At this unprecedented time in history due to COVID-19 and the U.S. Postal Service not up to mail delivery capacity, nor the municipalities up to capacity as before the pandemic and before operational slowdown, those at the helm want to mandate absentee ballots only for our general election.

I beg to differ due to my very own experience of having to rely on the postal service for expedient delivery and municipalities to verify signers of my petitions to run for office, and due to the slowdown of the town offices receiving my petitions sent to them weeks before the deadline. I was still receiving verified petitions well past the submission deadline.

One particular incident was a petition received by one town from where I reside stamping the received date as June 26, but I received it through the mail July 31, 2020.

Because of that, 1,200 signatures gathered became moot. The voters need to know that their signature means nothing to the Secretary of State’s Office that placed the undue hardship on Independent candidates and which cared not if we make it on the ballot.

Voters need to know the same fate awaits their vote to be received on time or not, or to be counted or not. That is our reality. Voters need to seriously challenge this.

Please allow voting in person and keep the option for those who want to vote absentee as they might typically do.

Linda Wooten, Auburn

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