Should voters in this fall's city election abandon polling places and simply do the whole thing by mail? We say, why not?

The idea of mail-in ballots seems strange, although postal voting is common in other countries and Oregon became the first state to change to a full mail-in mode in 1998. Most of the counties in the state of Washington do it by mail.

Some object to postal voting because of a vague feeling that convenience shouldn't trump the duty of a citizen in a democracy to actually show up at the polls. Some might think that people too lazy to stand in line for a polling booth have no business voting anyway. Others fear that voting by mail could lead to fraud. There must, they think, be some way cheaters could mess with the system.

Another objection concerns privacy. Couldn't a domineering spouse browbeat a person into voting his or her way without the privacy of a voting booth? On the other hand, some people may relish the chance to study a ballot at leisure and discuss it with family and friends.

We think concerns about mail-in voting have more to do with the departure from tradition than anything else. Fraud is possible in any voting system, as concerns about new, computerized voting machines will attest. As for privacy, it doesn't get much more private than within one's own home.

In addition, there are some real advantages to mail-in voting. For one thing, it tends to increase turnout, although some suggest that might be a novelty that will wear out. In addition, for busy modern families -- not to mention the disabled -- the convenience of voting according to one's own schedule cannot be underestimated.

Mail voting also provides a built-in paper trail, handy in case of close votes or allegations of fraud. And, of course, it can be expected to save money. Oregon has reduced election costs since adopting mail-in voting.

Finally, as Lewis and Clark County Clerk and Recorder Paulette DeHart has pointed out, more than half of the people who vote in city elections already use absentee ballots. Many of us already are voting for convenience.

Mail-in voting may seem like a big departure, but we think it's worth a try.