I Voted! When will you vote?

[ab_grp]

Well, we just put our ballots in the mail.  It only took watching the state Secretary of State's how-to video 23 more times and practicing signing my name 148 times.  I'll keep an eye on the tracker, but they should be on their way.  If only voting would stop all the election-related mail keeps flooding in.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Both of our ballots have been accepted!

[lillipat]

Early in-person voting yesterday afternoon.  Took less than an hour (literally 1 minute less) all told, from the time I got in the socially-distanced line that stretched almost entirely around the large block of buildings, until I had exited after completing the process.  Frequent contacts with election officials making sure everyone was masked and separated, and with someone walking around with a placard about what to do if anyone experienced voting difficulties.  Freshly sanitized stylus upon entering the building, and plenty of polling place volunteers. 

And I had unknowingly managed to park near the door where everyone exited the building!  Really much better than the election (2000 or 2004, I don't remember) where I stood in line in the rain for over 4 hours, along with all my neighbors.

[ab_grp]

Despite our concerns about mail slowness, the ballots we mailed Monday afternoon were received Tuesday.  The tracker doesn't say whether they were accepted, and I'm not sure if that will be updated, but I will keep an eye on it.

[mamselle]

I've been getting the sense, from the fact that our mail has only been as slow as usual--and no slower--that our local P.O. has more or less ignored or somehow been sheltered from a lot of the nonsense that we've been hearing about elsewhere.

Kudos to whomever is managing that, they already have to contend with a wacky setup in which a locally-mailed object travels from here to the main, nearby, larger town, then is sent by overnight rail to the sorting station in the center of the state, then returned two days later to the local P.O. for delivery.

Friends who live near that sorting station can mail me something and it arrives in a day or two. Anyone else, it takes a week.

Thankfully, nothing is taking any longer, so I think we're good.

But I do worry about those who are not as well-insulated from the Kool-Aid drinkers....

M.

[ab_grp]

We have a similar mail-routing process, which is why I was surprised our ballots arrived so quickly.  Our nearest PO is just about a mile away, the clerk's office is about a mile beyond that, and the main routing PO is many more miles away.  Spouse was going to drive all the way out to the main one to try to ensure faster delivery, but we ended up just putting it in the outside collection box at our nearby PO and hoping for the best since we were mailing it before the mail deadline.  Some around here have complained about the mail service, but we have been and continue to be pleased with it.  I'm glad to be able to avoid going to vote in person given the attitudes around here.

[jimbogumbo]

Just did. Straight ticket first time in my life, and I've voted in all Congressional elections since 1972.

[hmaria1609]

Someone dropped off their ballot in our book drop yesterday. Must've missed the official ballot drop box!

[mamselle]

My ballot box is right beside the branch library at the 3nd of my dtreet, and that branch has also at times been a polling place.

So it wouldn't surprise me if they get a few errant envelopes as well...

M.

[lightning]

I'm guessing that the type of person that deposits their ballot into a library's book drop, is the same type of person that has not used a library enough to know about book drops. I can probably guess which candidate lost a vote because their supporter was too dumb to know the difference.

[mamselle]

Now, now.....

People of good will, and all that.

The post on another thread I just read comes to mind.

We all need to extend grace and forgiveness, even to those we profoundly disagree with.

(As I will strive to recall when I have a shared online mealtime discussion with my two very-differently politically inclined siblings next week).

M.

[lightning]

Now, now.....

People of good will, and all that.

The post on another thread I just read comes to mind.

We all need to extend grace and forgiveness, even to those we profoundly disagree with.

(As I will strive to recall when I have a shared online mealtime discussion with my two very-differently politically inclined siblings next week).

M.

You are correct. Being clueless about public libraries doesn't mean someone is dumb. But one candidate did not want to continue federal funding for public libraries, and he was lauded for it by his base. I'm guessing his base doesn't care if there are federally-funded public library programs or not. And they are probably the same people that can't tell the difference between a library's book drop and a ballot box. If their vote is lost because of that, they deserve it.

[arcturus]

I voted today. Cold, but clear skies. No lines. A total of a few minutes to check in and vote.

[Langue_doc]

Just voted--rather, dropped off my absentee ballot.

[Hibush]

I voted today. Cold, but clear skies. No lines. A total of a few minutes to check in and vote.

I voted at dawn. No lines, but busy. Took under 5 minutes as usual.

About twice as many people had voted there by then as in a typical election year. This volume despite more voters than usual took advantage of early voting or absentee voting.