Or, just… spend more money on it. Here, polls are from 7am to 10pm, you don’t generally have to queue to vote for more than a few minutes, and unless you’re in an extremely rural area you can walk to your polling place.

Now, presumably American elections are cheaper per capita, but it’s not like the money isn’t available. Cut down on the f35 habit a bit and have some proper elections.

The f35 habit is a federal thing. States administer elections so that wouldn't help them at all (and it's not due to money)

So, have the federal government give states money to hold proper elections. Sanction any state who doesn’t. This isn’t hard. Most of the developed world manages to hold elections more or less sensibly; the US can too, if it wants to. The trouble is, it doesn’t want to.

(I’m sure money isn’t the only problem, but clearly US elections are done on the cheap)

In South Africa voting is always on a Wednesday, and I've always been told the logic is:

Avoid Monday and Friday so that workers won't take a 3 day weekend.

Similarly, avoid Tuesday and Thursday so that workers don't take a vacation day for a 4 day weekend - even though fewer workers would do this, it would still be a massive hit on productivity, and workers would more likely to travel and thus be outside their electoral areas

Hence, midweek

what is so bad about workers taking a 4 day weekend?

I don't think it's bad but if the purpose is to get people to vote but a lot of people are out vacationing in Yosemite then it defeats the purpose.

They probably aren't in their hometown to vote if they take a 4 day weekend.

Taking a 4-day vacation somewhere that doesn't have polling booths.