What time of day is a good time to vote?
 

The 2004 election was the first election that I had to stand more than 10 minutes in line for. Now I am perfectly willing to stand for 2 hours in the rain to vote, especially if I feel that someone has conspired to make me stand in line for 2 hours. I will still try to actively avoid it.

One of the very few off-year elections I missed was when I got held up at work, so I prefer voting on my way in to work, at about 8:30. This year I am debating about whether to show up when the polls open at 7am and maybe have breakfast afterwards. Or show up after work at about 7pm.

If there is a long wait to vote, I'd rather that wait occur in the morning.

If the polls close at 9PM, and there is a 3 hour wait, and you get there at 7PM, will you be allowed to vote? If you go in the morning, you don't even have to ask that question.

This year, for the first time evah, I lived and worked in the same place. So I voted at lunchtime and paid the price by being surrounded by pensioners who didn't understand the system.

I've always voted in the morning before. People don't like to alter their daily routine to the extent of getting up earlier. Also the people who are voting at this time are invariably on their way to work, so you can assume at least a baseline IQ.

The polls close at 8, and poll workers are instructed to not close until everyone in line has voted. Some idiot poll workers may not understand, and there is the occasional story about how some latecomer was turned away, but that's rare.

Best times to vote are between 9:30 and noon, and between 1:30 and 4:30. It's rare for there to be a wait during those hours.

I don't have any cites, but I seem to remember stories from previous elections where people in line inside the building were allowed to vote, but those in line outside the building were not, even if they had arrived a long time before the polls closed.

I'm not saying it's a common occurrence. In fact, I think it's quite rare. But going to vote well before the closing time will eliminate that small risk.

Hmmm...my polling place is usually not too bad, but I've been able to go at off times in the past. I guess I should be prepared for being late to work.

I'm guessing "early" voting is during normal business hours? They hold the early voting at the County Seat. I'm old-fashioned about voting on election day, but then again I had not anticipated a new job farther away from home...until now!

Yes, but what you're forgetting is that Rich is desperate for an opportunity to wield his righteous indignation at how the election works. It would really make his day, to be turned away.

In Virginia, they had absentee voting set up with Saturday hours.

Looking forward to voting for the first time in my new town. I heard from someone that when he voted once, the poll worker, shouted out "its another Democrat" (This place is overwhelmingly Republican). So I am all geared up to get offensive if that happens to me. :meanface:

I vote among the 55+ community republicans, amish, and evangelical xtians - in an evangelical church this time around. Never had an issue.

I usually head over around 2:30p or so, never had to wait for more than one or two people ahead of me. I'm using a new polling place now, though, so I don't know how the traffic runs. I did walk right in on Primary Voting Day, despite there being a crowd expected because of all the people who switched registration to vote against Hitlary, as well as first time registrants.

I did it today, took about 15 min total.

Are you in a mainly democrat or mainly republican district?

Not really. First I would absolutely not allow myself to be turned away, especially since I have only missed two elections in about 20 years.

Most of the issues will be around first time voters.

PA does not have early voting, just absentee. Since we are a large battleground state, this should be interesting when everyone descends upon the polls on Election Day.

Here is an election guide from the League of Women Voters that should advance the discussion. On pages 25-26 it discusses challenges and how provisional ballot voters can verify that their vote was counted.

Essentially, any voter can be challenged by any other voter, but a challenge does not automatically result in a provisional ballot. People who have been foreclosed upon and are living somewhere else can still vote at their old polling place upon signing an affidavit. However, voters or partisan officials can make unlimited challenges, which could delay voting.

BTW, for the voting in Virginia, what are the weekend hours? This situation in sounds horrible, but not as bad as waiting until election day. 5 hours on Saturday, 3 on Sunday, and 8 hours on weekdays. If people have access to computers, they can check wait times in Broward county.

Before early voting I always went before the doors opened and beat the line, or most of it. Never took more than 10 or 15 minutes.

Tink and I and SonofV are all going to be first in line before dawn on Tuesday morning. Breakfast and coffee on me.

11:00 11:30 am 10:00 min. tops

I voted on Thursday and didn't have to wait at all, although turnout was brisk. Don't think I've ever had to wait more than a few minutes.

Im happy for a good turnout....the way it should be.

And don't forget about the weather factor. Good weather supports a good turnout.

Not first thing, not last thing, and not over lunch.

For the Primary Elections here they were predicting a HUGE turnout, warned about long lines and so on ... I went at around 2pm, walked in voted, walked out. This was a new polling place for me, so I wasn't familiar with the rhythms, but it seemed to work out.

I'm planning on going somewhere between 130 and 2pm tomorrow as well.

I know that the bus from my apt complex is heading over at 230pm, and since I don't want to get stuck in that line of walkers, I'm going over ahead of them.

Around the middle of the day on Election Day, or by absentee mailed in well before Election Day. In California, you needn't stand in line if you have your Absentee Ballot filled in, signed etcetera; you just turn this in to the polling officials, who have a baglike container for the purpose, and then you're on your way rejoicing at having been civic.

As promised:

The first picture was taken while resting the camera on the trunk of a nearby car using the self timer mode. I was a little embarrassed when a white haired lady came out of the door you see there and asked me "What are you doing there? That's my car!"

Gulp.

"Ah, um, I'm just resting my camera on it while I take a picture of myself, is that ok?"

"Oh, ok. I thought you were trying to get into the trunk."

"Oh no ma'am. Thank you."

Second picture is about an hour later, joined by SonofV and Tink, taken by the second person in line.

We were the first ones there, and voting still took about a half an hour. We use Scantron style ballots, and there were probably forty choices to make. There was an actual line twenty deep for the little standup kiosks. It's just a table, people! I carried my ballot to the step and filled it out sitting on the floor.

I'm very proud to have done my civic duty. A labor of love, really. And I'm happy to have modeled it for SonofV. He was cooperative. And I'm delighted to announce that ElderSon and BelovedDaughter both completed their absentee ballots and mailed them in time.

A perfect election day.

*smiles* brilliant.

Got to the firehouse at 12:40, no line, no wait, in and out.

I was a little surprised, this time they had the small parking lot by the poll cordoned off, with a sign that said firemen parking only. So the little old ladies had to park in the school lot, up the hill, and hike in the rain to the poll.:(

I got up at 5:15. At 6:07 I went out to vote. there were already 15 in front of me. So i wound up wiaiting 20 minutes to get in. Lousy machines.