Voting resources...

[Left Seater]

So yesterday I catch part of the noon local news and some young reporter is talking to an older lady who waited 25 minutes to vote. The older lady was Hispanic and the reporter was leading her towards the wait being a voter suppression tactic. I rolled my eyes and thought to myself the older lady's wait was far better than my precinct.

Then last night on the late local news the same reporter had updated her story. Apparently she went to other precincts to try to support her waiting as voter suppression and found that most of the primarily minority precincts had zero wait. She even found one where there were a total of 11 voters all day. She pointed out that the precinct where the old lady voted had a couple hundred people vote. She then interviewed a local election official who stated that each precinct received the same number of electronic voting booths, 8 each. The young reporter then asked if the voting booths should be allocated differently based on historical voting totals by precinct. She pointed out that in one precinct each booth averaged less than 2 voters per booth while the old ladies had 40 times more use. The election official said that wasn't his decision to make.

So this young reporter who was angling for a voter suppression story actually found one but in the opposite direction of what she thought it might be.

But that leads to a bigger question. Should voting resources and precinct size be based on historical trends?

[mvscal]

Should voting resources and precinct size be based on historical trends?

Probably. Sounds like a solution in search of a problem, though.

[Wolfman]

The last time I voted in person at a polling place was the 2008 general election. It took MrsO and I over two hours. There was only one machine to read the paper ballots. I had to believe that anyone who had a job did not vote. I vote by mail now. What should be done, but won't is that "election day" should be held on a Sunday or a special holiday set aside for it. Hell I remember when the bars had to be closed until the polls were closed. Also, there should be no exit polls or projecting winners until all polls are closed at least in the contiguous 48 states. If I was on the left coast and all the news projected a winner, why would I even bother voting? I realize the horse is out of the barn and there is no putting it back in, but I can dream.

[smackaholic]

This happened in Florida in 2000. One of the networks called Florida for Gore a few minutes after the eastern time zone polls closed. A nice chunk of the panhandle (mostly republican) was still open. There is a good chance that some still in line said fuggit and left. This likely would have been to Gore's advantage.

[Wolfman]

What was odd in 2008, there was a long line outside the building and it was moving at a fairly steady pace, but I noticed hardly anyone was leaving the building. Very strange. When we got inside, there was another very long line of folks snaked around the interior of the large room with their marked paper ballots waiting in turn to use the single reader machine. I liked the electronic machines I used in previous elections here and the mechanical ones back in CNY. Now for me it's all by mail. In fact I have already cast my vote in the Republican primary down here. The only reason I am a Republican down here is because there is no Conservative Party like in New York.

[BSmack]

The only reason I am a Republican down here is because there is no Conservative Party like in New York.

Not many candidates on the Conservative line in NY that aren't already Republicans. The so-called "fusion" balloting in NY is there for the big parties to use to manipulate the overly credulous into thinking they are making a statement by voting for their favorite big party sponsored minor party.

[Wolfman]

Not many candidates on the Conservative line in NY that aren't already Republicans.
That couldn't possibly be that there are no more "conservative" Democrats, could it? The Conservative Party in New York formed when they took a page from the marriage of the Liberal Party and the Democrats. I think it was a good idea in both cases. Wish I had that option down here.