One difference from Democrats had done in the past is that Democrats helped voters make sure their forms were filled out properly, eg., signed. And Democrats didn't put out boxes labeled "official". People knew who they were dealing with.
By CARLA MARINUCCI
10/14/2020 12:01 AM EDT
President Donald Trump took to Twitter on Tuesday to urge the California Republican Party to “fight on” in its move to collect ballots in unofficial “drop boxes’’ around the state, in defiance of legal threats from state officials.
Trump’s comments come a day after top California officials sent the state party a cease-and-desist notice, ordering them to remove the unofficial ballot drop boxes. The appearance of the boxes prompted Gov. Gavin Newsom to accuse California Republicans of being “willing to lie, cheat and threaten our democracy all for the sake of gaining power.”
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The boxes surfaced at Republican-friendly venues such as churches and gun shops as Californians last week began returning their mail ballots at a record pace. Because California is relying heavily on mail balloting this year, the state's 58 counties have placed many more official drop boxes at various locations, from supermarkets to elections offices.
Republicans on Monday said relying on unofficial ballot boxes was no different than the "ballot harvesting" that Democrats organized with great success during the 2018 midterm elections. Under California law, third-party collection of ballots is legal as long as a voter formally authorizes another person to return their ballot for them. Democratic volunteers in the last election collected ballots from voters who indicated they wanted help submitting them.
Padilla and Becerra on Monday argued that the California GOP's recent placement of unauthorized drop boxes in Fresno, Los Angeles and Orange counties differs from Democratic “ballot harvesting” efforts because voters assume their ballot will be delivered via an official-looking mechanism — all without signing their ballots.
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