I have NEVER had to stand in line to vote, even before I changed to an absentee ballot. I understand many states do not have the option of routine absentee voting. In CA, you don’t have to sign up again each time, the law was changed about 20 years ago to allow you to request a permanent absentee ballot. What was the longest you stood in line to vote?

Well, I have had to stand in line in California, and I had to wait at least two minutes while the election personel had to explain the voting method to someone in front of me.   But, you are right, Asanta.  Other than that one time, I’ve never had to stand in line.  (Yes, I’m signed up for absentee ballot, but I like going to the polls so I’ll keep doing so as long as I can drive.)

Occam

I saw on the news yesterday evening, the last day of early voting, here, that a certain nearby locality had a waiting line of up to 40 minutes.  I voted last Sunday, during the early afternoon, and there was no waiting at all.  (I’m in Texas, in case you don’t remember.)

Never had to.  Never seen more than six or seven people in a polling place either.  Nobody votes in Michigan, apparently.  Probably because we’re all so depressed over how much our state sucks.

Just voted. Spent over an hour in line, had to watch people jump through all kinds of hoops because of registration screw ups, and they only had FIVE voting machines. I grew up in a little pissant town, less than a quarter of the size of the town I live in now, and we had a dozen or so machines. I feel sorry for the folks in line behind me, because I know they will have a much longer wait than I did!

I had tried to vote early, but the polls closed at 4:30 PM, I live in a “bedroom” community some 30+ minutes from Nashville, what sense does it make to close the polls before most of the voters are going to be able to get there?  Oh, and there were no signs on the early voting place telling you what the hours were, or where the alternate locations were located and what their times were.

There was no line in any of the four precincts at the polling place.  However, I noticed something else.  The parking lot was full so I stopped about six car lenghts back of someone who was getting in their car.  Suddenly, a woman in a new Lexus wagon pulled around me, got in front then took the just vacated space.  I waited a few minutes and another spot opened up across the aisle.  Keys certainly do scratch paint, don’t they.  When I finished voting and walked back out, I saw two other instances of rude automobile behavior in the parking lot.  I’m sure that because I live in an area with a large republican majority, it has nothing to do with it.

Occam

Past couple elections, I’ve been doing early voting and taking my ballet down to the County Court House to drop my ballet.
You know the traditional County Court House, Court Clerk, Tax Assessor, Auto/Lic, Building Dept, Sanitation, etc right in that one building.  In fact, back two decades ago I spent 2 1/2 years moonlighting as a night janitor, one block from the historic Carnegie library - (this is when I discovered and fell in love with audiobooks. .

Well, the auto registration and licensing department got moved out long ago, and the library has relocated to a nice new building a couple miles away.  And this week when I went to retrieve my mail-in ballot and vote I was directed a couple miles to an industrial building next to the not so new Auto Registration office (licensing is in yet a different location) in another industrial building. 

Well, let me tell you, it seemed weird and sad and discombobulating seeing County Clerks that used to reside behind the hollowed counter-tops in the place of government…  sitting in nondescript cubicles within an isolated industrial building.  I even asked my clerk about it and between her agreement and the look in her eyes, I could imagine it being a genuine heart breaking experience for some of these salt of the Earth folks.

It sure reminded me of the disintegration we are witnessing all over.

Like the sad song said:

“Maybe had too much too fast.”

15 years ago, I was living in the boonies, and my polling place was a freakin’ tire store!  “Bud’s Tire.”  You want to talk about feeling unsure your vote was going to be counted?  Try voting in a tire store where the owner looks like an extra from Deliverance.

Thanks for your stories. Voting in CA is about as uninteresting as it can get. Walk in, vote, walk out. I vote absentee now, but like Occam, I walk it into the poll to chat with the workers. I like to deliver my ballot in person rather than mail it.

Our voting place is in a community room at the local mall (in CA). We still have paper ballots (connect the arrow types) so the only time I’ve ever had to wait was when the privacy booths were full. That’s happened once that I recall in the 10 years I’ve been voting at that location.

I have a friend who lives in Florida who claimed she waited for 5 hours to vote! (If it was any other state I might be skeptical.  )

Take care,

Derek