Idaho Legislature: Ask Legislators to VOTE NO on H0441 - Absentee voting (posted 03/25/25)

• Bill: legislature.idaho.gov/s…

• Contact Legislators: Please use Idaho Legislature website to find contact info. Details here: tinyurl.com/2r4uuj32

(Check the linked page or use My Bill Tracker for the bill’s current status.)

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Currently, Idahoans who vote by absentee ballot must sign the affidavit on the outside of the return envelope, exposing the voter's signature to anyone who sees the mail. The county clerk then accepts the ballot if the signature appears to match the signature in the voter registration record. However, signature matching is an inexact science.

H0441 attempts to improve election integrity and personal information security in the absentee balloting process by:

• Requiring the voter to also write their driver's license or state photo ID number, and the last four digits of their social security number;

• Requiring the Secretary of State to design a system that prevents personally identifiable information, including the voter's signature, from being visible on the outside of the return envelope.

• Proposed solution is to use a large-flap two-envelope system or a three-envelope system.

We laud the idea of hiding a voter’s personal information. However, we ***strongly object*** to requiring social security and drivers license/state photo ID information on yet another easily opened piece of mail.

A better option is to require absentee voters to include their unique voter ID # and signature and use the two- or three-envelope system described above.

👉 Idaho voters can look up their unique voter ID # here: elections.sos.idaho.gov…

NOTE: The initial purpose of absentee voting was to help those who were physically unable to vote for reasons beyond their control: physical infirmity, illness, work restrictions, and so on. Such ballots never were intended for “convenience.” Broadening the use of absentee ballots – which became almost universal during the COVID era – can lead to voter fraud.

References:

• Idaho Secretary of State Voter Information Look-up: elections.sos.idaho.gov…

• America on Life Support: Every State Needs Election Integrity! tinyurl.com/39ru5haj