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Westerman and Griffin oppose federalizing vote-by-mail, call HR1 a nationalization of state rules
Summary
During a virtual town hall, Rep. Bruce Westerman and Governor Tim Griffin said HR1 and federalized vote-by-mail would override Arkansas voter-ID rules and urged states to retain control of election administration.
Republican officials at the town hall criticized a package of House election measures commonly referred to as HR1 and argued against federalizing vote-by-mail in response to the pandemic.
Bruce Westerman characterized the House proposal as nationalizing state election rules, including changes to voter ID and same-day registration; he said the bill "would do vote by mail, same day voter registration, harvesting ballots" and argued that such measures should remain state responsibilities. Westerman also said HR1 would alter campaign-funding rules and suggested it was unlikely to gain Republican support in the Senate.
Griffin and Westerman answered viewer concerns about mailed ballots and fraud, saying Arkansas already permits absentee ballots for valid exceptions and that broad federal mandates could remove state voter-ID protections. Westerman cited past experiences with mail-ballot counting in large states and said states should carry out elections as the Constitution provides.
