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Post by Mari on Nov 7, 2012 14:29:55 GMT
Bill, that was a response to the last comment on the previous page.
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Post by Karen on Nov 7, 2012 17:02:13 GMT
I've never had to wait more than a couple of minutes to vote. A lot depends on a)what time of day you go (before and after work hours are the busiest times, obviously) and b) where you live. My daughter, in NYC, had to wait around an hour. She was 5 people behind Maggie Gyllenhaal.  I think it would make sense to have election day, at least every 4 years for president, be a national holiday. Then people wouldn't have to worry about work, the lines would be shorter, and maybe more people would vote. |
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Post by Moose on Nov 7, 2012 17:07:14 GMT
*permits self a modest whoop*
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Post by Moose on Nov 7, 2012 17:34:09 GMT
Haha I just saw my first facebook post claiming that the election was stolen
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Post by Alvamiga on Nov 7, 2012 19:18:50 GMT
Congratulations to the Victor!  |
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Post by jayme on Nov 7, 2012 22:42:47 GMT
THat's true. The last time I fell on my face, I was moving forward. Except, once my face hit the ground I stopped moving. So maybe that's wrong.
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Post by Fr. Gruesome on Nov 7, 2012 22:54:44 GMT
Douglas Adams once expressed the view that flying is easy: all one has to do is to throw oneself at the ground and miss.
*suspends disbelief*
*crashes into floor*
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Post by jayme on Nov 7, 2012 22:58:04 GMT
I guess the missing part must be where I went wrong. Will have to tweak that on my next flight.
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Post by jayme on Nov 8, 2012 1:03:31 GMT
Schlingensiepen lost. I was so hoping to be represented by a Schlingensiepen. Sigh...  |
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Post by jayme on Nov 8, 2012 1:06:40 GMT
But Holland won! So at least I get a faux Dutchie for a state senator!
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Post by Shake on Nov 8, 2012 3:03:22 GMT
I have heard (and the US people here can correct me if I'm wrong) that when one votes in the US... One isn't just voting for one thing. That the forms can be quite long and that many choices have to be made, all on the one ballot. So filling out one's form can take a long time... Hence the line ups. Usually when we vote, we only have one Check to make (although there was one election where we had a referendum on voting reform attached, which was a surprise to most people as NO ONE talked about it before the election (except for a small number of us who actually Want proportional representation) (And know what it is and how it would work..) I suppose it depends on where you are. My county's weekly newspaper had a list of races to be decided, along with other ballot issues for various towns. It listed 8 main races — technically 7, since they split Pres/VP, which are not voted on separately (except in the case of a tie, which could have resulted in a Romney-Biden White House) — and some others, as I said for some of the towns. In my town, we had no additional races, nor did we have any ballot issues on which to vote. So, as I said above, it took me maybe 10 whole minutes — and that included walking in, having the workers find my name and me signing — to vote. In Miami-Dade county in Florida, they had a 12 page ballot to fill out.  I have no idea what took up all that length. I joked to someone if it wasn't written half in English and half in Spanish, but that may actually have been part of the issue there. Another, not-very-PC possibility I floated was that it was written in very large print to accommodate the large number of senior citizens living there.  Seriously, I do know that the propositions are quite often written in legal-ese and there usually has to be an explanation of what "yes" or "no" mean when trying to decide how to vote. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2012 5:57:38 GMT
Wow, that sounds complicated. Last time we voted here, the thing itself probably took less than a minute.
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Post by weavweb on Nov 8, 2012 7:31:13 GMT
Always amazes me that it can be complicated in the US (with the long lists and the machines and associated issues) where as we just put a tick in a box with a pencil. Interesting that the the system is so complicated and yet the networks can call the result so quickly on the night.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2012 8:00:47 GMT
I was also surprised to see the results that soon.
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Post by tangent on Nov 8, 2012 10:29:43 GMT
That's an advantage of the electoral college system. You don't have to wait until Florida finishes voting. Schlingensiepen lost. I was so hoping to be represented by a Schlingensiepen. Sigh... You must be joking. Schlingensiepen isn't a real name. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 8, 2012 14:01:46 GMT
It is. Here in Germany, you would be surprised about the names you can find. Frank often can't believe what kind of names exist here!
