The United States citizens should be allowed to vote by mail because this process allows Americans who cannot attend polling stations on the election day to participate in the democratic processes. The article by DiLascio-Martinuk (2021) discloses the history and nature of voting by main practice. Mainly, the author mentions that vote by mail was first used to help the soldiers who were stationed outside the country to still choose their president. However, this practice did not become habitual and many debates have surrounded it since some individuals believe that voting by mail is causing fraud and unfair voting.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced the policymakers to return to the vote by mail practice because it was unsafe to allow all voters to attend polling stations. According to DiLascio-Martinuk (2021), “this helped drive historic voter turnout in the 2020 presidential election” (p. 1). The 2020 presidential elections example shows that vote by mail is a preferred voting method for many. This may be because of the convenience that voting by mail provides to the citizens since they can choose a time and environment where they can comfortably vote, as opposed to the traditional voting at the polling station. Still, DiLascio-Martinuk (2021) cites the risk of fraud, coercion, and lost ballots as the main concerns linked to this practice. One can argue that some of these issues can be addressed through modern technology and allowing voters to track their ballots and whether they were accepted by the authorities or not. All in all, the voting by mail practice, although it has some controversies and issues surrounding it, is a valid approach to voting that has been successfully applied during the 2020 elections.
Reference
DiLascio-Martinuk, T. (2021). Vote by mail: Overview. Points of View: Vote by Mail, 1-4.