I wish Election Day....

[House Cat]

I wish Election Day was a national holiday. It is in many countries. It would help a lot of working people to vote.


Also, I could drink that day to celebrate or to mourn the results. I could even throw an Election Day party!

 

[missy]

I wish Election Day was a national holiday. It is in many countries. It would help a lot of working people to vote.

Agree completely. It discourages some people from voting having it on a workday. Not everyone can deal with the crowds before or after work and some places are way more crowded especially in urban environments. Why on earth do they want to discourage voting?

We always vote via absentee ballot for this very reason. But it would be so much better if it were a national holiday. Win win to encourage more voters which is exactly what we need in this country. Everyone needs to get out and vote. Every one.

Also, I could drink that day to celebrate or to mourn the results. I could even throw an Election Day party!

@House Cat I'll bring the bourbon, what time shall I get there?

 

[bludiva]

I'm glad we have early voting where I live now, makes it pretty quick as long as you remember to go ahead of time. This should be available everywhere. Better yet, eventually there should be a safe way to vote online, we do everything else online.

They want to discourage voting because the people who have difficult voting tend to be poor, people of color, working class, the homeless, etc - people who they don't think matter. We need to do better as a society and get the government working for all the people, not just the well-to-do/well-connected people. *sigh*

 

[JPie]

I agree. Although there are alternatives to voting on Election Day, it can be confusing to figure out your options. Early voting and absentee voting options vary by county. In addition, some states have laws about paid time off to vote if there isn’t enough time for employees to do it before or after their shift, though the definition of “not enough” varies.

 

[Demon]

Colorado has voting by mail, which is nice. You can also go to polling places if you prefer.

 

[monarch64]

Uber is giving free rides to polls on election day: https://www.thrillist.com/news/nation/uber-free-rides-to-polls-midterm-elections-2018

We have early voting here, including some Saturdays. I prefer early voting. My polling place is a Baptist megachurch (which is bullshit--talk about not separating church and state!) so I do it early instead downtown at election central.

 

[telephone89]

I agree!
In canada we also have advanced voting, which is what I usually do (only because I hate waiting in lines), but we also have mandated time off on voting day. I believe you need to have 4 hours OFF during the voting time. So, polls are open 7am - 9pm. If you normally work 8-5, you would still have 4 hours to vote (5-9). If you work 9-6, you would be permitted to leave at 5pm. Not quite the same as a national holiday, but any bit helps!

 

[redwood66]

Laws vary by state but many are required to allow time off to vote. Mine doesn't but our polling places are open long hours.

https://aflcio.org/2016/11/5/know-your-rights-state-laws-employee-time-vote

 

[House Cat]

Laws vary by state but many are required to allow time off to vote. Mine doesn't but our polling places are open long hours.

https://aflcio.org/2016/11/5/know-your-rights-state-laws-employee-time-vote

This doesn’t allow for drinking and a party!

 

[monarch64]

For some it wouldn't matter if it WERE a national holiday: https://www.gq.com/story/new-supreme-court-gift-senate-republicans

Yup. Supreme Court declines to hear a challenge to ND voter law--that voters must use a street address and cannot use a P.O. Box as their voter registration address. Many native Americans use P.O. Boxes because the USPS doesn't deliver to their communities. Interestingly, an incumbent (but "vulnerable") democrat senator is up for reelection this year, and apparently she had great support from the native American community back when she won in 2012. Hmm.

 

[vintageloves]

Who still works on national holidays? Retail workers and other low-paid hourly workers. In other words, the very people who have the most trouble getting to the polls now. If voting becomes a holiday, people will use it as an excuse to take a long weekend vaca and stores will commercialize it.

I think it would be better to have a voting weekend, or a voting week. Why does it have to be just one day? People shouldn't have to go to the polls sick, or brave a blizzard. Make it flexible. Some states already have early voting, and I think it's great. I wish more states would adopt it.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

We have 12 hour days of early voting for THREE WEEKS before election day as well as mail-in absentee ballots. No excuses in my state for not voting.