#election day

[reasonsforhope]

For all the concern in recent years that U.S. democracy is on the brink, in danger or under threat, a report out Tuesday offers a glimmer of good news for American voters worried that casting a ballot will be difficult in 2024.

Put simply, the new data shows that voting in America has gotten easier over the past two decades. More voters have the ability to cast a ballot before Election Day, with the majority of U.S. states now offering some form of early in-person voting and mail voting to all voters.

"Although we often talk in a partisan context about voter fraud and voter suppression and whether voters have access to the ballot, the reality is, over the past 25 years, we've greatly increased the convenience of voting for almost all Americans," said David Becker, the founder and executive director of the Center for Election Innovation & Research (CEIR), which authored the new report...

The data shows that, despite real efforts by some Republican-led legislatures to restrict access at the margins, the trend in the U.S. since 2000 has been toward making it easier to vote: Nearly 97% of voting-age American citizens now live in states that offer the option to vote before Election Day.

"The lies about early voting, the lies about voting machines and efforts in some state legislatures to roll back some of the election integrity and convenience measures that have evolved over the last several decades, those efforts almost all failed," Becker said. "In almost every single state, voters can choose to vote when they want to."

Forty-six states and Washington, D.C., offer some form of early in-person voting, the report tallied, and 37 of those jurisdictions also offer mail voting to all voters without requiring an excuse...

In 2000

In 2024

Infographic via NPR. If you go to the article, you can watch an animation of this map that shows voting availability in every election since 2000.

There are some political trends that show up in the data. Of the 14 states that don't offer mail voting to all voters, for instance, 12 have Republican-led legislatures.

-via NPR, March 19, 2024. Article continues below.

But maybe the more striking trends are geographic. Every single state in the western U.S. has offered some form of early and mail voting to all voters since 2004, according to the data. And those states span the political spectrum, from conservative Idaho to liberal California.

"It's really hard to talk about partisanship around this issue because historically there just hasn't been much," Mann said. "We've seen voting by mail and early in-person voting supported by Republican legislatures, Democratic legislatures, Republican governors, Democratic governors. We see voters in both parties use both methods." ...

In 2020, New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts all made changes to make voting more easily accessible, which have since partially or fully become permanent. Delaware is currently embroiled in a legal fight over whether it can implement early and mail voting changes this election cycle as well.

The South, with its history of slavery and Jim Crow laws, has long lagged behind when it comes to voting access. The CEIR data shows that, although some states have slowly started expanding options for voters, generally it is still the most difficult region for voters to cast a ballot.

As options nationwide have become more widely available, voters have also responded by taking advantage.

In the 2000 election, 86% of voters voted at a polling place on Election Day, according to U.S. Census Bureau data.

In 2020, during the pandemic, that number dropped to less than 31% of voters. It went back up in 2022, to roughly half of the electorate, but was still in line with the two-decade trend toward more ballots being cast early.

...in reality, Becker says, more voting options actually make elections more secure and less susceptible to malicious activity or even human error.

"If there were a problem, if there were a cyber event, if there were a malfunction, if there were bad weather, if there were traffic, if there were was a power outage, you could think of all kinds of circumstances. ... The more you spread voting out over a series of days and over multiple modes, the less likely it's going to impact voters," he said...

-via NPR, March 19, 2024

#united states #voting #voting matters #early voting #mail in ballots #voting access #american politics #us elections #election 2024 #us politics #democrats #republicans #election day #election news #good news #hope

[audarcy]

#emmaposting #my message. a friend made this edit. #it sent me into hysterics for a solid five minutes. #us politics #election day

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]

#us politics #2022 #twitter #tweet #election day #make election day a federal holiday #dylan ogline #2022 elections #2022 midterms #auto voter registration #voter registration #vote blue #vote

[usnatarchives]

USIA poster, 7/30/1953, NARA ID 5730043.

VOTE ON TUESDAY!

The 2022 midterm elections will be held on Tuesday, November 8, and there's still time to ensure you're registered to vote. The National Archives supports Executive Order 14019, which promotes voter registration, participation, and access to voting. See Vote.gov for more information.

USIA poster 10/8/1951, NARA ID 5730163.

American Forces Information Service poster, 1/1/2000, NARA ID 10488372.

Office of War Information, WW2 poster, NARA ID 515775.

More online:

Civics for All of US the National Archives new education initiative promotes civic literacy and engagement.

Voting Rights Special Topics page.

Presidential Elections & Inaugurations Records in the National Archives and Presidential Libraries document elections and inaugurations through history.

