‘Very good news’: Law prof praises Kentucky’s bipartisan compromise to allow everyone to vote by mail

The state of Kentucky was praised on Friday after a bipartisan agreement was reached to expand voting by mail during the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Any Kentucky voter wary of the risk of COVID-19 will be able to vote in the Nov. 3 general election by mailing in an absentee ballot. Voters will also have the option of casting a ballot in person during the three weeks leading up to the election, or waiting until Election Day," the Lexington Herald-Leaderreported Friday.

"Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and Secretary of State Michael Adams announced the voting procedure Friday after reaching a deal on how this fall’s election will be conducted as the coronavirus continues to spread," the newspaper reported. "The Democratic governor and Republican secretary of state, who oversees elections, said there will be an absentee voting policy in November that will let people who are concerned about COVID-19 ask for an absentee ballot using an online portal. They can then mail the ballot or place it in a drop box."

Kentucky is the scene of a battleground U.S. Senate race, with former Marine fighter pilot Amy McGrath challenging Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

Josh Douglas, an election law and voting rights professor at the University of Kentucky School of Law, praised the "very good news."

Here is the thread he posted on Twitter: