AOC says ‘vote in person!’ tweet was warning about need for ‘true vote-by-mail system’ amid coronavirus
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says she only urged followers to “vote in person!” amid the coronavirus crisis to underline the need for improvements in the handling of absentee ballots.
In blasting New York’s decision to scrap the presidential primary, AOC exhorted supporters to go to their polling places instead of voting via absentee in the June 23 primary for Congress.
“The only way your ballot will 100% be counted in NY is to vote in person!” she wrote on Twitter.
The liberal firebrand sounded like she was echoing President Trump’s warnings about the dangers of voting by mail. The president claims that efforts to expand absentee voting are a Democratic plot to steal elections.
But a spokeswoman for AOC insisted she was actually pointing out the dilemma that voters face in making their voices heard in the coronavirus age.
The spokeswoman noted that absentee ballots are frequently tossed out for minor technical errors like omitting some information on the ballot.
“To avoid this, the congresswoman feels New York should have a true vote by mail system,” the spokesperson said.
The debate is more than academic. The state Board of Elections has decided to nix the matchup between Joe Biden and onetime challenger Bernie Sanders, even though the progressive insurgent wants to stay on the ballot so he can win more delegates.
Either way, New Yorkers will be voting in Congressional primaries, including a closely watched scrap between AOC and Michelle Caruso-Cabrera in her district that includes parts of Queens and the east Bronx.
Gov. Cuomo issued an executive order allowing all New Yorkers to vote by absentee ballot and an application will be sent to all registered voters that have elections.
The spokeswoman said the flawed electoral system gives voters an impossible choice between being certain their vote will count and taking all precautions to avoid contracting coronavirus.
Democrats are making a major push to expand vote-by-mail nationwide. They want to make sure turnout is robust as they seek to oust President Trump and Republican lawmakers.
Trump countered the notion of liberals succeeding in expanding ballot access: "They (want) levels of voting that, if you ever agreed to it, you’d never have a Republican elected in this country again.”
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