Heading for record elections in voting by mail and with an "easily manipulated" system

The fifteenth general elections since the Constitution was approved point to a record in voting by mail, in which once again it will not be necessary to identify yourself when delivering the ballots. This was revealed by the investigation of the alleged fraud in voting by correspondence in Melilla in the elections last Sunday, in which this weak point of the electoral system was taken advantage of.

This lack of control in the last step of voting by mail gains strength when it is expected that the number of those who opt for this system will skyrocket. Until now, the maximum level was reached in 2016, precisely when the general elections were called for an almost summer date: June 26. There were 1,460,131 votes by mail, which represented 4.22% of the census and doubled the requests for the previous December elections.

The risk of fraud in voting by mail was highlighted by the Supreme Court in the 2021 ruling in which it ratified the conviction of the leader of the Coalition for Melilla for, precisely, the purchase of votes. The magistrates affirmed that “the legal system easily allows its manipulation, mainly, because the voter does not have to deliver the vote at the Post Office, since anyone can do it.”

In accordance with the Organic Law of the General Electoral Regime (Loreg) of 1985, identification is necessary to start the process at the Post Office. There, “the display of your national identity document” will be required and “the coincidence of the signature” will be verified.. The subsequent receipt of the documentation must also be done “in person” and “after proving your identity”.

But the requirement does not extend to the moment of delivering the votes in the Post Office. The possible inconsistency of this omission with the previous steps of the process was raised at the time with the Central Electoral Board, which ratified that identification was not required.

Exceptionally, the investigation launched by the Security Forces in Melilla led the Electoral Board of Melilla to impose the obligation to identify oneself when submitting votes by mail in the autonomous city. Subsequently, the Central Electoral Board extended the obligation to all deliveries of votes that were destined for a polling station in Melilla, even if the delivery occurred in other parts of Spain.

This obligation to identify oneself ended with the previous electoral process and does not extend to the general elections that have just been called.. For it to be mandatory again in the July 23 elections there would be two possibilities. The reform of the electoral law is already impossible, given the dissolution of the Cortes this Wednesday. The other is that once again the Central Electoral Board sees sufficient reasons to order that identification be required when delivering the vote by mail.. In favor of this option are the various investigations underway for the alleged purchase of votes by mail. Against, that these are isolated episodes that might not be considered sufficient to impose what the law does not require.

The electoral norm indicates that those who anticipate that on the date of the vote “they will not be in the locality where they are to exercise their right to vote, or who cannot appear in person”, can request a vote by mail “from the date of the convocation and until the tenth day before the vote». In other words, the term opened yesterday and will end on July 13.

There are also established deadlines for receiving the ballots: “From the thirty-fourth day after the call and before the sixth day before the vote”. That is, between July 3 and 17. If you do not know where you are going to be on July 23, you must at least know where you are going to be on those dates, to indicate to the Post Office which address to send the documents to. It can be the address that appears in the census, but also any other that is communicated to the Post Office, for example the usual one on those summer dates.

Finally, you must go to the Post Office to send your ballots by certified mail -although free- “before the third day before the elections are held”. Thus, the last day to vote by mail will be July 19, although on occasions the Electoral Board has extended the period established by law. What does not change is that whoever has requested the vote by mail will no longer be able to change their mind and appear on 23-J at their polling station.