Trump preps to sign executive order to stop mail-in ballots

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (ValleyCentral) —  President Donald Trump is preparing to sign a new executive order that he hopes will do away with mail-in voting, as he claims mail ballots can be manipulated and voting machines are “highly inaccurate."

Many, like South Texas College Professor Jeff Justice, view the move as unnecessary.

“What the president is trying to do here is something that runs completely counter to the way we've always run things," Justice said. "Voting by mail is safe. It is secure, and if it weren't, we wouldn't be doing it.”

The majority of people ValleyCentral spoke to disagree with the president’s attempt to end voting by mail. However, some believe it might be a good idea as it can prevent hacks and other forms of manipulation.

"He (President Trump) says it could lead to fraud, but that’s been around for years, so I don’t think it’s something that can be eliminated just like that or that there’s that much fraud," said Mario Leal, Brownsville resident. "I think it’s just something he and his collaborators say so that their party can win."

Not everyone shares the same opinion as Leal. Brownsville resident Daniel Sosa believes mail-in voting can lead to fraud.

"Historically, I do believe fraud has occurred, and in fact, it's a nationwide controversy, but we support something that is less hackable in this regard," Sosa said.

In Cameron County, about three to five percent of the population votes by mail in each election. According to the elections department, that’s about 4,000 voters who mail in their ballots.

Cameron County Elections Administrator Remi Garza says their highest mail-in turnout was in 2020, during the pandemic, when 12,000 people voted by mail. Nationwide, 43% of all Americans voted by mail during COVID.

“There are a lot of people who rely on voting via mail to cast their ballots," Garza said. "Specifically, people who are over the age of 65 and people with disabilities. We also have a significant number of people who are serving overseas or living overseas, who are the only way they can participate in the election.”

Justice from South Texas College believes the move to eliminate mail-in voting is unnecessary. He’s personally voted by mail many times while working in Scotland, and as a local poll commissioner, he’s seen firsthand that voting machines are reliable.

“They are virtually tamper-proof, and they are decentralized," Justice said. "There is no way anybody can slip a USB drive or anything else in there and alter the results. It's not possible. They are very, very secure. You can always be assured that your vote is being cast and counted as you cast it.”

Justice also believes students could be affected, as many study outside their registration counties. He also thinks the move could lower voter turnout, while Garza says it could shift the way people cast their ballots.

“I think we would probably see a higher participation in our curbside voting because some people do have limited mobility, or we might see more people come to the polls directly," the elections administrator said.

Garza says only the State of Texas has the authority to change how elections are conducted, and that is written in the Constitution. It is not an option for the president, unless Congress decides to change it.

Other organizations also expressed their views on the subject and offered the following statements:

Robert Weiner, the voting rights project director at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law: 

"The President’s attack on voting by mail reflects an ongoing attempt to restrict access to the ballot, particularly by Black people and other people of color, who vote by mail at higher rates than other groups. There is no justification for this obstruction of the right to vote, no evidence that mail-in-voting is improper, and no basis for the President’s flat-earth claim that fraud in voting by mail affected the 2020 election."

The following statement can be attributed to Yadira Sánchez, Executive Director of Poder Latinx:

“The mere intention of eliminating mail-in voting is a blatant act of voter suppression. We should be making voting easier and more accessible for those who are eligible—not harder. Many in our communities rely on mail-in ballots because they cannot afford to miss work, lack reliable transportation to distant polling places, or face health challenges that prevent them from voting in person."