密歇根新闻广播 大选日想在家里投票?让缺席投票成为现实

The effort to allow any Michigan voter to request an absentee ballot¹ may be close to critical mass in the state Senate. That's as more Republicans are accepting the idea that anyone who wants to mail in or drop off their ballot should be allowed to without having to lie to do it.

The rule right now in Michigan is that, unless you're a senior citizen, physically² handicapped or expect to be out of town on Election Day, you're expected to show up at the polls on Election Day.

So, right now, people who want to vote absentee but don't fit into one of those categories are just lying.

"We are talking about a small change to encourage people, not to have to lie, whether or not they'll be in town. I think it just encourages people to get out there," Republican state Senator Wayne Schmidt told It's Just Politics. Schmidt is sponsoring a bill to allow no-reason absentee voting in Michigan.

Eleven Republicans and seven Democrats³ in the state Senate (that's almost a majority in that chamber) have co-sponsored bills to allow no-reason absentee voting. But, this is not a done deal.

That's because there is a Republican version and a Democratic version of the legislation - representing the classic divide between Rs and Ds when it comes to making voting easier.

Democrats are focused on access: making it easier for more people to vote. Republicans tend to focus more on security, and ensuring that only people who are supposed to vote get to.

The Republican plan would continue to require people to show up at their clerk's office and show an ID to get an absentee ballot. Democrats, on the other hand, would let any registered voter request an absentee ballot by mail. No trip to the clerk's office to show your ID. That bill is being sponsored by state Senator Steve Bieda.

"You're a US citizen. You have a right to vote just by submitting this affidavit⁴. It goes to your legal address, and you have an opportunity and a right to vote from the convenience of your home," Bieda told It's Just Politics.

So, no deal yet. And we have yet to see the Republican leadership in the state Senate or the state House sign on. 

Meantime, we should point out that Michigan is becoming more and more of an outlier on this. Twenty-seven states allow no-reason absentee voting and three states actually mail a ballot to every registered voter. Whether they ask for one or not.

1 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

2 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

3 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 affidavit   

n.宣誓书

参考例句：

• I gave an affidavit to the judge about the accident I witnessed.我向法官提交了一份关于我目击的事故的证词。
• The affidavit was formally read to the court.书面证词正式向出席法庭的人宣读了。