Growing population in America’s highly educated enclaves has led to huge gains for the Democratic Party. And it’s changing the electoral map going into 2024.
Add in that’s why they’re against Mail in voting and making voting day a national holiday like most other countries.
They’re trying to speedrun oligarchy and theocracy, legalize more gerrymandering, and consolidate power because they’re slowly losing votes, and that means this is the best chance they’ll have, for the rest of their party’s existence.
It’s even worse than that. In my state, some polling places are in the lobby of retirement/nursing homes. My polling place is. I have to drive/bike a mile to vote while Gertrude can just roll her Rascal scooter into the elevator and go vote for the loudest person on her TV.
In quite a few states, including mine, we have a pamphlet sent out with all of the people you’re voting for, a picture of them, and their statement of what they’re going to do. You can vote any time and drop it off or mail it in by a certain date to be sure it gets there. You get a tab that has a bar code on it to check if it got there. Every state should have this, this should be federally mandated.
Yes - Vote by Mail is an absolute win for democracy. It’s no secret why the GOP rabidly opposes it.
That said: It’s also difficult to demand at a federal level.
The US Constitution delegates running of elections to the States, though it does allow Congress to claw back that delegation “by appropriate legislation.” You saw some of that regulation in various things like the Voting Rights Act. Congress, if it had the political will, could pass laws to declare how elections are run in all 50 states.
It would be a hard-fought battle, though, and eventually end up in the Supreme Court, which, these days, would laugh, rule 6-3 against it, and say, “Whatta gonna do 'bout it?”
The realistic solution is the long-term one. Everyone needs to vote, not once every 4 years, but in every election, and especially local elections. City, County, and State elections matter more. These are the races that govern your day-to-day lives. Stop electing Republicans to local offices and start electing people who respect our form of government and have, at least, a modicum of honesty, or enough shame to keep their corruption under wraps were we don’t have to know about it.
I agree with everything you said, but honestly we have to try. If we try for the federal level, then everyone will at least know about it. I don’t think some states know enough to fight for it.
There are absolutely people who are prevented from voting if the location is too far and they don’t have a car. That’s part of the argument that voting locations shouldn’t be at college campuses. Students there are much less likely to have a car and therefore can’t go very far. One politicians argument was literally that the college students would roll out of bed, vote, and go back to sleep.
Closing polling locations and forcing mass amounts of people to use one location is also a valid reason. Not getting time off is a valid reason. A lot of people in the restaurant service industry work double shifts days in a row, especially in management rolls that can easily add up to the entire early voting period. Disallowing bussing from churches does disenfranchis people, primarily POC, which is the point.
There’s a reason Republican politicians enact these things. Because they do prevent people from voting.
Young people have jobs
Old people are retired.
Voting is on a Tuesday.
One of the underlying reasons for turnout is pretty simple.
Add in that’s why they’re against Mail in voting and making voting day a national holiday like most other countries.
They’re trying to speedrun oligarchy and theocracy, legalize more gerrymandering, and consolidate power because they’re slowly losing votes, and that means this is the best chance they’ll have, for the rest of their party’s existence.
It’s even worse than that. In my state, some polling places are in the lobby of retirement/nursing homes. My polling place is. I have to drive/bike a mile to vote while Gertrude can just roll her Rascal scooter into the elevator and go vote for the loudest person on her TV.
In quite a few states, including mine, we have a pamphlet sent out with all of the people you’re voting for, a picture of them, and their statement of what they’re going to do. You can vote any time and drop it off or mail it in by a certain date to be sure it gets there. You get a tab that has a bar code on it to check if it got there. Every state should have this, this should be federally mandated.
Edit: Also, you can vote naked and in bed.
Yes - Vote by Mail is an absolute win for democracy. It’s no secret why the GOP rabidly opposes it.
That said: It’s also difficult to demand at a federal level.
The US Constitution delegates running of elections to the States, though it does allow Congress to claw back that delegation “by appropriate legislation.” You saw some of that regulation in various things like the Voting Rights Act. Congress, if it had the political will, could pass laws to declare how elections are run in all 50 states.
It would be a hard-fought battle, though, and eventually end up in the Supreme Court, which, these days, would laugh, rule 6-3 against it, and say, “Whatta gonna do 'bout it?”
The realistic solution is the long-term one. Everyone needs to vote, not once every 4 years, but in every election, and especially local elections. City, County, and State elections matter more. These are the races that govern your day-to-day lives. Stop electing Republicans to local offices and start electing people who respect our form of government and have, at least, a modicum of honesty, or enough shame to keep their corruption under wraps were we don’t have to know about it.
I agree with everything you said, but honestly we have to try. If we try for the federal level, then everyone will at least know about it. I don’t think some states know enough to fight for it.
Fkn vote like your life depends on it. It does. Call on sick if you have to.
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Which means exactly nothing in an at-will work environment like most states in the US
What? Voting is on a tuesday. Why on earth is that?
historic reasons. Of course one party will definitely fight tooth and nail against any attempt to change that
https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/2/7
Because that’s when the law says
last daysit is.It’s Tuesday because a bunch of farmers had to travel a long way (2+ days) to the town for polls, and we can’t have them miss church on Sunday.
edit: never trust mobile autocorrect
It’s always on a Tuesday.
deleted by creator
There are absolutely people who are prevented from voting if the location is too far and they don’t have a car. That’s part of the argument that voting locations shouldn’t be at college campuses. Students there are much less likely to have a car and therefore can’t go very far. One politicians argument was literally that the college students would roll out of bed, vote, and go back to sleep.
Closing polling locations and forcing mass amounts of people to use one location is also a valid reason. Not getting time off is a valid reason. A lot of people in the restaurant service industry work double shifts days in a row, especially in management rolls that can easily add up to the entire early voting period. Disallowing bussing from churches does disenfranchis people, primarily POC, which is the point.
There’s a reason Republican politicians enact these things. Because they do prevent people from voting.