Let the voting begin?

[Rogar]

Yesterday I notice the ballot drop boxes in my neighborhood park and today I got my ballot in the mail. The voting method is so easy it's a wonder why others don't follow. I can remember the in the older times standing in line in a freezing blizzard.

The regional Dem vs. GOP is pretty much following the national leaders, so not much there for me to think about, however there are a couple of interesting items.

One is to ban the hunting of mountain lions and I think also the hunting or trapping of bobcats. For some reason it's had a lot of TV ad time. The lions are typically hunted with a guide and dogs. After maybe some sort of chase, the dogs tree the lion and the hunter shoots it. It's illegal to waste game meat and the early pioneers seemed to like cooked mountain lion, but in reality most of the lions are taken for some sort of trophy mount and that's it. So some would say, unethical. The other said says that with hunting the population is self sustaining at about 4,000 in the state and keeps the deer populations from overpopulating their ranges and getting diseases. There are places where the lions have gotten used to people being around without harm and occasional attacks. Hunting is done by permit and only a limited number of permits are issued. I'll vote against the ban for a few reasons, but mainly figure it's the biologists who who be deciding rather than a popular vote.

The other is for ranked choice voting. That will be more difficult to decide and I've not yet studied the proposition. Initial thought is that if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

[Tybee]

We are on the same page, Rogar. I sent my ballot in today--I had ordered it online and it came from the town clerk, and came with an envelope to send it back to the town clerk, official.

We already have ranked choice voting so I voted one and two for president and just one for our senator who is an independent. Some things I voted for only had one name. Write in lines were available but I did not use them.

We had an interesting referendum, too-- a vote to replace the state flag that was adopted in 1909 with the original Pine Tree flag. I decided to vote yes for the pine tree flag as it was the original and it is more striking than the 1909 flag, which is kind of confusing and busy in design.

[iris lilies]

We have several amendments on our ballot. A couple of them are about allowing more gambling which I am fine with. In past years I have usually voted NO on amendments because I think it is is poor way to legislate even if I am vaguely in favor of the Amendment, but I may join the crowds who vote on content.

We also have an amendment about ranked choice voting. I will likely vote in favor. The City of St. Louis has had ranked choice in its municipal elections for a couple of years. Our amendment even if voted down will not overturn this city methodology.

Our big amendment is about “reproductive freedom” largely about abortion but including lots of other words. It will allow abortion up to fetal age of viability with exceptions later for dangers to life and physical/mental health of mother. I do not like at all there being no option to abort severely compromised fetuses after viability, but this is what we have. One yard sign implied this amendment controlled sex reassignment surgery but there is no explicit language in the amendment about that. I suppose that would be determined in court.

I will vote in person. As God intended. Haha, kidding!

[Alan]

I will vote in person.
Me too! I don't approve of early, mail-in voting absent extraordinary circumstances. I've never done it outside of one absentee ballot cast due to being in Europe on Election Day 24 years ago.

[pinkytoe]

Back in Austin, we had to stand in line at the funeral home for an hour or more to vote. I love that in Colorado I can drop my ballot in a box at the library or mail it in.

[jp1]

As someone who travels for work, often with only maybe a week’s notice, I love mail in voting. I imagine that people who can’t take time off work easily or without losing pay also love it. My ballot arrived a few days ago. I will be voting tomorrow before I go out of town for work Monday - Friday. My choices aren’t going to change so I may as well get it done. I’ll get an email confirming receipt a day or two after I drop it off.

Regarding ranked choice voting I’m of mixed opinions. California does it. It’s how San Francisco ended up with Chesa Boidin as DA a few years ago. He was my third choice and I think my vote ended up going to him because of ranked choice. If ranked choice forced only a second round of voting it would be identical to having a regular runoff but without the cost and hassle. I think I would prefer that. If I understand correctly California’s system only kicks out the least popular person. Then another round occurs and again the least popular person gets kicked off. But instead of only the top two from the initial election having a chance to win if there are six candidates five are still eligible to win. Then four in the next round and so on. If ranked choice only allowed votes for either of the top two from the initial election it’d be identical to a regular runoff. But by keeping everyone but the lowest vote getter in each subsequent round you end up with Chesa Boudon as DA.

[Tybee]

As someone who has had a disability and at times been unable to get to the polls due to breathing issues, I like to know I can cast a vote without worrying about will I be too sick to go.

[Tradd]

With my bad knees from osteoarthritis, I’d have massive problems with the long walk through the local high school to the gym to vote. Even the early voting at the town hall would be too much. I rarely grocery shop in person. So damned right I vote by mail. Cook County even pays for postage. I get an email when ballot is on the way and another when it’s been received.

