Tuesday, November 3, 2020

Tales of the new Voting Booth: Mail in, Drop in or IRL?



HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Well, I don’t know what we can do today except wait. And vote! I had a great idea this year. Jonathan and I got our ballots sent to us by mail, all good. They arrived in plenty of time. My idea was that I would mail mine, because I love the post office, and I believe in the post office, and my post office people are going to do their jobs perfectly. So I was fine with mail. 


But as a reporter, I decided we should do an experiment. Jonathan and I would drive his ballot to a dropbox at City Hall. And then see who’s got marked as received first. And that would be an interesting thing to know!


But in the end, we both mailed them. Because we have faith in the post office.  And according to our check of the website, they were received in three days.


How did you vote? And by how I mean: in what manner did you cast your ballot. By mail, in person, or what? 


If you haven’t voted, where is your polling place, and how are you going to get there, and when?

Tell us your adventures from today! 


 










RHYS BOWEN:  We voted the day after our ballots arrived in early October. I dropped our ballots off at the drop box at the Civic Center. We usually mail but I wanted to make extra sure!

I have been so impressed with the number of people who stand in line for hours to vote, and the good people who feed them. It reminds me that most people are good and decent!

 

JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: I went to my town hall, got my mail-in ballot, and filled it out then and there. They had a little voting area set up, with two (distanced) seats and a third place with a magnifying glass for citizens with visual impairment. I’ve long been happy I live in a small town where same day voting is never more than a five minute wait, but I feel especially grateful this year, when we’ve all become aware of the roadblocks to voting so many other Americans have to deal with. 

 

Maine has same-day registration, no voter ID requirements and mail-in ballots for anyone who wants them. Also, we use paper ballots, not electronic machines! I know there are issues of scale, but I feel if our small, poor state can make it work, every state could and should make it that easy to vote and be secure in your ballot.


DEBORAH CROMBIE: I had applied for a mail-in ballot back in July, because of worries about Covid and before all the brouhaha over mail-in voting. So when my ballot arrived on October 2nd, I filled it out and mailed it (with a stamp!) the next day. Although I've been eligible for mail-in voting in Texas for a couple of years, I usually vote in person just because I like doing it. And my daughter and I usually go to the polls together, so I really missed that this year.


HALLIE EPHRON: Usually I go to my precinct’s polling place which is in a community center, a five-minute drive away. It never takes more than 5 minutes to vote, and the same older citizen volunteers are there checking me in and out. I see those pictures of voters lined up for hours waiting to vote and thank my lucky stars I vote in Massachusetts. 


For the first time this year we requested mail-in ballots because I’m not going anywhere I don’t need to until this plague is vanquished. Ballots arrived. We filled them out and drove to my town hall where there’s a drop box at one of the entrances with a person sitting just inside the building keeping watch. 



JENN McKINLAY: Here in AZ, we’ve had mail in voting for years. I haven’t voted in a polling location since the Hooligans were in a double stroller and we rolled up the street to vote at the local Baptist church. Dudes got stickers -- so fun! 


The nice thing about having a well established mail-in ballot system is that we can track our ballots. We fill them out, sign and seal them, and mail them in. This year, to keep the post office from being overwhelmed, we dropped them off at the polling place. Our signatures are checked against what’s on file at the DMV (our driving license signature) and then the ballot is accepted, which we can check online by looking up our name and such on the county recorder’s website. Our ballots will then be counted after the election day voters finish casting their votes and the polls are closed. 


Yes, it means we won’t have an official tally on election day, but we’re used to it here.  Because of the enormous amount of mail-in ballots, we didn’t have a Senator or a Secretary of State for five days during the last election but every vote was counted and in a democracy, that matters!



HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Our Lucy is on a road trip, and we will hear from her on the way! Safe travels, dear Lucy.


But how about you, Reds and readers? What was your voting method this year? Tell us all about it!



108 comments:

  1. We mailed our ballots [for the first time ever] for the primary election; everyone got ballots mailed to them for this election whether they wanted them or not. ::sigh:: So we filled them out and dropped them in the box in front of the library . . . .

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  2. I am usually of the opinion that you should vote in person on election day unless there is some reason why you can't.

    Having said that, this year, I did return my mail in ballot to a collection center last Wednesday. Considering I worked late Monday night, I don't know if I will get done with work in time to vote today anyway.

