posted by kizer permanente

It shouldn't, but Republicans are the ones who don't want counting to begin until election day since Trump did a great job convincing them the elections are rigged. Then the same Republicans complain it takes too long to count mail ins.

https://apnews.com/article/elections-local-elections-9ee577c7a06132f87ddb0217bfcd4b73

So what you are saying is both parties are fucking it up it places.  I am shocked.

posted by majorspark

So what you are saying is both parties are fucking it up it places.  I am shocked.

Just imagine we made election day a national holiday.

Then imagine, because you got a paid day off to do your civic duty, if we get rid of early voting and 95% of mail-in voting....  The Dems would riot.

posted by gut

Just imagine we made election day a national holiday.

Then imagine, because you got a paid day off to do your civic duty, if we get rid of early voting and 95% of mail-in voting....  The Dems would riot.

I think it would be fine, so long as they let everyone vote and have enough stations for that. No more of the bullshit in Houston years ago.

But then you’d need multiple days. No way could everyone get in during the 10 hour period.

posted by majorspark

So what you are saying is both parties are fucking it up it places.  I am shocked.

Only Republicans seem to be complaining about it and casting doubt though?

posted by kizer permanente

Only Republicans seem to be complaining about it and casting doubt though?

Why would Dems complain if they were benefitting from it?

posted by BR1986FB

Why would Dems complain if they were benefitting from it?

Repubs only complain about it in states they lose. They dont have a problem and trust the process in states that have large amounts of mail in ballots that they win.

posted by Laley23

There is no doubt unless you are looking for something to blame or look at. There is nothing to point to that suggests any hint of doubt.

I understand what you are saying, but PLEASE tell me that you do not trust the government to have your best interest at heart.  I will trust the word of my worst enemy before I trust anything a government official tells me.  

Literally every person on this earth is self-serving at the core.  Some more than others, some less than others. But government officials, and government as a whole (especially the elites) are the scum of this earth. 2nd perhaps only to Hollywood idiots who use their soap boxes to condescend us peasants. 

posted by ernest_t_bass

I understand what you are saying, but PLEASE tell me that you do not trust the government to have your best interest at heart.  I will trust the word of my worst enemy before I trust anything a government official tells me.  

Literally every person on this earth is self-serving at the core.  Some more than others, some less than others. But government officials, and government as a whole (especially the elites) are the scum of this earth. 2nd perhaps only to Hollywood idiots who use their soap boxes to condescend us peasants. 

I dont think anyone runs on anything but self service. They may make policies that inadvertently help many, but if it hurt them, the policy wouldnt exist. 

All I am saying is, I do not think a single election has been rigged. I trust the individuals, and the oversight, and the checks and balances of that process and do not think it would be even close to possible to pull anything off. And 2020 investigations proved that. And so will this Kari Lake impending lawsuit. 

posted by Laley23

I think it would be fine, so long as they let everyone vote and have enough stations for that. No more of the bullshit in Houston years ago.

But then you’d need multiple days. No way could everyone get in during the 10 hour period.

We did it not that long ago.  Yeah, the occasional 2-3 hour wait sucks and should be avoided.  But, as you said, it's primarily an issue of how many voting locations you can staff. 

If you lack staffing, then you might need some early voting days.  But it doesn't seem that complicated.  We've complicated the hell out of the process, which is only further exacerbated by calling Republicans racist every time a proposal makes voting slightly more onerous than going to McDonalds.

Mail-in voting or online voting should be fine, but the counting/security/verification process makes all that inherently problematic.  Seeing how easily the best efforts of govt and big business are thwarted by hackers doesn't make me optimistic we can do online voting securely any time in the near future.

posted by Laley23

All I am saying is, I do not think a single election has been rigged.

It's tiresome.  If voter fraud is occurring in any meaningful way, it would be small local elections.  Too many votes to pull that off for federal and state elections.  Of course, technology makes it all easier, and that's partly why it takes so long to count votes.  But fraud on a wide-scale basis would be extremely difficult in our current system.