Dropped mine at the PO today. The only in person drop box is downtown Chicago.

[catherine]

I'll be voting in person. The town hall is only a mile and half away and the population is small enough there is a minimal wait time.. I could mail my ballot in but I like to watch it go into the machine. And I like buying the baked goods the libary ladies sell.

[iris lilies]

After several years, DH is going to work the polls again. He stopped during Covid. It will be interesting to see how operate out here in small town rural land compared to in the big city.

[Tybee]

That's great that he is going back to the polls in person! I will go with my husband when he votes, so I will get the local experience, without the anxiety of will I be too sick that day to vote. Our polling place is our town hall and our town has 275 people, so...

[LDAHL]

I’m voting in person. I like the ritual. While my choices at the top of the ballot are limited to a bag of wind, an empty suit and some hopeless fringers, I believe most of the important decisions in government are made at much lower levels. I’m happy to rely on the genius of the American federalist system as a safeguard against the various hysterical predictions of national destruction from a single vote.

[littlebittybobby]

okay----Ol'(and I mean OLD) Jimmah Cahtah voted early by mail-in, 'case he don't make it ta the 'lection. The Media didn't say, nor did Jimmah's spokeperson say who in particular who he voted FOR. That leads me to believe maybe he went with a third-party candy-date for POTUS. Thank mee.

[catherine]

okay----Ol'(and I mean OLD) Jimmah Cahtah voted early by mail-in, 'case he don't make it ta the 'lection. The Media didn't say, nor did Jimmah's spokeperson say who in particular who he voted FOR. That leads me to believe maybe he went with a third-party candy-date for POTUS. Thank mee.

His grandson said that his grandfather was voting for Kamala.

[jp1]

okay----Ol'(and I mean OLD) Jimmah Cahtah voted early by mail-in, 'case he don't make it ta the 'lection. The Media didn't say, nor did Jimmah's spokeperson say who in particular who he voted FOR. That leads me to believe maybe he went with a third-party candy-date for POTUS. Thank mee.

With that much delusion you’re ready to be the next maga presidential candidate.

[jp1]

Since I and all four of my direct reports are 100% remote I have biweekly half hour "catch up" calls with them. It gives me a chance to address any concerns or overarching team issues that need to be discussed and for them a chance to bring up any problems they've been having so that we can fix things before they turn into a "big problem". Some of the time we just have a random conversation like people might have at the proverbial water cooler if we were in an office together. Today I had one of these calls with a late-20's woman who recently became a US citizen. She was born in Fiji, her parents are Indian and she's lived in California since she was a little kid in elementary school. She mentioned how excited she was to be voting for the first time ever but that she'd received her ballot and threw it away, thinking it was just more campaign junk mail so she now has to go in person either this weekend or on tuesday to vote at an actual in person polling place. We have nonstop meetings with insurance brokers planned tuesday from 9 am on, so she's going to go at 7 when the polling place at the elementary school across from her apartment opens that day.

I mentioned that I've voted early since moving to California but used to always vote in person when I lived in NYC since that was the only option, and that I actually really enjoyed it. I'd always go early in the day because there was never a line, and it was only a block from my apartment so not a difficult thing to do since I didn't travel much at that point in my life. And then I mentioned that I also really liked the old school voting machines because, unlike today's ballots where you fill in dots like a standardized test, the experience was very visceral. She had no clue what I was talking about so I found a picture online of one of those massive old school clunky gray voting machines, shared it with her on our Microsoft Teams call and then described the experience of how you go into the booth, pull the big lever to the right with a resounding "CLUNK", cast your vote, and then pull the lever to the left with another resounding "CLUNK" and leave. Her first question was "what if you change your mind?" And I responded "you needed to do that before you pulled the lever back to the left. Once you moved the lever left your decision was over. No going back at that point." It was an interesting reminder that the younger folks today really don't know what life was like when the world was completely analog.

[Tradd]

Jp, I remember those voting machines from growing up in Michigan. Only used them a few times. Moved to Chicago in 1996 and they were paper ballots here.

[jp1]

Jp, I remember those voting machines from growing up in Michigan. Only used them a few times. Moved to Chicago in 1996 and they were paper ballots here.

The last time I used one was on 9/18/01. The nyc mayoral election was on 9/11 but got postponed a week because ‘stuff happened’. I’d already voted before ‘stuff happened’ so I voted two times in that election. (But it was only counted once of course…)