    And yes, I tracked my ballot, and I know it was accepted.

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    1. Hurray! Good for you! You got it done!

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    2. I early voted last week. I was in line for an hour and 20 minutes.

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  3. Oregon has had only "mail in" ballots for more than twenty years. We don't even have polling places. I got my ballot in mid-October, filled it out that weekend, and dropped it off in the ballot box that's permanently mounted outside our local library. I could track it online.

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    1. Yay! And—Oh so interesting! Do they only start counting on Election Day or before?

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    2. I think this is so sensible! We mailed ours to Key West weeks ago and they've been counted--yay!

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  4. I always get a mail-in ballot so I can see who all are running for what in my district. Tons of judges this go around. That gives me time to check them out and make my picks. I mailed my ballot at the post office. Son and Husband went in person to early voting and made their choices in the voting booths.

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    1. Oh what they say? Where are you? How was it?

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    2. We're in Houston. As Debs can tell you our esteemed governor has made voting more difficult in various ways. But we persevere. Frank and Adrian picked a nearby early voting polling place and were in and out pretty quickly. Those who went to more popular spots were in line quite a while early on.

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  5. For the first time ever I voted early. I usually wait until Election Day, but I decided this year to go vote in person when early voting started a few weeks back here in Kentucky. As you know, we have one of, if not the most, important Senate races here. My husband voted early, too, although he almost always does.

    Today is going to be a stressful one, and probably some days to come. I hope we all check on one another, especially those living alone and going through the stress. It’s good to know you really aren’t alone during these times.

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    1. Kathy, thank you, because under stress I can convince myself that I am completely alone. By telling someone or checking on someone, there are, at least, two of us.
      And thank you and your husband for voting.

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    2. Yes! We are all here together, Kathy! Xxx

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    3. Elisabeth, if you need someone to talk to, I'm here. Look me up on FB under Kathy Boone Reel. Hank, you are a rock to so many.

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  6. This was my first time not voting on Election Day. I did in-person early voting, which was very easy at our Office of the Registrar, and hubby did mail-in, which was fully available this year because of COVID. Now it's just one long wait...

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  7. I'm awake, the coffee is on, the alarm is set for 5;30 for Irwin. I'm about to turn up the heat in the house. Polls open at 6:00. Stay tuned!

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  8. Hey Everyone! I'm back. We voted. There was a long line ahead and behind but efficiency reigned.

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    1. glad to hear it Judy! so interesting that it was busy at 6 am. Remind us what state you're in?

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    2. Connecticut. Lucy, we are in a suburb of Hartford.

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    3. Waving Judy, from Western CT. I took the COVID reason & voted absentee. Only thing I missed was the “I voted” sticker.

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    4. Oh yay! Wow a long line —amazing. Now we wait... xx

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    5. Hi Elisabeth, waving back. Maybe next summer we can all meet at a book signing for Roberta at RJ Julia or one of the town libraries! I am 1 hour or less from just about anywhere in CT.

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  9. I usually walk to my town's polling place, the high school, but like others, I requested a mail-in ballot for both primary and today. Both times I walked them down to the secure drop box in front of Town Hall. Done.

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  10. While I spent a lot of years subscribing to the George Carlin theory of voting (if you vote, you have no right to complain), I've spent the last four presidential elections casting my vote since I felt it was important to take part considering what was at stake.

    I voted by mail this year. Between not wanting to take the chance of being stuck in a long line on election day and reasonable caution for health reasons, mailing in the ballot seemed smarter.

    I've seen people that I'm "friends" with on Facebook talking about how the only way to vote is in person but I discount them because they get so snooty about it that I know who they voted for.

    I checked and my ballot was accepted so I've done my part. I won't be paying much attention to all the election coverage today/tonight because I don't have that many blood pressure pills (LOL), but I've done my part.

    I have a friend who works for the next town over from me and she works the polls, so I'm hoping that she has a smooth and easy day today because given the stakes of the national election, any disruptions would not surprise me in the least.

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    1. Yes, disruptions at the poll would be so distressing. I'm glad you're taking care of yourself Jay!

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    2. Yes it’ll be interesting to see what she says! And good call on the BP meds! :-)

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    3. Right on, Jay. I am hoping that my husband does not watch too much news today. Small house, sound carries.