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Post by Karen on Nov 8, 2012 14:11:32 GMT
The paper ballots (which are only used in some places - many states/counties use machines) are usually put into a machine which scans them. Hand-counting is used for absentee and provisional ballots, and in a few other cases. But for the majority, the results are known pretty soon after the polls close, which is why the networks can call the states and then the election as a whole so quickly.
The long forms are for voting on ballot measures: same-sex marriage, marijuana laws, etc., which will only be on the ballot in certain states. In PA we had none of those, so my voting process took about 30 seconds. I pressed one button to vote for all the Democratic candidates (something I don't always do, but in this case I liked them all plus I wanted to stick it to the Republicans) and the then big green "VOTE" button. My vote was immediately recorded.
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Post by weavweb on Nov 8, 2012 14:43:21 GMT
Yes, but for whom? Wouldn't trust a machine with something so important. What about those people who press button A but end up voting for B? If it's a paper based system and you have a dispute / recount there's no problem.
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Post by Mari on Nov 8, 2012 15:04:23 GMT
Douglas Adams once expressed the view that flying is easy: all one has to do is to throw oneself at the ground and miss. *suspends disbelief* *crashes into floor* LOL ;D |
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Post by Karen on Nov 8, 2012 19:19:02 GMT
Yes, but for whom? Wouldn't trust a machine with something so important. What about those people who press button A but end up voting for B? If it's a paper based system and you have a dispute / recount there's no problem. All voting around here has been done by machine for ages. Even 25 years ago it was a machine, just mechanical rather than electronic. You pressed little levers next to your candidates, and then a really big lever to record the vote. It gave a nice satisfying thunk. In any case, I'm not too worried about machine problems. Much more concerning is voter suppression via picture ID requirements and the like, which can disenfranchise the poor and the elderly in particular. |
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bigsleepj
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Post by bigsleepj on Nov 8, 2012 19:25:24 GMT
In South Africa you still fill in the ballot with a pen, after going through various voter registration and ID checks. You are then issued two ballots, both longer than your arm. One is for the ward representation, and the other is for the national government. Edit: Anyone know how to make this smaller? Edit: Try this:  Steve Edit: Thanks. |
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Post by Thingy on Nov 8, 2012 19:59:45 GMT
A Party. Now that's a great name  And, I notice we haven't had one yet... ... |
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bigsleepj
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Post by bigsleepj on Nov 8, 2012 20:01:16 GMT
I think the A Party thought his might end up at the top. To be honest, I don't know what they stand for. In case you haven't noticed... there's a glut of small parties here.
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Post by Shake on Nov 9, 2012 3:42:05 GMT
I was also surprised to see the results that soon. Mrs Shake didn't think we'd know before Wednesday at the earliest. Evidently, it wasn't as close as a lot of people thought it might have been. We took the girls with us to vote. Natalie asked me if she could color in some of the boxes for me. I told her no, but we could make her some at home to fill in. That seemed to be OK with her. |
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Post by Shake on Nov 9, 2012 3:43:09 GMT
Oh, and I just saw a little while ago that Florida came in for the President, which is a little surprising, though things were close there all night.
Final electoral tally: 332-206.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2012 6:59:10 GMT
We took the girls with us to vote. Natalie asked me if she could color in some of the boxes for me. I told her no, but we could make her some at home to fill in. That seemed to be OK with her. My parents never took me with them to vote. |
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Post by Fr. Gruesome on Nov 9, 2012 9:15:41 GMT
The rules in UK didn't used to allow non-electors into the Polling Room: in Mordor things are much better organised, but you would have expected that wouldn't you.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2012 15:24:22 GMT
Well, I'd expect Mordor to be well organized, yes.
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Post by tangent on Nov 9, 2012 18:10:16 GMT
Greetings Bill.
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Post by Mari on Nov 9, 2012 19:50:56 GMT
Well, I'd expect Mordor to be well organized, yes. Indeed. It also strikes me as a country where mismanagement is dealt with quickly and efficiently. But perhaps not so quietly. |
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I have no idea what took up all that length. I joked to someone if it wasn't written half in English and half in Spanish, but that may actually have been part of the issue there. Another, not-very-PC possibility I floated was that it was written in very large print to accommodate the large number of senior citizens living there. 
