Trump takes aim at ballot drop-off boxes
Clerks say votes are ‘safe and secure’
President Trump on Monday took aim at dropoff boxes for ballots ahead of the general election, but Massachusetts city and town clerks tell the Herald that ballots in local dropoff boxes are “safe and secure.”
The president’s comments about drop-off boxes come amid his criticism against mail-in voting, and the nationwide uproar over mail delays that were sparked by sweeping changes from the new postmaster general, a major Trump donor.
Mail-in voting is expected to be at an all-time high this fall because of the coronavirus pandemic, and Trump — an absentee voter who mails in his ballot — has been criticizing mail-in voting for months. The president on Monday attacked city and town drop-off boxes, an alternative way of submitting a ballot, instead of through the U.S. Postal Service. These are different than the blue U.S. Postal Service mail drop boxes.
“Some states use ‘drop boxes’ for the collection of Universal Mail-In Ballots,” Trump tweeted. “So who is going to ‘collect’ the Ballots, and what might be done to them prior to tabulation? A Rigged Election? So bad for our Country. Only Absentee Ballots acceptable!”
Massachusetts cities and towns have had these dropoff boxes for years for city/ town hall business, including voter registrations and ballots.
“We go out there two to three times a day to collect letters and ballots,” Billerica Town Clerk Shirley Schult said on Monday. “A lot of people are using it.”
Schult, who was “very frazzled” and noted the office is getting inundated — just like every other clerk’s office — said she took exception to Trump’s comments.
“Clerks are very careful with what’s entrusted to them,” Schult said. “These boxes are safe and secure, and the ballots are safe and secure.”
The town of Brookline tweeted about its drop-off box on Monday, writing, “Want to drop off your vote by mail application or ballot in person? We have a secure drop box directly in front of Town Hall where you can do contactless drop off for any election related documents.”
A spokeswoman for the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s Office said of drop-off boxes in communities, “Ballots will be collected from secured municipal drop boxes by the election officials in each city and town. They will then be secured in each election office until they can be processed and counted in a public area, open to public observation.”