Posted on 11/07/2006 6:01:51 AM PST by watsonfellow
Tell us what you saw today at your voting place.
So weird. When I was in college I made sure to get an absentee ballot...of course I was voting for Ronald Reagan. It was a BIG thing.
Voted at 10:00 in Timonium, Maryland. Bob Ehrlich's home district. Heaviest turnout I've ever seen in my polling place. Election worker said they usually get 80% in any election, though.
Hah. When you are fifty or sixty, I'm going to remind you that you said the "older" (50-60) woman was slow that day long ago at the polls. I can see it now. You'll have sore arthritic (slightly) hands and will forget your reading glasses and have to ask for a magnifying glass to see the voting screen. (I'll be the 90 yr. old lady in front of you who takes 20 minutes to vote. You'll take at least 15 minutes and some young dude behind you will be chomping at the bit. I shall cackle.)
The fun part was still seeing/hearing all those paid political ads on tv/radio. I thought that they would go away on the day of general election itself. Oh well.
I was at my voting place at 7:00 am - small township in NE Ohio. I was asked for my photo id (I was glad to see that, although I have known everyone in the place for years!)I was done in 5 minutes, too - straight Repub. Yeehaw.
I know that I am getting older, ( 47 ), when I had to used the special magnifying square to make sure to it I was able to fill in the ovals in the ballot.
I just went to the grocery store in a neighboring town (Napoleon Mi.) and saw that the parking lot of the township office was packed with at least 100 cars. On a normal day 10 or 15 cars is a lot.
Looks like a big turnout in this rural area.
I repeated this post on the USA Today blogs:
After voting electronically for the first time, I can only laugh at the overwrought stories of polling-place drama. It was simple, quick, clear and efficient...AND there was a paper trail!
Anyone not capable of using these machines needs to get rid of their coffeepot and microwave oven as they are likely too thick to use kitchen appliances safely.
I guess the Luddites who want neither electronics nor identification to be involved in deciding elections fairly will have to dream up another bogeyman before 2008.
PS - There are already billboard posts in the comments section for many of the USA blog entries...the usual stuff from someone signing as 'Bush Republican Voting Machines.' Where in the he11 do they grow these idiots?
Ours used the same in WV - must be one of those Bush/Rove programmed Flash drives.
you can't tell very often obviously.....but anything obvious...NRA hats or something like that?
Widespread among Dims. They need to get home for Oprah.
Of course it is - but then Bush/Rove/Cheney have it all planned out in advance, you know.
REPUBLICANS SUPPRESSING THE VOTE AGAIN!!!
Another problem in small towns is the people working the polls are usually older and retired and really know nothing about computers. It's not a good combination.
Heh... believe me, I gave some thought to that since I'm currently 47. But then again, I've always been comfortable with technology (having built my own Heathkit computer oh so many years ago...) (smile)
I'll probably try to leave work early to get back to the poll before 9pm. I am an attorney, my office is in battery park, and I live near 102nd street. Don't have time to go up and down today before I leave - bunch of meetings.
I voted absentee in PA. I just moved so I don't know what the turn out is there today. It's a rural area. Turn out was high in 04....One thing I'll never forget was the Amish guy who parked his horse and buggy downtown, jaywalked through town and crossed through yards to get to the polling place. He walked like a man on a mission. It was something to behold.
Upstate SC. 7:10 am passed by my polling place, looked like alot of people (20+) already. It's raining here, supposed to rain all day. I'll be voting around 4:30 pm.
coffee in the corner for refresment.
I thought you were not allowed to give out anything while voting. Somebody got in trouble earlier giving out hot dogs. I think it was area in Ohio.
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