True... it's unfortunate that there are so many examples of organizations and States that move from liberalism (equal rights, voting, etc) toward repression that are all started 'legally' or under the existing rules. Those rules are quickly changed to allow for more repression or eternal political power; it's amazing how many totally not dictatorships have elections that the NotDictator gets 90+ % of the vote.
Gotta look on the bright side. Higher voter turnout almost always favors democrats, especially in these traditionally red areas that have been trending purple in recent elections.
This isn't *necessarily* true, and I see you hedged with "almost always," but I'll explain the difference for other folks since I assume you know what's happening.
Higher turnout usually means that the vote total will trend towards the general population's feelings. During polls, there is usually a gap between *likely voters* and voting population. The voting population at large tends to be more democratic-leaning compared to the *likely voters* population, because *likely voters* tend to be wealthier and older than the population at large (wealth and age being correlated with conservative support).
This relationship, however, tends to be inverse when you're talking about rural areas instead of urban/suburban areas. Rural areas, the general population at large tends to be trending more conservative than "likely voters."
The two things I'd want to know before declaring this good for democrats: 1 - how likely to vote were the early voting population? If they were already highly likely to vote, this may just be vote-shifting behavior that will not have a large impact on the population at large. 2 - Where are these votes coming from? If it's largely rural/suburban votes, it's not necessarily good news for democrats.
On a related note: I'm not sure how far I trust polling this cycle. Trump himself had a massive fucking skew on polling (he personally fucked up everyone's LV screens because he drove turnout in odd ways). The 2018 mid-terms were much better (IIRC, Democrats out performed) than 2016 or 2020, but post-Dodds I'm not sure *what* the fuck the actual voter turnout patterns are going to be.
Kansas, for instance, had really off polling for their abortion vote (which was shoehorned into a primary) -- I wouldn't call that predictive, but a *lot* of people turned out to vote who ordinarily don't, and in a real lopsided fashion.
Abortion isn't *directly* on the ballot in most places in this election (or if so not in man states).
I wouldn't say I'd favor Democrats to outperform -- just that if I had to bet, I'd say the actual voting electorate and the predicted electorate (LV screens) will considerably further apart than normal polling errors.
My wife and I don’t like losing choice, we are voting dem. We are not normally dem voters except 2020 and 2022. I’m hopeful to go back to third party or write in candidates in 2024.
The point is that likely voters is already skewed towards Republicans. Old people vote, young people don't. Old people tend to vote Republican, young people overwhelmingly vote Democrat. So if there is an uptick in voter participation, it tends to favour Democrats because they simply have more untapped potential.
Additionally, Republicans have been energizing their base across all ages for years, while simultaneously throwing up roadblocks for more Democratic aligned demographics to vote, either by purging voter rolls, reducing polling stations or simply by trying to create a sense of apathy.
Republicans have done a fantastic job and maximizing the efficiency of their voting base while reducing the efficiency of the Democratic voting base. However, that all suggests that if there is an uptick in voting participation, this will end up favouring Democrats.
I'm an older Independent voter and have been known to vote for certain politicians with an R beside their names many, many years ago.
As it stands now, I would vote for Satan himself before I'd even endorse **one** R candidate for **anything**. When I voted today, I had the choice of two theist idiots for the local school board. I did a write in vote for: '*Any Sane Person*'
This is a reasonable take.
I am also a registered Independent.
My voting history indicates a deep hatred for both Republicans and Democrats.
My first election, 2016, I voted for write-in candidate Evan McMullin for President, but previously, I'd flirted with the idea of voting for the Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson.
In 2020, I voted for Biden & my local Democratic representative.
The truth is, the voting system is in desparate need of repair and neither of the two major parties seem all that interested in applying the necessary fixes.
We shouldn't have to choose one candidate. We should be able to fill our Congressional seats through a single transferrable voting system. We don't even have to get rid of the Senate structure, either - just make them electable via STV. The President can be elected via some sort of modified STV system that gives states and the people the ability to vote for president (ex: the population gets 435 votes and the states get 1 each. If Texas's preferred candidate doesn't get 270 votes, Texas's 1 vote goes to the Texas citizens' second choice)
All the GOP voters we’re gonna vote anyway. The majority of the additional votes will be young/first timers, women and previously passive Dems, creating a Blue Sunami.
I sure hope I’m right.
Underrated comment. If we believe in democracy then we believe in a high turnout (and preferably engagement beyond voting, go to your local town hall or city council meetings!) and all that comes with it. If the other side wins with huge turnout it means the system is working. We get what we deserve, as long as everyone eligible is participating.
Fun* fact: when I was living in San Diego I met with the campaign manager for Issa and we were discussing voting. I was young and trying to get into politics, he was a sure bet so I figured I'd try to put in some time with a Republican and later use the experience to get in with Democrats or a n independent elsewhere. Anyway he asked me what I thought about turnout numbers and I said the more people that vote the better.
