Maybe there is not going to be any state using chads, but if you are an American it is not just your right, but
Your OBLIGATION to
VOTE
Both Holly Hart and I already did.
shalimar
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Comments
Agreed.
Agreed, I was about to post something about this myself. Well, I'm going to head out so I can cast my own ballot.
Have a delightfully devious day,
Been there....
Done that too! Just wish I didn't have to vote for the lesser of to evils, I just once would like to feel good about who I voted for... (sigh!) (Hugs) Taarpa
I'm voting third-party simply
I'm voting third-party simply because I DON'T want to vote for the lesser of two evils. I just wish that we could get rid of the two-party system and have more choices.
Samirah M. Johnstone
Chad?
I'm not American so maybe I'm just missing a U.S.-centric thing, but what is a "chad?"
It's a tool
Used by Florida politicians to screw up elections! ;-)
“When a clown moves into a palace, he doesn’t become a king. The palace becomes a circus.” - Turkish Proverb
chad explained
What Karen said, but also this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chad_%28paper%29
Have a delightfully devious day,
Home of the Chad
I live and vote (did so this morning) in the home of Chad, Broward County (Ft. Lauderdale area) Florida. Palm Beach, was the home of the butterfly ballot.
Actually, I found voting using the IBM punch card/chad to be easier and quicker then the bubble in method. All it took to make sure you voted okay, was to turn the card over, and see that all your punches went through. Saw daylight. The chad fiasco was just a way to try and get votes for a candidate through ridiculous machinations.
RAMI
RAMI
Voted Last Week
No remorse.
Portia
Not an American but there are
Not an American but there are times when I feel there should be a 'None Of The Above' option on the voting slips. It would give people the option to vote without feeling that they are being forced to vote for someone they don't want.
That's...
That's what the "write-in" column is for here in the US. ;)
Have a delightfully devious day,
Does it carry a value equal
Does it carry a value equal to a vote or is it regarded as an abstention and not counted? In a truly democratic country giving it an equal value would allow unhappy voters to have an effective part in the election.
It's counted
It's counted, but in the end it's the electoral college that decides who wins the election not the popular vote. It's complicated and difficult to explain, but this explains it.
Oh, and the US is a Republic not a Democracy, people tend to confuse the two, but there's a big difference.
Have a delightfully devious day,
Democratic Republic
You could say that the US is, in a way, a Democratic Republic. I don't believe there is a true Democracy anywhere in the world, at least not according to the original definition. Most countries are what you could call a representative democracy, which is the closest viable alternative to a true Democracy. The US is in essence a representative democracy I believe.
Ah well, here we get into a discussion about definitions in a way. I like this quote from Wikipedia actually:
"A democratic government contrasts to forms of government where power is either held by one, as in a monarchy, or where power is held by a small number of individuals, as in an oligarchy or aristocracy. Nevertheless, these oppositions, inherited from Greek philosophy, are now ambiguous because contemporary governments have mixed democratic, oligarchic, and monarchic elements."
Many states do not allow a
Many states do not allow a write-in option. The state I occupy is one that declares a ballot invalid if you do that. It is counted by electronic scan, and write in votes kick it out and your vote for anything is not counted. Don't see it changing any time soon due to the investment by the existing political parties. I would be happy with just a none of the above choice for the entire ballot, myself.
On the other hand I did vote. I feel it validates my right to complain about everything the next few years.
CaroL
CaroL
Oh right.,..
How could I neglect to mention that? ^_^
Have a delightfully devious day,
In Illinois "Write In"
In Illinois "Write In" candidates have to register. If they haven't registered votes for them do not count.
The hanging CHAD
google the 2,000 election in Florida . The vote was so close they did a recount and a CHAD is the little pcs of paper that was poked out for the card reader to identify who you voted for some people did not poke all the way thru the pcs of the card . The hanging CHAD was born
I hope I have answered your question
Not just the President
I've just found out (courtesy of the Beeb) that in addition to voting for the President and some seats in Congress, there are also 174 different ballot questions being asked in total - nothing like killing multiple birds with one stone!
For example (and of significance to many here), voters in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota and Washington will vote in some form on gay marriage...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20143047
As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!
VOTE! VOTE! VOTE!
I agree with everything said previously in this thread, including the questions about "Chad". The only dumb question is the one never asked.
We live all over the United States, and there are many variations in the ballots, many times even with a city, county or parish.
The important thing is to VOTE! If you are unsure, remember, most of the offices are multiple choice, and I was taught that in Multiple choice questions, to go for your first inclination AFTER reading the choices. In a test situation, that is often the right answer.
In the case of VOTING, you have made an honest, heartfelt decision, and that is what wins (or loses) elections. At least you have expressed yourself, so GET OUT AND VOTE, for crying out loud! You have nothing to complain about if you didn't vote today.
Don't let someone else talk you out of your dreams. How can we have dreams come true, if we have no dreams?
Katrina Gayle "Stormy" Storm
Voting for a 3d party or none of the above is a waste of time
when the third party doesn't stand the ghost of a chance, especially with the electoral college that does not even allow the candidate with the most votes to win the election, it is merely a wasted protest vote.
Ditto for 'NONE OF THE ABOVE,' unless 'none of the above' prevents anyone from getting more than 50&+1 votes, ( or electoral votes ) in any other election.
And even with the electoral college not part of most candidate spots, unless the third party has a decent chance, it is still just a protest vote as only the two top vote getting candidates will, (in most jurisdictions), be involved in a run-off election, even when the third best vote-getting candidates are only a few votes, or even one vote short of second.
That is why most of the time, at the presidential and top state and national elections, find myself voting for the lesser of two evils, just to do my best not to allow the worst of the two evils in.
One of the strangest things I've seen lately is where only the two top vote getters in a Primary, (preliminary for those not used to the US system), face each other in the final election. This has led to two candidates from the same party facing each other in the final election. This has happened in several places in this year's election where in the every ten year redistricting, two candidates who were popular incumbents in different districts now find themselves in the same district. It has been in effect several places at lower levels, but this year it became California law for all statewide, and I believe, national level elections. This, even more, prevents write-in, None of the above, and 3rd party candidates from even being voted for in the final election.
Holly
It's nice to be important, but it's more important to be nice.
Holly
Been there done that.
Got my sticker on my coat letting people know I am an American and proud of my right to vote. This may be close but I will not give up on our Democracy and the Republicans can take that to the bank.
Michele
With those with open eyes the world reads like a book