Voting must be made safer and easier

The coronavirus pandemic is threatening to be a major disruption of this year’s general election.

We saw the effect of voters forced to choose between their health and their vote in the Wisconsin and Georgia primary, where thousands of voters waited in lines for hours.

Voters should not be forced to choose between their health and their freedom to vote.

The U.S. House passed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act that includes $3.6 billion for states to implement measures to ensure everyone can vote safely this year. These include online and same-day registration, early voting, postage-paid vote by mail, sufficient poll workers with personal protective equipment and plenty of polling places of a size that allows social distancing. The Republican Senate stimulus bill provides zero dollars for this purpose.

Voting by mail ensures that voters can participate in our elections without having to venture outside during the pandemic. Expanded early voting ensures that voters who need to vote in person won’t be faced with long lines and big crowds.

To give states time to prepare for the November election, funding must be approved now. Our senator, Pat Toomey, must support including $3.6 billion in the Senate stimulus bill to protect our vote.

Phila Back Kutztown