Suspicion of voter suppression is on the rise in regards to the November elections.

Voter suppression is the tactic of discouraging people to vote. It is often seen via intimidation or complication of the voting process, and it is not a new subject in American Democracy. In fact, it dates back to the election of 1876, in which over 100 African-American men were killed in an attempt to intimidate Black voters. 

While we may not have murderous voter suppression in modern day American society, there is still a rise in procedures that will make it increasingly difficult for voters to cast their ballots in the upcoming election. Some of these methods include a requirement to show ID, removing voting poll locations and the deregistration of some voters. Many have pointed to needing to vote in person as a form of suppression within itself, as well. Historically, these tactics have had a larger impact on minority voters. You can check your voter registration status right now by going to www.usa.gov/confirm-voter-registration. 

One of the main justifications for these obstacles that could be described as voter suppression is to diminish voter fraud – one person voting multiple times during elections.

“We want people to vote, but we want people to vote so when they vote it means one vote,” President Donald Trump said in an interview with Fox News. 

However, voter fraud is not as rampant as one may be urged to think. According to an article by The Washington Post, there were only four confirmed instances of voter fraud during the 2016 presidential election. Roughly 138 million people voted in that election, meaning that those four cases of fraudulent voting made up approximately 0.000004 percent of votes.

Due to the pandemic, Democrats have been lobbying for wider use of mail-in-ballots that would minimize the number of people at in-person polling locations. There has been severe push back from Trump, once again on the claim of voter fraud. 

“RIGGED 2020 ELECTION: MILLIONS OF MAIL-IN BALLOTS WILL BE PRINTED BY FOREIGN COUNTRIES, AND OTHERS,” Trump tweeted on June 22. 

However, several states, Oregon being one, have had voting by mail as the only medium in past elections. 

More people voting by mail in the upcoming election would result in a larger demand for the United States Postal Service (USPS), which is already under a financial strain that has only been worsened by the COVID-19 Pandemic. Proposed increased funding for the USPS was denied by Trump. Presidential candidate Joe Biden argued this move was a method to keep voters from mailing in their ballots and called  it “an assault on our democracy,” in a statement to CNN. 

In order to make sure your vote is counted, request your ballot as early as possible if you do not live in a state that only votes by mail. If you would like to assist in the fight against voter suppression, there are multiple organizations you can join such as the American Civil Liberties Union or Reclaim Our Vote.