The long waits — often two hours or more, in freezing temperatures — at early voting sites in Cleveland and other Ohio cities are both a sad and hopeful sign. Sad, because the sluggishness of the voting system seemed to reflect the partisan cat-and-mouse game that exists in some states over voting rules; election officials in Ohio, working under a Republican secretary of state, failed to provide enough resources to Democratic areas. The long lines are also a hopeful sign, though, because they attested to the lengths to which people will go to exercise their franchise — and the strong demand for weekend voting hours for those whose family and work schedules make voting difficult on Tuesdays.
It’s a lesson that should resonate in Massachusetts, one of only 13 states that allows neither early voting nor absentee balloting without an excuse, such as being out of the country. It’s time to allow some form of weekend voting for those who are simply unable to abandon their work or family responsibilities for an hour or two to vote on Tuesdays.
Comments
Very sane idea. We should have a nationwide model for this!
What we need is a national standard. Early voting may or may not help in MA, but at the very least, a 24-hour voting period makes sense to me.
We should count ourselves fortunate in MA for honest election officials. Ohio Secretary of State may manage to steal the Presidency for Romney. If Romney can carry Ohio, he may win the electoral vote.
OH'S MYSTERY SOFTWARE
Why did Sec. of State Jon Husted (R) install last-minute, uncertified, 'experimental' software on central vote tabulators in 39 counties? (see bradblog)
"Early voting" is just a scam perpetrated by members of the larger of the two most powerful American political parties. The practice was cited often on cable tv news reports as giving an edget to the President Obama campaign. The fact that some people live busy lives is no different today than it was in 1940, when some folks (mostly men) worked two jobs to keep their household going. That fact is no reason to turn an entire national political system topsy turvey to cater to a comparative few people. It would make much more sense to move voting day from a Tuesday to a weekend day such as Saturday or even two weekend days, when most people are not at work (and parents taking their l'il darlings to ouija board practice doesn't count as a reason to jigger the day any more). Yes, that would take some time away from "quality time' with the dog and tyke, but so what? There were a fair number of sort of youngish mothers with tyke at polling places this past Tuesday and nobody got bent out of shape. Carting the kid to a polling place on a Saturday is no different, except maybe Dad would do the carting. A change in days makes much more sense than a time change that proves to be advantageous to a party that is trying to make a move to turn the U.S. into a single party nation with) all the historic disadvantages that threatens. Wonder how Barry the O likes the idea of leaving a legacy that would make him comparative to Fulgencio Batista serving a second term.
What sour grapes you have boatwrote. Do you not realize that one reason the Democrats did so well yesterday had nothing to do with what day of the week they vote or whether it was early or not? You are not living in the reality of the 21st century - quite different from the 1940's - like it or not. Not all voters are married with kids; while many voters work the regular weekday schedule - a good number work nights, weekends, multiple jobs (including jobs for which they don't get paid for the 2 hours or day or whatever time it takes for them to vote), lack transportation to polls, disability or other health issues. Some live in states such as Ohio and Florida - whose election officials and elected leaders try very hard to rig the system. But you compare this reality to Barry the O (such disrespect and racial overtone, by the way) - and his party - conspiring to turn the U.S. into a single party nation, leaving a legacy comparative to that of Cuba's Batista - circa 1940's-50's. Maybe we can forgive such irrational thinking as those supporters of the opposing party lick their wounds. Barry the O - otherwise known as President Barack Hussain Obama - inherited a mess from George W. Bush (actually Cheney and Rove) - an economic mess comparable to the Great Depression (and 30 years in the making starting with Reagan), 2 wars, including one that was begun needlessly (and part of why we got into this fiscal mess, not to mention the losses to troops and civilians both in the U.S. and Iraq - and Afghanistan - and which Obama has managed to end; Bin-Laden is dead; the economy is improving; consumer spending and confidence is up; the housing market is markedly improved with young buyers confidently entering the housing market; the U.S. auto-industry is back; we have health care assessible to all - while keeping Medicare and Medicaid intact; and small and large businesses are hiring again and rebounding. All of this - in a short 3 1/2 years, in spite of Mitch McConnell's proclamation in 2009 that the Republican party will do everything it can to assure that Obama fails and is a one-term president and filibustering every move Obama tried to make. While it smacked of racism - it was the most contentious, non-bipartisan term of office in my life time. Romney continued to scold our President about working across the aisle in a bipartisan manner. That scolding should have been directed at his own party - but no matter. The right man has won the day - and will indeed be a 2-term President.