The Republican Party has, for decades at least, had a program of making it more difficult to vote. I'm not saying that to be partisan, it's just a fact (sometimes facts favor one party or the other, but we shouldn't ignore them, twist them, or try to create a false equivalence). I believe it's because they are the minority party, especially among working class people.
A law called the Voting Rights Act was passed in the 1960s that restricted many of those practices, which had been used to prevent minorities from voting in much of the South. In the last few years the Supreme Court said the Voting Rights Act was no longer valid, and many of the practices (though in different forms) quickly returned in Republican-controlled states. For example, in many places they increased the documentation required to register to vote, and then made it harder to obtain the documentation. And then they dramatically reduced the voting locations, so that registered voters have to travel further and wait in long lines in order to vote.
That is not what they said. They did not overturned the VRA.
What they did was overturned a section which labeled specific states and counties that were subject to increased scrutiny and protection, on the grounds that demographics have changed in the last 50 years, and that now that list is out of date and includes too many districts which no longer need the increased protection. They noted that the law could and should be amended to specify districts which previously were not in need of protection and now are, but that is outside the role of the Supreme Court, so they left it up to Congress to fix that.
Specifically, they overturned the preclearance requirement, which requires places that have been found to discriminate in the past to get clearance from the Justice Department before implementing changes to voting procedures.
This requirement was to prevent jurisdictions from implementing changes that have major deleterious effects on specific groups and then having one or more elections occur (and then official acts and laws passed shaped by the results of those elections) while the legal challenges work up through the system.
What people here would never understand (and this is due being mostly white nerdy dudes here) is that it's so hard to get time off work when you're a blue collar guy, and even though it's paid off in some states (California for example pays for 2 hours of work that day) it's not enough. And it's stated by many companies that your work is more important, especially since nobody goes to vote anyways.
I work at a startup and nobody went to vote, everyone has work to do. I cannot skip a "lunch meeting" cause I don't have "lunch meetings".
And finally, I don't want to keep beating the dead horse but whatever, Bernie Sanders reintroduced the concept and hasn't being enacted https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy_Day_(United_States)
Indeed, everyone has work to do. It does not absolve us of our civic responsibility. I don't live in California, but would be surprised for anyone at a startup here in Atlanta to have significant problems taking a couple hours out of their day to go vote were they to want to. Apathy is a definite problem however.
Also, you have to go to a polling place next to your neighborhood. Most of the time work is not anywhere close to just take off during lunch and get the vote out. It almost ends up being a hassle.
Sundays would be better, but there is still a substantial part of the population that works on Sundays.
Additionally, the "closed" primaries vs "open" primaries are bullshit. As a citizen I should be able to go to a polling place, choose a candidate and get out.
Depending on the state, though, it's the party choosing who the candidate they want to put forward is. So it should be that party's right to decide who gets to partake in that decision. I mean, would it make sense for a whole bunch of Republicans to come and vote in the Democratic primary?
It shouldn't matter if a Democrat is voting Republican or the other way around. People can change their minds, and should not be disallowed to vote if they find that the other party is doing a better job in making the country a better place.
If a whole bunch of Republicans vote Democrat, it means that the Republicans have failed to do their job! Saying you can't vote because of that is like a childish loser saying you can't play for the opposing team.
My point is that such a decision should not be made and it segregates our democracy and makes it an "us vs them" fight, when in reality we're all in this together.
If they had that role removed, they would still be able to endorse a candidate or agree to all vote for the same candidate or whatever.
Ted Cruz can still be on the ballot if he wants to can't he? As an independent? How could the Republican Party stop him?
It's a complicated morass of rules that would cost a lot of money:
https://ballotpedia.org/Filing_deadlines_and_signature_requi...
In contrast, the parties essentially have a reserved nationwide slot that they fill after many months of media circus.
They don't. They pick two of the people on the ballot. Anyone has the chance of getting on the ballot if they aren't part of one of those groups.
This is the Primary. Not the actual election. Those people are free to vote for whoever they want in the general election.
"If a whole bunch of Republicans vote Democrat, it means that the Republicans have failed to do their job!"
In the general election, yes. Not in the primary. In the primary, it means that one party is trying to choose the candidate in the other party that would be easier for their party to beat.
" Saying you can't vote because of that is like a childish loser saying you can't play for the opposing team."
No, it isn't. Not when you realize what election you're talking about.
"My point is that such a decision should not be made and it segregates our democracy and makes it an "us vs them" fight, when in reality we're all in this together."
Your point doesn't make sense when a party is trying to pick it's own candidate.
It's just A LOT OF THINGS are a little fucked up with our voting system and the combination of ALL OF THEM makes it a HUGE MESS!
Many (most?) states don't allow voting by mail or absentee ballots without a bonafide reason. "I'm busy that Tuesday" doesn't cut it.
I live in one of the three states that mails every voter a ballot, which can either be dropped off or mailed in.
If your state doesn't allow this, it's a simple reform you can push for. Write your representative.
It's a consistent pattern that in places with frequent elections, turnout is low. There is a form of voter fatigue. Switzerland votes every six months, and has very low turnout.
Friday, January 1: New Year’s Day
Monday, January 18: Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Monday, February 15: Washington’s Birthday (aka Presidents Day)
Monday, May 30: Memorial Day
Monday, July 4: Independence Day (aka Fourth of July)
Monday, September 5: Labor Day
Monday, October 10: Columbus Day
Friday, November 11: Veterans Day
Thursday, November 24: Thanksgiving Day
Monday, December 26: Christmas Day*
Even growing up I had (public) school on Columbus Day.
Service workers work on almost all of them. Even the once sacred Thanksgiving isn't a day off for many retail employees anymore. Where I worked year ago they brought in low paid part time workers on holidays to cover for the full timers (who had benefits) who had the day off.
People will still need to work on election day, but the amendment could specify a minimum amount of time be available to participate in the election.
(still, early voting makes more sense to me than that)
I wonder what are your thoughts about it, and how can it happen in America? I've seen every single proposal be rejected in congress.