The "I Voted" Thread

Good grief. That sounds horrible.

I voted early last Friday. No wait at all. Electronic machine with option paper ballot printed for my review and then stored inside the machine (I imagine securely). I opted to see the printed ballot mostly because I'd never seen the machine before and was curious how it worked (not because I was worried about the validity of the machine).

I got a sticker but I did not wear it.

As an outsider and has an allied European concerned about America's future I step by in this thread to thank all that responsably decided to vote. Gratz and have a nice day you all.

I got there at about 11:10 or so and it was a good time to go. The polling place people said there had been hour-long waits up until 11 AM. They felt it was more crowded than in 2000.

We vote using a computer card where we fill in circles with black magic marker. If you spoil your ballot, you have to get a new one. Once you're done, you take your ballot over to a second table where they get your name and then you feed it into a machine. This year, there were three pages to the ballot (the print is fairly large).

Massachusetts has four ballot initiatives and Boston has one, so there were five on the ballot, in both English and Spanish. If you want another language (I know there are people in our area who speak Portuguese, Arabic, and Thai), then you ask.

I was pleased to see folks of all ages and races at the polls today. No one was even handing out leaflets outside, although on the walk to the Y I spotted some lawn signs but they were for local elections like County Clerk.

The initiatives were:

1. To add another place for slot machines and thereby expand gambling in the state. I voted no.
   
2. To add more funding for charter schools, while potentially taking funding from public schools. I voted no.
   
3. To require more humane caging conditions for food animals on farms. I voted yes.
   
4. To legalize marijuana for people 21 and older under certain conditions. I voted yes.
   
5. (Boston only) To set up a special fund for green spaces and historical buildings preservation. I voted yes.

I also brought my wallet with me, in case I needed to bribe an official show my ID, but they didn't ask for ID, just for my name and address, which was checked off on a sheet when I got my ballot and then on an identical sheet when I handed my ballot in. Voting is held in the local YMCA and they hold a bake sale every year. This year, I bought 2 pieces of banana bread for a total of $2. RP's is waiting for him on the top shelf of the refrigerator, right hand side, next to the cilantro.

yum, thanx!

... could you be more specific?

My wife and I voted by mail two weeks ago.

Thank you for the support!

Should I move the cilantro? I might mess up your system if I do.

whatever you do, don't. move. the. cilantro.

is it wired to the radio?

I took my granddaughter, she is seven and thought it was very unfair she couldn't vote, I let her have a sticker and they gave her another one anyway. I had to show my ID. We didn't have any extra questions; although there was one office I was unfamiliar with so I left it blank. It is KY, it is going to go republican, but I did my best anyway and voted democrat.

you know darn well we've had some harrowing cilantro issues in the past...

why would you go there?

I recall, and I tried to be as sweetly avuncular as possible with my ag tips.

"Theres this new thing called seeds". Recall?

Growing cilantro in pots on a windowsill is a skill easily learnt by beginners or even city slickers who think a plant is where you make something of steel or plastic.

Vote early? Vote often? Voted today - always the procrastinator

Describe your experience. Uneventful

Where's the polling place? Church basement? High school gym? Auto repair shop? Aquarium? Grade school ... activity room?

Morning? Afternoon? Evening? Last week? At around 6:20 this evening

Long lines or quick-and-easy? Longer line than in 2012, even though record numbers of Chicagoans voted early this year. About ten people ahead of me in line and eight voting stations occupied when I arrived.

How did you cast your ballot? Punch ballots? Touch-screen? Colored balls dropped in a fish bowl? Ground-breaking connect-the-arrows technology

How much time did the process take? About 20-25 minutes

How many offices were up for election? Governor? Senator? Dog catcher? President, senate, congress, state general assembly, county offices, and about 50 or so judicial races and retention contests

Any interesting ballot initiatives/referenda? Not really. Illinois has the worst referenda

Examples of obvious politicking near the polling place? Any poll watchers from Trump Nation? Despite Trump's claims that election fraud was yoooge in Chicago, I neither witnessed nor committed any electoral fraud. I'm so embarrassed.

Did you get a sticker? No sticker - wristband

Vote early? Vote often?
Voted today

Describe your experience.
It was wonderful. I did a little write up about it on Facebook, so I'll drop it here.

I heard a conversation in the line--two older ladies. One mentioned that she'd voted here for the past forty-five years, and she'd never seen lines like the one we stood in this morning.
We'd all come at 9:30 to miss the before and after work rush...
There were elderly people in wheelchairs, millennials, families with small children, friends meeting, strangers talking. No one mentioned politics, no party affiliation stickers or signs.
It was an hour wait--and I checked the facial expressions of different people as they came in and realized how long they'd be waiting and how slowly they'd be shuffling down the tech school hallway with 200 neighbors.
Not one turned away. They stepped into the long shuffle, and made calls: made plans to have children taken to the dentist, and rescheduled meetings, often punctuating with, "I have to vote."
I was happy to be one of them. It mattered a little less for a few minutes who they were voting for; I was just so glad people cared enough to vote.

Where's the polling place? Church basement? High school gym? Auto repair shop? Aquarium? Grade school ... activity room?
A technical school.

Morning? Afternoon? Evening? Last week?
I went in at 9:30am to avoid crowds. Historic lines in SC today.

Long lines or quick-and-easy?
200 people crammed in the hallway. Biggest turn-out in modern history, per ancient local voters.

How did you cast your ballot? Punch ballots? Touch-screen? Colored balls dropped in a fish bowl?
Touch screen, and I scowled at it, making sure the green arrows I made stayed in place through the confirmation process.

How much time did the process take?
An hour and 15 minutes.

How many offices were up for election? Governor? Senator? Dog catcher? Trey Gowdy and a referendum.

Any interesting ballot initiatives/referenda? No.

Examples of obvious politicking near the polling place? This was a great question! I was on the lookout for that shite, but not a word or sign.

Did you get a sticker? Yes. I never put it on, but I took one.

Voted today, for Alan.

Alan managed to hold on to his seat in a bad night.

Looks like it wasn't a good day for the liberals in the UK elections, Brexit is a sure thing now.

Why are you talking about the Liberals? They're a minor party.

Don't talk about stuff you don't understand.

You've already let other people do your thinking for you, remember that even though it's your opinion you don't know how you got there.