Washington needs election changes

November election ballots are required to be in the mail three weeks after certification of the primary election. The first big crack is exposed. Three weeks is not sufficient time for a time for a statewide recount and any pursuing legal matters. It’s probable that we would have November’s mail-in ballots suspended, creating massive delays on the final count.

Can you imagine Washington being the spotlight under such conditions? How many lawsuits of ballot irregularity do you think would be filed while the world waits in anxiety for theee to four weeks? Our system worked fine when less than 5 percent of the results were cast by mail. But, voters want timely results so they can get on their lives.

Avoiding an embarrassing spotlight carrying on for weeks requires changes in law. We need to bring our state in line with the rest of the country by requiring ballots to be in the courthouses on election day. But, we cannot have timely results of the general election without moving the primary election date. County auditors simply need more time between the two elections due to the high volume of absentee ballots.

Over the last four years, I have introduced bills to change the primary election date and timelines for quicker election results. But, traditions are hard to change and legislators are reluctant in slaying sacred cows. Hopefully this year’s spotlight on Florida will be a wakeup call to fix the cracks in the rail lines. Accidents are messy and expensive. I’d rather spend my time slaying the sacred cow than cleaning up an embarrassing mess with the whole world watching.