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  11. Shalom Reds and fans. After I get off work (about 1 pm) I will walk up the hill to the center of town. It's about a mile and a bit away. My polling station is the local volunteer fire house. Pennsylvania started using paper ballots which are read by optical scanner machines. This is new for us. No booth anymore. We sit at a table filling in the proper holes. The offices require that you vote both sides of the ballot they give you. There is usually no line of voters. Maybe this year will be different; but I doubt it.

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    1. Pennsylvania! Such a big deal this year—please report back and let us know how it goes!

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    2. I voted. No line. We don't usually have lines but this year, I think that it was because so many people voted earlier in the weeks before. The new optical readers were only used before in the primaries, so I don't know how soon we will learn the result. I could be wrong, but I suspect that the President will lose here earlier rather than later in the final count, here in Pennsylvania.

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  12. I'm actually feeling calmer than I have in weeks now that the polls are open, and especially hearing how many of us are casting our votes without discernible strum und drang. Such a baseline for our democracy: to be able to cast your vote.

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  13. I've voted absentee for years, and I did check to see my ballot got there via the USPS this time. What I miss is getting the little "I voted" stickers that are given at the polling stations.

    Four years ago I did score a sticker. It was a beautiful fall day, and I took the dogs and went to Mt. Hope Cemetery here in Rochester, only a couple of miles from my house. First we paid respects to Frederick Douglass, leaving coins on his grave as is our local tradition. And then we took a shuttle to Susan B. Anthony's grave, the head stone being already covered in stickers. Since I used a walker, I got to cut the line and paste my sticker in a prominent position. I was pretty sure the world was changing that day.

    I was right.

    Today is cold and gray but I hear the voters are out in record numbers, have been all week for early voting. In a bright blue state, I live in a red county, but this year feels different.

    Happy Extermination Day, one and all.

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    1. "Happy Extermination Day" - perfect!

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    2. I hope we will be singing tonight . Your traditions are wonderful. Xxxx

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    3. We are praying for a complete eradication.

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    4. Ann, I love the stickers on Susan B. Anthony's grave. So perfect. I would love to know the significance of the coins on grave of Frederick Douglass.

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  14. Hallie, yes! I voted by mail, then drove to the only dropbox in my county and deposited it. Checked it online; my ballot was good to go! Sat up until 4 am this morning and outlined a story for the littles in the family--something to keep me occupied in a good way today and the rest of the week.

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    2. Yes! We were so happy when we looked up our votes and they had been received!

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  15. I needed to vote absentee ballot 8 years ago after I broke my ankle and they have been sending me the ballots every year since, which I am very thankful for. Especially today considering the nasty weather we've had here the past few days, blowing lake-effect snow. I know if I hear the snow plow go by I don't want to be driving.

    So I filled out my ballot and put it back in the mailbox. I have faith that it reached its destination but I don't know how to check on that. There was no tracking number and I couldn't find the information for my county online.

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    1. I’m sure it got there just fine! I bet your secretary of state would know how to check… Maybe there something on that website?

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    2. I'm in NY so I know it can be done. I think I tried the county board of elections (made sense to me) and got nowhere. Think I'll try again, but I'm not losing sleep about it. As it is, I doubt I'll be able to sleep at all tonight.

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    3. Judi, check your voter's registration. There should be a number on it below the bar code. In Texas, at least, you can put that number into the state tracking website and it will tell you if you ballot has been received.

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  16. We usually vote in the gym of the village community center, in and out in five minutes. This year, we received our mail-in ballots a few days after they were released, spent a cozy evening at the kitchen table researching all the judges on the ballot and sifting through the campaign literature ("she opposed the Duke energy pipeline so we'll vote for her") and my husband drove down to the Hamilton County Board of Elections for parking lot submission, supervised by two county sheriffs ("keep the line moving"). We were able to verify on-line that our signatures had been approved and our ballots accepted. Lengthy paper ballots.

    If you don't bother to vote, you aren't allowed to complain about the outcome.

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  17. Florida has had open (no need to be out of the state) mail in voting since the Bush/Kerry election. Given Florida's history, I hesitate to say they have it down to a science, but at this point, they should. Ya never know. Since we are COVID refugees at our Maine home but Florida residents we requested mail in ballots before we left Florida and dropped them in the mail in Maine as soon as we were able. I admit, I prefer to vote in person, generally during early voting, but this year it would have been quite a drive.