Similarly, I'm tired of hearing how every voter reform proposed is somehow racist.  I don't really understand why common sense voting issues is somehow political and polarized, but there you have it...

posted by BR1986FB

Why would Dems complain if they were benefitting from it?

Because the way it works is Repubs complain about voter fraud, and Dems complain about voter suppression.

posted by ernest_t_bass

I understand what you are saying, but PLEASE tell me that you do not trust the government to have your best interest at heart.  I will trust the word of my worst enemy before I trust anything a government official tells me.  

Literally every person on this earth is self-serving at the core.  Some more than others, some less than others. But government officials, and government as a whole (especially the elites) are the scum of this earth. 2nd perhaps only to Hollywood idiots who use their soap boxes to condescend us peasants. 

I don’t trust everything the government does, but I trust some stuff.  I don’t trust everything a corporation does, but I trust some things.  Government, for all its flaws, has more controls in places than corporations do (as an example).  I generally don’t trust much that one party seems to push unanimously because the parties have no controls in place and serve as platforms for narcissists and psychopaths.  This class is similar to the officer class at large corporations.

Cracks me up old doofus AOC crying "racism" because one of the African-American Dem candidates lost. If Walker somehow wins that runoff in GA I believe the Republicans will have more African-American reps than the Dems.

AOC is obnoxious. If Walker wins we may have to look at moving to the moon.

posted by Laley23

AOC is obnoxious. If Walker wins we may have to look at moving to the moon.

Could be worse. Would love to see Walker vs Fetterman in a spelling bee with the first command being "spell your name." Bet Walker wins.

posted by Dr Winston O'Boogie

I don’t trust everything the government does, but I trust some stuff.  I don’t trust everything a corporation does, but I trust some things.  Government, for all its flaws, has more controls in places than corporations do (as an example).  I generally don’t trust much that one party seems to push unanimously because the parties have no controls in place and serve as platforms for narcissists and psychopaths.  This class is similar to the officer class at large corporations.

Now there's a real zinger.  

posted by Laley23

I think it would be fine, so long as they let everyone vote and have enough stations for that. No more of the bullshit in Houston years ago.

But then you’d need multiple days. No way could everyone get in during the 10 hour period.

Amazing how we always were able to do it before.

posted by QuakerOats

Now there's a real zinger.  

I say from my experience.

posted by QuakerOats

Amazing how we always were able to do it before.

We have not only had record turn-out recently, but populations are not going down -- yet the amount of polling places are. Even in rich, white, suburban neighborhoods. So take that to any other demographic, and you are seriously at a risk of just not counting people because the line was too long and it closed. This almost (did??) happened in Houston and Atlanta a few elections ago. 

What a coincidence that FTX was a giant Democrat donor. 

posted by iclfan2

What a coincidence that FTX was a giant Democrat donor. 

The same that Enron was a giant GOP donor - just paying for political favors.  That’s the main business both parties engage in.

posted by QuakerOats

Amazing how we always were able to do it before.

you mean when only white men were able to vote?  (obv a joke)

posted by Laley23

So take that to any other demographic, and you are seriously at a risk of just not counting people because the line was too long and it closed.

You realize that they could and would take resources dedicated to all the early and mail in voting to staff & run additional polls on election day?  Of course the infrastructure isn't geared for this currently, just like most states were completely unprepared for all the absentee voting a few years ago.

It's a manufactured concern - any issues are the result of incompetence and not inability.  Also, I'm completely unsympathetic if it's a national holiday.  You're getting paid, you can stand in line 8 hours if that's what it takes.

If it’s a national holiday, I agree. If it’s not, and people cannot vote because the lines are too long, that sucks. I want everyone to be able to vote, the fact so few do sucks. 

And I think if we eliminate early or mail in, we would see the total numbers drop. Which, sure if people don’t want to stand in a line it’s tough to feel sorry for them. But as an American who wants 100% turnout in our elections, I’d choose the alternative if it meant more votes.

posted by iclfan2

What a coincidence that FTX was a giant Democrat donor. 

Actually it may be that the US taxpayers were the main democrat/socialist donors, by way of Ukraine and FTX.  Will we ever know.