Workers in the Linn County Auditor's Office organize absentee ballots in September 2010. (Dallas Houtz /The Gazette)

Gazette guest columnist Jennifer Hemmingsen says it’s time for Iowa to consider an all-mail voting system for elections.

“With all this talk of voter fraud and Election Day access, and who is trampling rights and who is cheating and whatnot, it was refreshing to hear Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller offer up a simple suggestion: Why not just do the whole thing by mail?” Hemminsen wrote in a column published Saturday.

“Miller floated the idea on Iowa Public Television’s ‘Iowa Press’ this week, where he appeared with state Secretary of State Matt Schultz,” Hemmingsen said. “Schultz, concerned about possible voter fraud, has been on a signature verification kick since nearly half of last month’s ballots came in early or absentee. But I’m with Miller: Instead of casting a suspicious eye on Iowa’s love of early voting, why not embrace it?

“Oregon and Washington are vote-by-mail states, and elections officials there say the system delivers consistently high voter turnout for less than the cost of holding elections at polling places.

“In both states, ballots are mailed to every registered voter about two weeks before the election. Voters mark their choices, insert the ballot into a secrecy envelope, sign their name (yes, the signatures are verified) and pop it back in the mailbox. Want to save a stamp? Just hand-deliver your ballot.

“As a one-time Oregon voter, I can vouch for the system’s simplicity,” Hemmingsen continued. “State officials say it’s secure and stable, too. Transportation snags, last-minute emergencies, plain-old forgetfulness — all those potential problems are minimized when you’ve got a two-week window in which to cast your ballot. Bad weather and long lines at polling places are non-issues.

“So no surprise that both Oregon and Washington’s turnout for registered voters topped 80 percent last month — yet again, the country’s highest. The difference is even greater during the primaries, according to former Oregon Secretary of State Phil Kiesling.”

Read the column and story linked above for more details. What do you think? Should Iowa consider adopting an all-mail voting system for elections?