Americans should change the way we vote

[Philosoraptor]

I guess I make a similar post like this every election season, but there are a lot of ways we could improve the way we vote in America, to make voting more efficient and to make more people vote.

One suggestion I've always loved is mandatory voting. I think maybe its Australia that requires all eligible voters to vote, or pay a small penalty for not voting.

Another is allow voting to go on for at least one whole month, instead of just 12 hours in one day in November. We all know how difficult it can be just to get to the polls and vote, taking off work, trudging through snow, etc. Let the whole month of October or November be for voting.

And of course, crack down on voter fraud and cheating, there's always a way for republicans to cheat and lie and steal the election, they're doing it now in fact.

I vote absentee, and it worries me that my vote will be tossed into the trash by some republican asshole. I can't get to the polls, so I vote by mail.

Voting online should be studied too, or by phone. Getting young folks interested in voting is also important, and registering to vote should be made easier somehow. And don't get me started on the Electoral College.

I believe our current voting practices are archaic, from 150 years ago, and to have the same system in 2012 is just ridiculous, and I believe its kept this way to PREVENT AND SUPPRESS voting. We have a 12 hour window for the whole nation to vote? Thats just stupid, and its unfair too.

[hobbit709]

1. And what's the percentage of Australians who'd rather pay the nominal fine?

[Philosoraptor]

2. Not sure

I heard of it years ago, and I heard there's a 50 dollar fine for not voting.

[hobbit709]

4. Interesting numbers here.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voter_turnout

[Laurajr]

3. Sorry don't agree

Everyone vote! Too many people vote in this country who do not have a clue about the issues or any kind of understanding of the consequences. Geesh if anything let's make everyone take a test to see if they have any kind of clue!

[Philosoraptor]

5. How DARE you not agree with me?!?

Some voters go strictly by how a candidate looks, some are indeed too stupid to vote, but overall, I believe you should agree with me without question.

[Laurajr]

12. I'm sure it is the only thing we do not agree on

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

6. Like some sort of literacy test? To make sure they understand the issues?

[Laurajr]

11. Well it is an alternative suggestion

To making 100% vote. Too me requiring everyone to vote is a very bad idea because some people do not care, some people out of resentment with vote contrary to what is best for the country....I just think that is one big can of worms open and spilled.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

20. Here's another alternative....

To make sure that everybody who votes is motivated and really cares about voting, we could charge a small tax at the polls. Not a lot, but enough to make sure that those who are disinterested don't skew the results. I mean, if somebody is willing to pay $5 for a pack of cigarettes that will be gone in a day (or less), why not $5 for the priviledge of voting?

[cherokeeprogressive]

26. "...$5 for the priviledge of voting?"

Shirley, you jest.

[MysticLynx]

24. Are

you all being sarcastic? Might want to look at the history of 'literacy' test - think you will find it filed under Jim Crow

[Skee]

7. It'd help to have actual elections in the USA.

The blackbox, however, is not a ballot.

Secret proprietary central tabulators determine the outcomes of 'elections'.

[surrealAmerican]

14. This is a good point.

For national elections, we need national standards and verifiable tabulation processes. Vote counting should never rely on proprietary software that the public has no chance to review.


Welcome to DU.

[pipoman]

8. And like Cuba..

I once heard a Cuban expat say, 'in Cuba there is 100% voter turn-out, and sometimes more'..

[LovePeacock]

9. They need to make voting day into a paid holiday

where your employer pays you for your day off from work if you can prove that you went out and voted.

If you don't feel like voting, and you don't feel like getting paid, fine. You still get the day off, you just don't get paid for it.

[davidpdx]

17. In South Korea election days are holidays

That doesn't necessarily get people to vote. My wife says many of the young people blow it off to go on a picnic or something which I find insane.

When I taught university here in Korea a few years ago I would always remind my students to vote.

The South Korean Presidential election is December 19th, 6 weeks after the US election.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

10. I wouldn't go for mandatory voting...

This is still a free(ish) country.

But just for starters, let's look at having elections take place over the course of an entire three-day weekend in September. Start voting on Friday morning and have voting end at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. Allow a thirty day window for early voting, absentee, and mail-in voting.

With regard to ballot security, eliminate any method of electronic voting that does not include a verifiable paper trail (i.e., we still have the original ballot in the event of a recount). In return, for the conservatives, personal identification should be required at the polling place, but states have to provide that free of charge to any person who doesn't otherwise have a drivers license of state identification.

[Selatius]

13. I favor electronic voting with a paper trail only with an automatic, mandatory random audit.

The voter should be able to see a printed copy of their vote before leaving the booth to verify their answer. Also, an audit can ensure that computers aren't inventing citizens or recording votes of dead people. That's why there should be an audit on top of a paper trail. It ensures a correct tally of the will of the people and, just as importantly, ensures nobody is attempting a high tech version of ballot stuffing.

[Jeff In Milwaukee]

19. I agree...

I really, really, REALLY don't like electronic voting in any form. But I suppose there's not stopping it. So voting machines need to have rigorous, non-partisan and bi-partisan inspections and audits.

[JaneyVee]

15. Should be a holiday, at least.

[surrealAmerican]

16. It may not require mandatory voting, but ...

... we need to get a handle on the states disinfranchising groups of voters they find inconvenient. Former criminals, homeless people, students, etc. need to have the same voting rights as any other citizens.

[davidpdx]

18. I don't agree with mandatory voting

You can't force someone to do something that they should want to do. If they are ignorant enough to decide they don't want to vote, then it's their loss.

Having election day as a holiday is not a bad idea. I think we should do that for the presidential and mid-term elections. That would only be once every two years.

Weekend voting is another good idea.

In Oregon we have vote by mail for all of our elections. As an overseas voter I vote by email.

The truth is in a few states we have decent systems. It's the other ones that need help!

[PADemD]

21. Agree with everything you wrote, but there should be medical exemptions:

Coma or other incapacity, such as Alzheimers.

[Overseas]

22. Paper ballots and non-partisan election procedures.

[HopeHoops]

23. Yes, voting has been mandatory in Australia for over 20 years.

[slackmaster]

25. I strongly oppose mandatory voting because half of the voters are dumber than average

And average intelligence isn't very bright.

[randr]

27. If we can accurately account for every cent spent every minute

we can certainly count the vote without any problem. Outside of registration logistics and , as you point out, an incentive program our biggest problem is not being able to accurately count every vote that IS made.
The fact that our election system can not compete accurately with out accounting systems is an indictment and needs to be addressed.