No One Should Have to Stand in Line for 10 Hours to Vote

[groovedaddy]

Everyone complains that young people don’t vote, but consider the experience of students at Kenyon College in Ohio in the 2004 election. Officials in Knox County, Ohio, provided just two voting machines for the school’s 1,300 voters. Some students waited in line for 10 hours, and the last bleary-eyed voter did not cast a ballot until nearly 4 a.m.

That same day in Columbus, voters in black neighborhoods waited as long as four hours, often in the rain. Many voters there and in other urban areas — including Toledo and Youngstown — left their overcrowded polling places in disgust, or because they could not wait any longer, without casting a ballot. In many of Ohio’s white-majority suburbs, the lines were far shorter.

Troubles in Ohio drew the greatest attention in 2004, but that state was hardly alone. There were complaints of long lines in other states, including Colorado, Michigan and Florida, where elderly voters endured waits in blistering heat.

I was in Ohio on Election Day 2004. The night before the voting, rumors spread that there would be a major effort by Republican operatives to challenge the registrations of voters in majority-black precincts. Those large-scale challenges did not materialize. But tens of thousands of votes were suppressed by something so mundane that no one thought to focus on it: long lines.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/26/opinion/26tue4.html?th&emc=th

[monmouth]

1. I voted today in PB County for local stuff, just to be sure I had not been purged. I wasn't

thank goodness, but it was a test. I don't trust FL, and we have a flake in charge of elections here. Fortunately a very savvy young woman is running for this and I was happy to vote for her..

[RufusTFirefly]

2. And, of course, long lines take a bigger toll on poor voters...

... who are less likely to be able to take off several hours from work -- and in some case may even be fired for returning to work late.

These same voters make up a sizable portion of the Democratic base.

Gee, what a coincidence!

[FatDave]

3. Democrats are now running the show in Ohio

I'll be watching closely to see if things have improved.

[diva77]

4. California Election code sez employers must allow employees 2 hrs. work time for voting

Since CA Election code allows for 2 hrs. work time for employees to vote, seems like the 10 hr. wait could be grounds for legal action -- unreasonable barrier to voting...

http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/waisgate?WAISdocID=8597993678+0+0+0&WAISaction=retrieve

14000. (a) If a voter does not have sufficient time outside of
working hours to vote at a statewide election, the voter may, without
loss of pay, take off enough working time that, when added to the
voting time available outside of working hours, will enable the voter
to vote.
(b) No more than two hours of the time taken off for voting shall
be without loss of pay. The time off for voting shall be only at the
beginning or end of the regular working shift, whichever allows the
most free time for voting and the least time off from the regular
working shift, unless otherwise mutually agreed.
(c) If the employee on the third working day prior to the day of
election, knows or has reason to believe that time off will be
necessary to be able to vote on election day, the employee shall give
the employer at least two working days' notice that time off for
voting is desired, in accordance with this section.

14001. Not less than 10 days before every statewide election, every
employer shall keep posted conspicuously at the place of work, if
practicable, or elsewhere where it can be seen as employees come or
go to their place of work, a notice setting forth the provisions of
Section 14000.

14002. Sections 14000 and 14001 shall apply to all public agencies
and the employees thereof, as well as to employers and employees in
private industry.

14003. Except in time of war or public danger, no voter is obliged
to perform militia duty on any election day.