Black Americans and the Vote This research portal highlights National Archives holdings that relate to the long struggle for equality in voting rights.

Women's Rights: Suffrage Discover an array of records related to the long quest for women to gain the vote as well as education resources, articles, and blog posts.

Online exhibit: Records of Rights presents records in the National Archives that document the ongoing struggle of Americans to define, attain, and protect their rights

Online exhibit: Rightfully Hers: American Women and the Vote highlights the struggle of diverse activists throughout U.S. history to secure voting rights for all American women.

#vote #gotv #elections #election history #womens suffrage #rightfullyhers #civil rights #nationalvoterregistration #election day #2022 midterms #us elections #patriotism #patriotic

[whenweallvote]

Everyone should be able to get to their polling place without worrying about how much transportation costs.

That’s why we’re partnering with Rideshare2Vote this election season!

If you live in one of these states, catch a ride to the polls on us at weall.vote/ride 🚕 🚙

#ride to the polls #election day

[claudia-kishi]

superstore rewatch: season two (election day) ↪ official cloud 9 election guide

#superstore #superstoreedit #superstorerewatch #rjs*: new #garrett mcneill #amy sosa #election day #superstore s2 #asldkfjaslkdjf please

[secondbeatsongs]

was looking for that tumblr post about how it's your civic duty to vote but it had a typo so it said "cock duty", but I couldn't find it so I gave up and typed "cock duty" into tumblr search, and wouldn't you know it, our beloved hellsite parsed that as "call of duty" but somehow managed to keep the spirit of "cock duty", and so specifically only showed me call of duty posts having to do with cocks

it gave me a mountain of call of duty porn is what I'm saying. written and visual. including posts about what people want to do to various call of duty characters, specifically re: their cocks

I love this website

anyway, if you find the actual "cock duty" post please let me know; it's election day and I want to reblog it before the polls close

#personal #sbs rambles #call of duty #election day

[deadpresidents]

Road Trip

On November 8, 1960, millions of Americans went to the polls in what would become one of the closest Presidential elections in American History:  John Fitzgerald Kennedy versus Richard Milhous Nixon.

That morning, Kennedy voted in Boston and Nixon voted in Whittier, California.  The candidates had spent months canvassing the nation, working to get every last vote – and every last vote was needed.  For the past several weeks, Kennedy and Nixon had criss-crossed the country, debated one another, and been working non-stop to be elected the 35th President of the United States.

After they voted that day, there were results to monitor, precincts to watch, election day problems to take care of, and many other things to worry about.  Imagine being on the cusp of the Presidency – with a 50/50 chance of being elected the next President of a superpower in the grip of the Cold War, with the threat of Communism and nuclear weapons hanging over your head, and the hopes of hundreds of millions of people pinned on either your victory or defeat.  Imagine being in the position of John F. Kennedy or Richard Nixon on November 8, 1960.  What would you do? 

John F. Kennedy put the control of his campaign in the hands of his younger brother, Bobby, and then took a nap.

And Richard Nixon took a road trip to Mexico.

Once Nixon voted that morning at a private home in a quiet Whittier neighborhood, he had been scheduled to head to the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles (where Bobby Kennedy would be assassinated eight years later) for the Election Day vigil and the long wait for the returns which would indicate whether he would be moving into the White House or facing an early retirement. 

Nixon was finished voting by 8:00 AM and hopped into his black Cadillac limousine to be driven to the Ambassador.  Several blocks away from the polling place, Nixon ordered the limousine to stop.  Along with a military aide and a Secret Service agent, Nixon jumped out of the limo and into a white convertible follow-up car driven by an officer from the Los Angeles Police Department.  Nixon took the LAPD officer’s place, got behind the wheel and ditched the press which had been following him.

Driving to La Habra, California, Nixon made a quick visit with his mother, making sure she had voted for her son in the Presidential election.  Nixon drove south along the Pacific Coast Highway, with no specific destination.  He stopped for gasoline in Oceanside and told a gas station attendant – startled to see the Vice President of the United States on a joyride on the very day that he stood for election as President – “I’m just out for a little ride."  Nixon confided that it was his only source of relaxation.

As the group of four men, with Nixon in the driver’s seat, reached San Diego – over two hours away from Nixon’s campaign headquarters at L.A.’s Ambassador Hotel – Nixon pointed out that he hadn’t been to Tijuana in at least 25 years.

As David Pietrusza wrote in his recap of Nixon’s road trip, "Richard Nixon – the ultimate control freak – was winging it on the most important day of his life."  Not only that, but the sitting Vice President of the United States and the man who many Americans were choosing to become the next President, impulsively decided to leave the entire country while those voters were still at the polls.

