Before addressing Mr. Acker’s concerns, in his letter to the editor Nov. 2, about the integrity of the electoral process, it is important to address some misinformation.

Due to the storm, the federal judge extended voter registration, not early voting. When your parents voted in person, others voted absentee because of the situations you mentioned, as well as, for example, being infirmed or attending a college out-of state. Washington, Oregon, and Colorado do have all state voting by mail. Only Colorado is a swing state. Assurance of its integrity will be discussed later.

Some advantages of early voting: inclement weather or long lines on election day which could cause hardship for aged and handicapped voters, lost pay, work schedule, defeating voter intimidation such as what happened recently in Florida,assisting your campaign by providing them feedback if a representative from your party makes a “get out the vote” call, and yes, if you die your vote as a citizen of the U.S. and a taxpayer will count.

Regarding photo ID’s, not everyone drives or uses airplanes. Example: an elderly Republican friend who did not drive due to macular degeneration, had to get a photo ID after Florida instituted that rule. She had to have someone drive her to the courthouse to get a replacement copy of her birth certificate, then to the BMV to get a and ID and last to the Board of Elections.

William Wan in a Sept. 2 article in The Washington Post reported that North Carolina lawmakers requested data on “racial differences in voting behaviors” to determine ID requirement changes.

Federal election laws? We have them. If you want laws more to your liking, contact your representative in Congress.

Suggestions to resolve concerns on the integrity of the electoral process:

• Look at the envelope of someone who has requested an absentee ballot. The ballot is placed in this envelope. The envelope contains a bar code identifying the voter. The voter has to write specific identifying personal information including the last four digits of the Social Security number or driver’s license number. Then, and most importantly, the voter must sign the envelope. Board of Election officials will match that signature with the voter registration card. That envelope is sealed and placed in a mailing envelope.

• Take training and be certified to be an observer at a polling place on election day.

• Better yet, sign up to be a precinct worker. Included in the training is information on the security procedures for the machines as well as other issues.

• Be prepared for working long hours, possibly the night before to set up machines, and on election day working no less than a 14 hour day.

On election day, you would see first hand how the process works. A voter is first asked his/her name and address. The worker checks the poll book or i-Pad for that information. Besides the name and address, the person’s birthdate and signature on file is listed. Then the person is asked to sign the book or i-Pad. In our precinct a blind man arrived with an aide. The aide placed his finger on the appropriate retangle, and he signed his own name. It matched the signature on record. By the way, an auditory option is available to visually impaired persons.

There were instances where we asked the person to sign again because the signature did not match. Some individuals use different signatures for personal and business purposes.

Military persons are permitted to show military ID that does not have an address. We had one such loyal voter whose appearance resembled the birthday listed and whose signature matched the one on record.

All these procedures help protect integrity. Stuffing the ballot box? Already a person has been caught trying to vote twice. According the the “Des Moines Register,” Oct. 31, a Trump supporter, Terri Lynn Rote, voted at the local location and then tried to vote at a satellite location. Her reason was that the election was rigged.

It is hoped this information will explain rationale behind procedures and will boost confidence in the electoral process.

— Jan Confer

Powell