To date, Governor Hutchinson has done little more than pay lip service to ensuring voting is safe and accessible this year.
Here’s another opportunity for the governor to make a difference, if only he would.
KTHV reports that Pulaski County has already received 10,000 requests for absentee ballots, versus 1,500 at the same point in 2016. There will be thousands more.
County Clerk Terri Hollingsworth said the budget only provided for costs of 9,000 ballots. She’s going to talk to the county judge about a budget adjustment.
This is a problem likely replicated in all counties in Arkansas. If there was ever a need for the governor to direct federal CARES Act money to local governments this is it. He could direct money for printing, mailing and return postage. He could also issue a directive clarifying that Arkansas law, otherwise silent on the point, would allow county clerks, the only legal recipient of absentee ballots, to set up secure lockboxes for safe dropoff of ballots rather than risking U.S. mail delivery.
What about it governor?
He’ll grin and mull it until it’s too late, would be my guess. Donald Trump doesn’t want people voting by mail.