Mail-in elections are expensive. How expensive? A brief look at recent Anchorage mayoral election turnouts and how much they cost the taxpayers:
2012 – 71,099 cards cast, election cost taxpayers $400,000
2015 – 70,650 cards cast, election cost taxpayers $451,000
2018 – 79,295 cards cast, election cost taxpayers $1,040,300
Additional ballots cast in 2018 over ballots cast in 2015: 8,645
Additional cost to taxpayers: $589,300
Cost to taxpayers for votes exceeding the 70,650 cast in the 2015 election: $68 dollars per vote.
Bottom line: A massive increase in cost and a small increase in turnout coupled with a heightened risk of fraud? The municipality could have hired four more police officers instead.
