(This is a message about mail-in ballots...comparing the moving of files over a network to moving paper ballots, in simplest form)
In the world of networking, data is transferred from one computer to another using different protocols (or rules) depending on what the application requires.
TCP/IP transfers data while keeping track of what was sent, what arrived, what didn't arrive, and retransmitting what is missing. TCP is called a Connection Oriented Protocol.
UDP/IP sends the data without establishing that same end-to-end confirmation. It does not, by itself, acknowledge each delivery or retransmit what is missing. It also does not have the same built-in controls as TCP for confirming that everything sent actually arrived. UDP is called a Connectionless Protocol.
That's the analogy I'm making.
Traditional requested absentee voting is more like TCP. A specific voter initiates the transaction by requesting a ballot, that request is verified, a specific ballot is issued to that voter, and there is a defined transaction to track from the beginning.
Universal mail-in voting is more like UDP. Ballots are broadly sent out first, without the voter initiating the transaction by requesting one. Not every ballot mailed out will necessarily be returned because the voter may decide not to use it and vote in person instead.
That's the distinction I'm trying to describe. One process begins with a specific voter requesting a ballot, which adds a verification step before the ballot is issued. The other begins by broadly distributing ballots before knowing which voters will actually use them.
I'm not saying the technologies and voting systems are literally identical. This is a rough comparison, but I just want people to generally see the difference between the two systems that use mailed ballots and why that difference matters.
Both mailed ballots may look alike when they come back, but one began with a verified voter request before the ballot was issued and the other did not. That extra front-end verification means the system itself is already doing part of the work before the ballot ever goes out.
In my view, that should improve the integrity of the election results while requiring less manual work later, because part of the verification and control is built right into the system processes from the very beginning.
