since June 2nd," said Rep. Dwight Evans, a Philadelphia Democrat who earlier this summer expressed doubts about his constituents trusting the vote by mail process. Now, Evans says "there's far more awareness" from both voters and administrators about "the mechanical aspect of it, the machinery."
Democrats say that encouraging their constituents to vote through the mail is the best way, in their view, to guarantee the highest possible turnout in November's election and avoid losing out on voters wary of contracting the coronavirus. It also helps the campaigns track which voters have already submitted their ballot and which voters need further encouragement to do so.
Current polling averages show Joe Biden with a lead of more than 5 points over President Donald Trump for Pennsylvania's 20 electoral votes.
"Yes, there is some distrust in the system," said Kevin Mack, senior strategist for the Voter Project, a group working to increase turn out in Pennsylvania. "But it's our job to make sure there's a safe and secure way to vote in this election cycle."
If Democratic voters are resistant to voting by mail, party strategists say their get-out-the-vote effort will turn to other methods, including encouraging them to drop off their ballots at the post office directly, at their local county elections board or a satellite office.
Those options are all new to a state that in previous general elections saw an overwhelming majority of its voters cast their ballots at polling stations on Election Day itself. The lack of familiarity with early voting, coupled with concerns about the reliability of the Post Office, has created some resistance to the new methods of submitting a ballot, Democrats say.
"Some people are just adamant that they are afraid of the Post Office," said Tara Yokopenic, the chairwoman of the Westmoreland County Democratic Party. "They're afraid their ballot can get lost. So they want to do it in person."
Yokopenic said she and party members statewide are still calling potential voters to encourage that they request an absentee ballot. But when they encounter resistance, she said, they're quick to point out all the other ways the man or woman can submit their ballot.
Democrats say those voters resistant to voting through the mail include older members of the party who have spent decades voting a certain way. Polls also indicate African Americans are more skeptical about mail voting than Democratic voters overall: A survey released Thursday from the Pew Research Center found that one-third of Black Biden supporters plan to vote in person on Election Day _ compared to 20% of White voters and 21% of Hispanic voters.
One challenge facing get-out-the-vote efforts is, even with little more than two months before Election Day, the county-by-county specifics of when absentee ballots will be distributed and how they can be returned is unknown.
Each of the state's 67 counties is allowed to begin sending absentee ballots to voters who requested them as early as 50 days before the election _ but isn't required to do so until two weeks before the election. Even now, operatives tracking the election closely say they don't know what each individual county will do.
"I don't think it's out of the question that some places that would try to mail ballots as close to Election Day as possible," Mack said.
Mack emphasized that he wasn't yet too worried about the problem, saying that most local officials are dedicated to running a smooth election and, if any dragged their feet, would be subject to pressure from Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf to speed up the process.
But it's also not the only known unknown ahead of the general election. Officials with groups trying to increase voter turnout say they also don't know if in-person polling places will be consolidated before Election Day or when or where satellite locations for county elections boards will be set up (if they're set up at all). Trump's campaign has also sued to halt the implementation of drop-boxes throughout the state where voters could also return their ballot, but a Trump-appointed judge recently halted the challenge.
A key component of Democrats' education process is reiterating the importance of returning ballots early to significantly reduce the potential of a delay jeopardizing their arrival. The utilization of drop boxes, essentially satellite polling locations to submit ballots, is also being encouraged. And many counties will send an email to the voter once their ballot has been received.
"Make sure they get that email from the county elections bureau that they received that ballot," said Rep. Mike Doyle, a Democrat representing Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. "If they don't get that email they should be prepared to show up at the polls on Election Day.
Some Democratic officials conceded that in some rural parts of the state, where concerns over the Postal Service's service cutbacks are most acute, they might have to rethink how soon they begin encouraging people to return their ballot not through the mail but in person in some form or fashion.
The uncertainty, coupled with a group of voters used to casting their ballots in the traditional way, has made the challenge of pushing people to vote a gargantuan task, strategists say.
"We are making educated guesses, which is the best we've got at this point," said Carol Carvalho, the Pennsylvania state director for America Votes, a nationwide organization that seeks to boost progressive turnout. "And different counties will do things on different timelines."
In Chester County, Democrats are promoting Oct. 20 _ a full two weeks before Election Day _ as the deadline for ballot returns.
"Who knows what's going to be the case on Nov. 3 relative to the pandemic, relative to the weather, relative to the magnitude of the turnout. You may have to stay in line for a long time," said Dick Bingham, the chairman of the Chester County Democrats. "If they mail it back at least by Oct. 20th, we're comfortable it will arrive at voter services on time."
In Centre County, one of the more rural areas in the center of the state, Democrats are using postcards and social media to promote vote by mail and forecast that up to 80% of their voters may choose to do so.
While the majority of Republicans are expected to vote in person, the Pennsylvania Republican Party has a page on its website that encourages mail voting intended for the June primary, but it has not been updated for the general election.
"Democrats will use the new mail-in ballot to greatly increase their turn-out," the page reads. "Republicans would be smart to do the same so we have the advantage."
None of the offices of the state's nine Republican congressional representatives returned an inquiry seeking their views and strategies on voting by mail.