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    1. Yes, you definitely made the right decision :-) Florida Florida Florida. We shall see.

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  18. We asked for absentee ballots this year, concerned--with good reason--that the pandemic would still be roaring today. It was so easy to sit together and mark our ballots, reminding each other of all the nitpicky details of putting the ballot into two envelopes. I then drove them to the same Board of elections as Margaret's and dropped them in the box outside. However, when I went it was around dinnertime and mine was the only car there. A couple days later when I checked the BOE website both ballots had been accepted.

    Normally, I really love the excitement of going to the polling place at the church down the street, and usually seeing neighbors. Four years ago Steve and I went together and I excitedly took a selfie wearing my "I Voted" sticker, full of hope. This year, I dare not hope, but am seeing so many signs of historic voter involvement that it is lifting my spirits.

    Julia, I think it was Robert Reich who pointed out that 20 states, and DC, have same-day registration. It will be interesting to see what that means in terms of additional voters this year, in a year with already high turnout.

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  19. The state of Alabama made some changes in the voting process due to Covid, some of which helped and some of which seemed to say "don't get used to this, we're not going to keep it this way." There are no drop boxes anywhere. It is the Post Office or in-person turning it in. I did vote absentee because of the pandemic, but I chose to take it in person to the registrar's office because the new Postmaster General had just ordered the sorting machines to be taken out and told the mail carriers to slow down. So I definitely tracked my ballot. But despite all that, tons of people have been lining up just to apply for an absentee ballot, which is exciting! I'm going to try to be calm all day so I can watch the returns tonight without giving myself a heart attack. :(

    I have a sticker on my car - a square of red with a circle of blue in the center. It reads: "A little blue dot in a big red state." Thanks to all the Reds and readers for making this a safe place to express ourselves.

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    1. Oh gosh —you are wise, little blue dot! Xxx and we welcome you here! We will all be watching together tonight, no matter where we all are. xx

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  20. Good morning from California. There is a cute video of our Governor in his Dumbledore costume with his partner Jen and their children asking people to vote. The pumpkins are carved V O T E.

    We dropped off our ballots at the secure drop box at the City Hall and we were notified that our ballots were received.

    The Jungle Reds and the NaNoWriMo stuff are the ONLY things I am doing online today. I decided to turn off my cell phone for the day. No Instagram. No emails. No texts asking for more donations.

    Important to focus on Self Care today.

    Diana

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    1. Diana - I am looking forward to an end to the texts!

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    2. Ha, Liz, me, too! I swear I get two dozen a day! But I do appreciated all the people who have volunteered to text and phone bank.

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    3. Someone mistakenly put my cell phone number (which I've had since 1995, BTW) onto a list for a Florida voter named Kamila, and I've been getting text messages from people in a dozen organizations that the list was distributed to. STOP only stops that person, not the whole cycle. WTF?

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    4. My son is one of those volunteers who signed up to text voters in Texas. I’m so proud of him for trying to make a difference. This election is so important and will make a difference in his life. His wife is a Dreamer and the hostility towards immigrants during this administration has really affected him. California has only mail in voting this year and I’ve done it that way for years anyway, so our votes have been in for a couple of weeks already.

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  21. In Hillsborough County our absentee ballots come with a "I voted" sticker. I will be wearing mine today along with a Biden Harris Pride t-shirt. We have voted absentee for years, disabilities invite voting absentee. This year we did drive to an election office. As I mentioned we were wearing political t-shirts Amy's said Vote! It will remove stubborn stains.

    Several have mentioned that these t-shirts should have caused problems. I think there wasn't a problem for us because the voters had already decided. Our t-shirts didn't make any difference.
    Today I will be wearing both the sticker and the t-shirt.

    Today I am reminded of another fierce mantra "Whatever happens, it will be okay." See y'all tomorrow. Lucy, John and the furry ones, Be well be saft.

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  22. The tenterhooks on which we are up here in Canada are no less taught for being out of country. We are with you, Americans, in spirit today. Here's hoping for a change, because the whole world will feel it. #neighbours

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    1. SO true! My Canadian pals, like you, are equally apprehensive..

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    2. I agree with Amanda. I feel for you my friends and wish for the best.

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  23. Here in Ohio, I voted in person two weeks ago. My preference is really to go to the polling place on election day and feel like a part of this great thing we are all doing, but in light of all that is 2020, I felt it was more prudent to do it early so I had options if my first plan didn't work out for some reason.

