Or do you think that everyone who wanted to vote finds time to do so on the one day?
(Just randomly thought about this now and decided to share haha)
(Just randomly thought about this now and decided to share haha)
Do you think there would be a higher turnout if you had 2 days to vote?
- Thread starter CLKeenan
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I think there would be a higher turnout if voting took place on the weekend. It is a hassle for working people to vote on Tues.
I know tons of people who voted early last week. I just went today and only had a 2 min wait.
The problem with multiple days of voting is that the people who vote at the end could have their minds changed based upon how the election was going. For example:
Say you were definitely going to vote for McCain but you only were able to vote on the final day of the elections. However when it came time to vote you heard he was way behind in the polls based upon how the previous days of voting. Now since you don't think it matters anymore, you don't go and vote at all.
The flip side could also be true. Say you were planning on voting for Obama, but you heard he was winning. So you decide not to go since he has been winning the previous days. If enough people don't vote at the end, then he could end up losing.
Either way, I don't think its right for the media to be showing polls of who is winning or losing. This is supposed to be a secret ballot and the by showing preliminary polls it can skew the results.
The problem with multiple days of voting is that the people who vote at the end could have their minds changed based upon how the election was going. For example:
Say you were definitely going to vote for McCain but you only were able to vote on the final day of the elections. However when it came time to vote you heard he was way behind in the polls based upon how the previous days of voting. Now since you don't think it matters anymore, you don't go and vote at all.
The flip side could also be true. Say you were planning on voting for Obama, but you heard he was winning. So you decide not to go since he has been winning the previous days. If enough people don't vote at the end, then he could end up losing.
Either way, I don't think its right for the media to be showing polls of who is winning or losing. This is supposed to be a secret ballot and the by showing preliminary polls it can skew the results.
Yes there would. I think early voting has shown that to be true. Also I think it's interesting that more democrats early vote which makes sense, since, historically, republicans being, white collar, can take off time to vote or their work allows them time. Many blue collar jobs don't offer that same perk. So, for example, the two weeks of early voting in texas allows for more flexibility. Yes, it would still be nice to have it on the weekend too.
Why is this even a discussion?
Americans have more than one day to vote, the system calls the last of which "election day"
Americans have more than one day to vote, the system calls the last of which "election day"
We also have quite a few ballots from Americans overseas, many of which won't be counted for another week or 2. No one really thought much about them until 2000, when the elections were so close that they may have made a difference in the outcome.
It's bad enough as it is right now, we are at the point where votes can be counted (or miscounted) so fast that an election can theoretically be decided before the polls are closed in all the states.
It's bad enough as it is right now, we are at the point where votes can be counted (or miscounted) so fast that an election can theoretically be decided before the polls are closed in all the states.
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