The Governor Youngkin has initiated a new program, “Secure Your Vote Virginia” in an effort to get Republican voters to the polls early or to mail in ballots early. Also supporting the new program is RPV leadership as well as Republican leadership in the House of Delegates and the State Senate.
From CNN.com:
“Republicans got to stop sitting on the sidelines and allowing the Democrats to do a better job of voting early. I’m tired of us going into elections down thousands of votes,” Youngkin said on Fox News Tuesday morning. And so, secureyourvotevirginia.com provides an easy way to make a plan, to make a plan to vote early, to get on the permanent absentee ballot, to vote early by mail or just make a plan to vote early. We got to get out the vote. These elections are critical.”
More on the initiative here.
Meanwhile, Democrat leaders are very unhappy that Republicans are supporting early voting as they have for several years. Apparently what’s good for me is not good for thee.
Dick Saslaw:
“It seems to me there is a disagreement between the Governor and Republicans in the General Assembly. Just this past session, Republicans launched an attack on early and absentee voting,” said Senate Majority Leader Senator Dick Saslaw. “Now, the Governor is promoting the very same measures his party intends to disrupt.”
Don Scott:
“It’s blatant hypocrisy,” said House Democratic Leader Don Scott.“This is a party that is on the record against early voting. They are doing this whole push to pull the wool over our constituent’s eyes and hide from the fact that they’ve worked to make it harder for Virginians to vote at every turn. They’ve undermined our democratic systems for years and if allowed the Majority, they will vote to restrict voting access.”
Mamie Locke:
”I find it totally disingenuous that Governor Youngkin and MAGA Republicans now are encouraging their supporters to use voting processes that Democrats put in place to enhance democracy,” said Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Senator Mamie Locke. “It’s amazing because just this past session Republicans sought to roll back these very measures like absentee voting and not using ARPA funds for voter education and Sunday voting efforts. The hypocrisy is glaring. Senate Democrats want Virginians to vote which is why we put all the access measures in place to remove draconian obstacles and to make the process for voting easier in the Commonwealth.”
Marcus Simon
“The GOP isn’t fooling anyone with this attempt to erase the past. Todd Gilbert and the Virginia Republicans have spent years questioning the integrity of Virginia’s early and absentee voting tools and pushing harmful conspiracy theories about our elections. Every single one of them voted to repeal early and absentee voting and they will do so again,” said Del. Marcus Simon.
DPVA:
“We welcome the Virginia Republicans’ newly discovered interest in promoting democracy,” said Liam Watson, Press Secretary for the Democratic Party of Virginia. “Of course, we wish they had shown up in support of early voting and vote-by-mail years ago, instead of consistently voting against reforms designed to strengthen democracy in the commonwealth.”
So it would have been ok for the Republicans to have done this years ago, but not now. Got it.
2 comments
“You can vote early at your local registrar’s office beginning 45 days before Election Day and ending the Saturday before Election Day.” Every Republican needs to vote in September. You shouldn’t even consider voting on Election Day. If you do, then you are voting too late.
Instead of praising Youngkin for supporting more voters dems are peeing themselves. Democrat primary in Loudoun with 45 days of early voting had 20,000 voters. Our election office can handle hundreds of thousands of voters in 1 day. early voting is not needed but we will use it, thank you very much!