    I waited in line just under an hour, almost all of it outdoors in a socially-distanced line with masks on. Once we entered the building we were quickly directed to someone sitting behind plexiglass who verified our ID and had us sign with a stylus that we then kept in our possession until the end of the process. I could choose to fill out a paper ballot or use a voting machine and I chose the latter. There was almost no wait to get to a machine, which printed out a paper ballot at the end, which I then carried to a secure box and put it through the slot, and deposited my used stylus in a container.

    I received a voting sticker that day, but since I wouldn't really be seeing anyone but hubby who had been there with me, I held onto it until today. Today happens to be one of my "in office" days under our hybrid system, so I am proudly wearing my sticker to celebrate with my colleagues this beautiful quadrennial day in our democracy.

    I am thankful that I have a work-related Zoom meeting starting at 6:30 this evening, so I am unlikely to have an opportunity to check the returns until after 8:00. I am absolutely NOT going to sit there hanging on them as I did in 2016. I may check what it's looking like before I go to bed, but I am trying to keep my emotional distance until things have a chance to be finalized.

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    1. You are a stronger person than I am! I fear I will be glued to the TV. As if that'd matter...xoxoo

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  24. Pennsylvania has mail-in voting (no excuses), but my polling place (the Methodist church) is literally fifty feet from my house so I always vote in person. This morning I got there at 7:03. The line was already out the door, through the parking lot and to the street. I don't think I've ever waited more than five minutes. This year it was almost an hour. But I was helpful. There are two voting zones at that location and I was able to look up addresses for a couple folks and send them to the right line (one of them my neighbors).

    I like voting in person. You get to talk to people. And for the first time EVER I got a sticker!

    Two big differences: No people milling about at the entrance stuffing their flyers in my hands. And they replaced the electronic touchscreen voting machines with paper ballots and a scanner. Fill in the bubbles and feed the ballot into the machine. Just like the standardized tests I took in school.

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    1. YAY YOU! And whoa, Pennsylvania! Tell us more!

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    2. Not much to tell. Things are very quiet, no fuss, and seem to be rolling along. I live in a very heavily Democratic county (Allegheny and Philadelphia both went for Hilary in 2016). The story will be how the middle of the state goes. Biden is from Scranton. He made a very concerted effort to visit ALL of the state, not just the two major cities (unlike 2016). He did a "four-corner" sweep, ending in Pittsburgh last night.

      So we'll see when the results start rolling in. Like others, I'm not watching. Tell me when it's over.

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  25. Texas has really strict rules about who gets a mail-in ballot, and I don't qualify. Instead, I made a plan to vote early. I figures all the folks who could not wait to cast their ballot would line up forever on the first day of early voting, so I waited until the second day. The central voting office for the entire county is about a mile and a half north of me, so I dropped by on my way home from an essential errand run. I had one guy in line in front of me, but there were a ton of poll workers and voting stations. Everybody was masked and there were plexiglass shields everywhere. I doubt the air exchange rate would have met ideal standards, but there was a door open to the outside as the exit, so the air felt fresh. Lots of helpful volunteers--very nice and respectful people. The only issue I encountered was one woman stationed by the machine that scanned my completed ballot. No trouble getting the ballot into the scanner, but she was wearing her mask under her nose, and when I pointed out that it wouldn't work that way she said, "It doesn't work anyway. It's all a hoax." So I guess I know who she voted for.

    I was in and out in about ten minutes.

    Today I plan to kick back with a "comfort food" novel by a favorite author and take it easy. I do not anticipate rioters in my neighborhood, but I can handle that, too.

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    1. Even the idea that there would be rioters is INSANE. I hate that places are getting boarded up.

      (And a hoax. ??? I will NEVER understand that.) Gah.

      SO here we go. xxx

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    2. Hank, when I heard that downtowns are getting boarded up is when I made my decision to hold back and not follow blow-by-blow reporting tonight. I am clinging to my belief that our country is better than that, that we have been holding successful, peaceful elections for well over two hundred years and we are not going to sink into anarchy now. If I'm wrong, I will know it soon enough. If I'm right, then why put myself through the angst and anxiety of hearing every little twitch and all the speculation?