In Tijuana, Nixon and his party headed to a restaurant called Old Heidelberg.  Despite the fact it was owned by a German, Border Patrol agents told Nixon that it was the best place in Tijuana for Mexican food.  Joined at the last moment by Tijuana’s Mayor, Xicotencati Leyva Aleman, Nixon, his military aide, a Secret Service agent, and an average LAPD officer ate enchiladas in Mexico while John F. Kennedy took a nap in Hyannis Port, Massachusetts.

When Nixon’s press secretary Herb Klein was asked about the missing candidate, he had to tell reporters that Nixon often took some private moments on hectic days such as Election Day.  Really, though, Klein had no clue where Nixon was, eventually admitting that the Vice President was "driving around without any destination”. 

After lunch in Tijuana, Nixon and his companions headed back north towards the United States border crossing.  The LAPD officer took over driving duties as Nixon sat in the convertible’s passenger seat.  A shocked Border Patrol guard shook hands with the Vice President and asked the man who was currently on the ballot for the Presidency, “Are you all citizens of the United States?”.

Nixon and company drove to the Mission of San Juan Capistrano, which Nixon called “one of my favorite Catholic places” on the day he faced the first successful Catholic candidate for the Presidency in American History.  Nixon took his three companions on a quick, informal tour of the Mission.  “For a few minutes, we sat in the empty pews for an interlude of complete escape,” Nixon later recalled.

The missing candidate and his three road trip buddies arrived back in Los Angeles before the election results started rolling in.  Nixon had to explain his trip to reporters who had been searching for him all day.  “It wasn’t planned.  We just started driving and that’s where we wound up.”

In his Memoirs, Nixon didn’t go too far into explaining why he escaped on Election Day, but a paragraph about that day is pretty illuminating:

“After one last frenetic week, it was over.  Since the convention in August I had traveled over 65,000 miles and visited all fifty states.  I had made 180 scheduled speeches and delivered scores of impromptu talks and informal press conferences.  There was nothing more I could have done.”

Except escape to Mexico while JFK slept.

#History #Richard Nixon #President Nixon #Presidents #Presidential History #1960 Election #Presidential Elections #Politics #Political History #Nixon vs. Kennedy #Election Day #Election History #Presidential Politics #Nixon #Nixon Library #John F. Kennedy #JFK #President Kennedy #Presidential Campaigns #Campaign History

[cyarsk52-20]

From Central Park Five to City Council won.

Congrats.

#Election day #ohio #local elections #us politics #vote #voting #Joe biden #president joe biden #biden administration #dark brandon #president biden #kamala harris #trump #donald trump #indictment of trump #lock him up! #classified documents #merrick garland #jack smith #hillary clinton #ari melber #view post #fani willis #2020 presidential election #district attorney #georgia #fulton county #tish James #georgia election #political memes

[scampthecorgi]

Did you vote and decorate your dog with a sticker today??

#scamp the corgi #vote #election day #election 2022 #corgi #dog #pet #pets #animal #animals #corgis #dogs #cute #adorable #silly #funny #pembroke welsh corgi #lol #comedy #humor #haha

[missladybirdhill]

#remember that election day is tomorrow! #King of the Hill #season 5 #The Perils of Polling #Dale Gribble #voting #election day

[reasonsforhope]

"New Mexico will establish a permanent absentee voter list and remove barriers to voting on tribal lands under sweeping legislation signed into law Thursday [March 30, 2023] by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham.

The measure also will automate voter registration during certain Motor Vehicle Division transactions and more quickly restore the voting rights of people exiting prison after a felony conviction. It was supported this year by Democratic legislative leaders and Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, after a similar measure died in the final moments of the 2022 session amid a GOP filibuster...

Republican lawmakers fiercely opposed the bill this year, too, contending automatic voter registration and other measures aren't necessary in a state that already allows same-day registration. But advocates of the legislation, House Bill 4, celebrated Thursday [March 30, 2023] as Lujan Grisham signed the bill during a ceremony at the Capitol with Secretary of State Maggie Toulouse Oliver; House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque; and others.

Native American leaders described it as critical step toward protecting the voting rights of people on tribal land, especially those without a traditional mailing address. [More details in/moved to the last key point!]

In a signing ceremony at the Capitol, Lujan Grisham said the legislation would serve as a template for other states. "We want to send a message to the rest of the country — that this is what voting access and protection should look like," the governor said...

