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Re:Google Trends Electionland by ryanSrich on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:15AM (#12901406)
On days like this I'm glad I live in Oregon. Honestly it's the only sane and responsible way to vote.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by zeveb on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @12:07PM (#12901940)
I completely disagree: I think that voting, in person, surrounded by other members of the community, is an important part of our civil religion. Election Day should be a true holiday, dedicated to patriotic and civic commemorations.

In particular, I think that early voting leaves voters liable to act on less information than is necessary. Obviously there must be a cutoff — if a candidate goes insane the day after the election, it's too late — but I think it's preferable for all voters to be acting on the same available information.

Obviously some folks need to be away from home on Election Day, but I think that the vast majority of us should be voting together, with our communities.

I fear that the trend towards early voting will lead to increased partisanship, and that the way we've been running our elections and districting for the past century or so has led to a decreased sense of community and patriotism.

Re:Google Trends Electionland by Munksgaard on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:18AM (#12901435)
Forgive my ignorance, but how do you vote in Oregon?
Re:Google Trends Electionland by ryanSrich on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:22AM (#12901475)
You don't get the option to vote in person. We don't even have voter booths.

Instead, the state mails you a voter guide and a ballot that you fill out in the convenience of your own home. This allows you to review the candidates and new proposed bills line by line.

Once filled out you simply drop it off at one of the hundreds of drop-off locations and you're done (or mail it in if you have time). This can all be done weeks ahead of November 8th.

Re:Google Trends Electionland by AndrewOMartin on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:29AM (#12901547)
And what if an intimidating person in your household has strong opinions about how you should mark that ballot?
Re:Google Trends Electionland by ryanSrich on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:36AM (#12901616)
If you can't find a single personal space to fill out a ballot then you have bigger problems.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by davidw on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:37AM (#12901621)
There is always going to be some potential for that. "Take a picture of how you voted or I'll beat you" would work fine even with polling places, although it'd be a little trickier.

The system saves a ton of money and time, and we have record numbers of voters in Oregon this year.

Re:Google Trends Electionland by jachee on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:43AM (#12901686)
Taking photos of your ballot is actually illegal in my state. (MS) Presumably for this very reason.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by davidw on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:49AM (#12901747)
Sure, but if the ballot booth provides real privacy... it's not hard to do. It's also a common method of proving you voted a certain way in order to sell your vote.

Or hey, you can just peer over their shoulder:

https://twitter.com/Gabbienain/status/796031055715246080

Re:Google Trends Electionland by kzisme on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @12:21PM (#12902066)
This morning when I voted I was surprised that it was hardly a "booth". It had sides to the screen to attempt to block it from view, but it you turn your head you could see the screen next to you - and their screen.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by philjr on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:37AM (#12901626)
You send them to bed early without dinner
Re:Google Trends Electionland by mikestew on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @12:45PM (#12902311)
This allows you to review the candidates and new proposed bills line by line.

As I said in another comment, there's nothing stopping you from reviewing candidates and bills line-by-line in the convenience of your own home even if you go to a voting booth. Even if you were a completely honest student in school, surely you've heard of "cheat sheets"? Unlike school, they are allowed in the voting booth (at least in IN, NC, and WA when they had voting booths).

Re:Google Trends Electionland by wiredfool on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:23AM (#12901490)
Oregon and Washington are both vote by mail states, so no polling places on the day.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by knz on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:40AM (#12901651)
It's not an either or scenario. Other countries manage to have voting in person without election day shenanigans like long lines to vote.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by jrowley on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:48AM (#12901740)
I just voted in Berkeley, ca - 5 min walk from my house and no one in line at 8:10am. So the problem of long lines isn't universal.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by ythl on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:46AM (#12901719)
Are these other countries comparable to the US in terms of scale and population?
Re:Google Trends Electionland by travem on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:51AM (#12901768)
Yes, of course. Long lines to vote is not a function of the size of the country, it's more likely to be a function of the number of people and the number of available polling stations in a given area. There are very many large cities around the world that can handle voting without the excessive lines seen in the US.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by davidw on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @11:51AM (#12901767)
It's not the overall population that is the problem: millions of people are not voting at any one location.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by knz on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @01:21PM (#12902615)
No but elections are managed by the state and local governments in the US - those are comparable to other countries.
Re:Google Trends Electionland by blahyawnblah on Tuesday November 08, 2016 @12:09PM (#12901960)
I find the "Long Wait Times" in Hillsboro to be a little odd since there is no waiting.