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    3. Very good points! So ridiculous that we’re even having to discuss this. Astonishing. Xxxx

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    4. The vast majority of people in the country--no matter what their political leanings--do not want riots and civil war. It makes a good story if you want everybody all riled up, but I'm confident the majority of Americans can keep their heads on a beautiful fall day when everything is working smoothly as is traditional.

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  26. My ballot arrived a while back, I filled it out Sunday and planned to drive to my drop box outside the regional library location in the way to work. But now I'm worried, I signed my normal signature but ballot includes my middle name not initial. My drivers license has my full name too but I signed it with the middle initial. And My signature is a little more sloppy, middle initial not as distinct. Maybe I need to take a longer lunch. I know on thing for sure, I will be very happy to see the end of the campaign ads. They get so nasty.

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    2. maybe, CAREFULLY, vote in person? Or just--DROP IT OFF!

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    3. Dropped it off on the way to work.

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  27. My daughter got me a sticker when she voted, so at least I am not sticker-less! Every election I put my sticker in my weekly planner on the day I voted--my little ritual. I checked online and my ballot was received three days after I mailed it.

    We know Gigi is kicking back with a "comfort" book. What is everyone else doing to get through the day? I'm going for a socially distanced outdoor lunch with my daughter (it's a gorgeous day here in north Texas), then I have a doctor's appointment, so that will take up most of the afternoon. Tonight my hubby has decreed no results watching, because we probably won't know anything, but I suspect I may sneak a look at PBS.

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    1. I'm thinking of getting my state inspection done for my Jeep. Thinking...

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    2. We planted some trees and shrubs and a native wisteria. And watered stuff, and hauled rocks to use as decorative mulch up against the house.

      Now I'm done, and ready to relax!

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  28. Our usual voting location is the local high school, 3 blocks and less than a 5 min walk. It's a neighborhood where masking and distancing are widely observed. We decided to make sure of our ballot by voting in person. Then we found we could vote early, different location, a short car ride, bit of a hike to walk. We tried twice and found lines wrapped all four sides of the large city block, and more! 2-3 hours wait at least. Then we learned seniors could vote in the handicapped line. Third try the charm - about 15 minutes and there we were- voted and stickers to prove it! Everyone cheerful and helpful.That was our voting in 2020.

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  29. Put our mail in ballots in the dropbox because rebel that I am, I refuse to pay to vote. My daughter's ballot in another county came postage paid.

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  30. I voted early in person on 9/22- the 3rd day you could in MN. I was very anxious to get my blue votes in!

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  31. We're away from home, staying with family. Three of us voted by mail, and for the first time
    in Texas were able to track our votes. Ballots were received Oct. 10, and 2 on Oct. 13!

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    1. Don't you love that you can track them? So reaassuring!

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  32. Because I voted by mail in the primary, I received a mail-in ballot. Of course I forgot it and had to go home and get it. Then I found out that the outer envelope they kept talking about was the one the whole thing came in, which I threw away after I opened it. Luckily a poll watcher is my neighbor. I wanted to vote in person partly to see the new machines, and partly because I saw on Facebook that Trump was going to call mail-in votes fake. I'd gladly risk my health to get him out.

    I never gotten a sticker, and some people was posting their voting number on Facebook. Never noticed a number either but the machine showed the checkmark so I guess I'm good.

    I'll be reading and watching DVR'd The Voice tonight. We're not going to know the results for days anyway. Stay safe and well.

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    1. YOu persevered! YAY. And remember, we NEVER know the official results for several days!

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  33. We get stickers in the envelope with our mail in ballot. AZ really has it down!

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    1. Love those stickers. Crossing fingers for you all tonight....

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    2. Jenn, we got the I voted stickers in the mail with our ballots in CA.

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  34. California sent everyone a mail in ballot. I received it on October 5th and returned it at a ballot drop box at our local library. We can track our ballots, mine was received and verified the next day. They use the DMV files and compare your signed ballot to the signature on you driver's license. We received a sticker with our mail in ballot. Also, received a virtual sticker, made to post on FB or other social media. California was organized, and it was easy to vote. We use paper ballots, voting machines for 40 million people is not cost effective, even in Cyber California.

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  35. Voting options in Texas kept changing to the point of distressing local voters over which choice was less likely to void the ballots. In the end, we chose to go in person to the nearest early voting site, which for us was Rice University. Fifteen minutes in and out. Remarkably stress-free.

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