Absentee voting: Sign up once

The legislation calls for a permanent absentee voter list to be available in time for the 2024 elections. Voters could sign up once to get absentee ballots mailed to them before every statewide election. People on the list would also get notices mailed to them seven weeks before Election Day. Any election-related mail returned to the county clerk as undeliverable would trigger the voters' removal from the absentee list.

Automated voter registration

Automatic voter registration during some transactions at MVD [DMV] offices — such as when a person presents documents proving citizenship while applying for a driver's license — would begin in July 2025. Newly registered voters would be told they've been added to the voter rolls and that they'll get a postcard in the mail allowing them to decline the registration. For MVD customers already registered to vote, their address would be updated in the voting rolls if they renew their driver's license with a different address.

Restoration of rights

The legislation will restore the voting rights of felons when they leave custody rather than after they complete probation or parole. Inmates would be granted the chance to register or update their registration before release. The Sentencing Project, an advocacy group, estimated the measure will restore the voting rights of more than 11,000 citizens.

New holiday

The bill makes Election Day a school holiday.

Drop boxes

The legislation requires each county to have at least two secured, monitored boxes for people to drop off absentee ballots. State election officials are empowered to waive the requirement or grant requests for additional containers, depending on the circumstances of each county.

Native American voting

The proposal establishes a Native American Voting Rights Act.

[Moved here from earlier in the article]

The measure requires collaboration with pueblos, nations and tribes on establishing polling places, early voting locations and precinct boundaries. It also allows members to register to vote or receive absentee ballots at official tribal buildings — a necessity, supporters said, for residents who don't receive mail at home. "It is truly monumental reform," said Ahtza Chavez, executive director of NM Native Vote and a member of the Kewa Pueblo and Diné Nation. "It requires collaboration with tribes at all levels.""

-via Albuquerque Journal, March 30, 2023

#new mexico #voting rights #voting matters #united states #us politics #good news #american politics #voting #election 2024 #native american #indigenous rights #first nations #felon voting #election day #lujan grisham #michelle lujan grisham #hope #hope posting #elections

[mightypieworkshop]

Digging up old art so Smol Essek can give a timely reminder to my fellow US folks! Yes, the power structures in this country seem entrenched and it sometimes feels like our votes are futile, but we can’t Leave The World Better with apathy. We gotta try.

Not sure who to vote for? Go to vote411.org and enter your address to see your races and candidates. Looking at endorsements is a fast and easy way to cut through word salad campaign talk and get a read on whether or not a candidate aligns with your views on the issues!

Also, don’t sleep on your local and judicial races! Most of the folks out showing their crazy on a state/national level got their start as members of city council or your local school board. Cockblock the crazy at the local level so they don’t get a foot in the door!

#election day #election 2023 #get out the vote #vote #smol essek #smol essekventures #shadowbean shenanigans

[dontmean2bepoliticalbut]

#us politics #2022 #twitter #tweet #2022 midterms #2022 elections #rep. alexandria ocasio cortez #election day #mail in voting #mail in ballots #absentee ballots #voting rights #voter rights #voter suppression #vote #vote blue

[gentil-minou]

I just want to point out in this time where I'm losing all faith in this government there are people who aren't afraid to condemn genocide and the US government for being complicit and funding it

Rashida Tlaib is Palestinian-American and this entire month her colleagues and zionists have constantly put her down for defending her people and heritage, and I admire her strength in speaking up and remaining the voice of the people, especially when everyone else is too cowardly to say anything else

#im quickly losing all faith in this government but she and like a handful of others are making me hopeful #but also theres a lot of hate going their way and even then they dont let them be silenced #election day is tomorrow and just want to remind you guys when you're voting for your local elections this is how you put the people you #want in power this is how it starts #election day #rashida tlaib #that tab is full of racists and islamophobes or zionist sheep so i will cleanse it one by one #free palestine #gaza #gaza genocide #palestine

[whenweallvote]

Good news in voting rights coming out of Montana! 🎉

Yesterday, the Montana Supreme Court struck down four major voter suppression laws passed in 2021, which:

🔹Eliminated same-day voter registration in most cases

🔹Made it more difficult to vote with a student ID

🔹Outlawed absentee ballots for new voters who would turn 18 by Election Day

🔹Banned paid ballot collection and reduced other forms of ballot return assistance

The Court’s decision is a MAJOR victory for Montana voters, specifically Native American voters, young voters, and voters with disabilities who would be disproportionately impacted by these laws.

#montana #court #voting rights #good news in voting rights #good news #montana supreme court #same day voter registration #student id #absentee ballots #election day #native american #gen z #voters