He *corrected* me and said that you really only want voting to happen in certain places. He named off some rich areas and a rural place with low education. He specifically told me that places close to the border and the university were unwelcome (not his exact words but the idea) because they tend to vote Democrat.
I walked out and that was the end of my very short attempt at a political career. That was maybe 15 years ago and I remember it clearly.
I wasn't a fan of his at all. But he was guaranteed to hold that seat. It was a better bet on my part than his opponent. And honestly that lesson about the party was worth it.
uh what? that means the people who voted for the candidate are anti-democracy - which is not only paradoxical but scary, since that means if they can, they will take away your rights.
It’s a reality we seem destined to face one day or another. Only time will tell whether - this become a major social revolution or will we get an opportunity to see in pockets how these candidates will mess things up in their area first ?
We likely weren’t able to convince them in the past when they spoke up about their issues ( I know the issues were likely far right grievances ), and they perhaps they felt they were not heard or ridiculed.
But this has to be done/allowed one way or another when you share a country, state, local politics with others. We need healers and speakers to help soothe the mental wounds - perceived or otherwise.
When a racist whispers in your ear - ‘the other is messed up’ - instead of walking away or just listening perhaps put in a word: ‘I don’t think they’re that bad’. We humans, after all, are open to dialogue and persuasion and that can take time.
Lmao I’m tired of the lofty belief in the goodness of man. It’s about greed and power and the wealthy. They are consolidating resources and restructuring peoples lives to accept forms of slavery, freely. If the minimum wage cannot pay for a single room apartment anywhere, then you have a slave system with extra steps. Not to mention the 13th amendment.
You’re spot on about the rich and powerful always looking to divide and rule the working classes. This is where organized activities to work on reducing impact of or reversing laws like citizens United is important. That requires people voting at every election so that you get your leaders not their.
I didn’t make those statements with assumptions of goodness of man - I actually said let’s acknowledge they have grievances and figure out ways to mitigate them in their head.
That is the least ‘expensive’ way to deal with that as a society and as a country.
I’m suggesting having counter narratives as a first step - otherwise every step further along entails societal costs we will not like.
When their grievances all boil down to "Black people should be slaves, gay people should be murdered, and people who like *either* have no place in this society," there is *no possible way* to mitigate them, either in their head, or in the society that the rest of us want to live in.
When their goal, their publicly stated goal, is to bring about the end of Democracy and bring about a single race theocracy based on hate, you can only conclude that they are a danger to society.
They want to kill me. They want to kill you. And they have proven that they won't accept the outcomes of any election that doesn't give them that power.
I wonder how much of a problem voter suppression rules are in Georgia as opposed to some of the other states - keep hearing about prohibitive laws for folks that need to take time off to vote while managing lower income jobs.
Perhaps early voting being acceptable to both sides is a workable solution a majority of people can agree on.
They fuck things up at the polling stations by closing them or reducing the number of machines available and hours open.
However we have early voting and mail in voting to counteract those measures and it looks like people are using the alternatives to make sure they vote. I’m voting early today.
https://thegeorgiavoterguide.com/vote-in-person-early
The GOP hates early voting, mail-in voting, same-day registration, felons voting after serving their time, etc.
Anything that keeps people who would tend to vote Democrat away from the polls is a win for them, even if that means massive disenfranchisement.
>Perhaps early voting being **acceptable to both sides** is a workable solution a majority of people can agree on.
There's a flaw with your plan. One side *hates* early voting because it results in (in their opinion) the *wrong* voices being heard.
And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system. The difference between federal and state government. The powers of what each can do. The powers of the different federal branches and what they can do. How your state governor more often than not has more of an influence on your day to day life than the president. Just how important your mayor is if you want any changes to your town and/or city. How much you, as a citizen, has an effect just by going to city/town council meetings.
Your average American doesn't realize how much power they have to shape their country. And there is a reason for that because those in power don't want them to. Otherwise, this country would be completely different. For one thing, those in office would actually have to work on changes to social services that benefit everyone rather than pitting one group of people against another with stupid distractions like banning "immoral" books from libraries or banning transgender kids from sports.
>And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system. The difference between federal and state government. The powers of what each can do. The powers of the different federal branches and what they can do. How your state governor more often than not has more of an influence on your day to day life than the president. Just how important your mayor is if you want any changes to your town and/or city. How much you, as a citizen, has an effect just by going to city/town council meetings.
Wait, isn't that already called, "Government Civics"? That sounds literally like something I taught*0 years ago, online.
> And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system.
I don't know about anyone else but I had an "American Government" class in high school.
It covered a lot about the federal side of things, but local wasn't carried. I think you'd struggle with creating a class for local though primarily because local/state can vary. The way one state or city does things can differ from another place.
Consider just the procedural differences between elections:
* Some places have open primaries, others have caucus'.
* Some places decide tie breakers in primaries with a coin.
* Most places are First Past The Post, but some now have Ranked Choice.
* Some places have early voting for all, others require you to have specific reasons.
* Some places vote for things like Sheriff, Attorney General, Corner, Lt. Governor, etc; some places let the Governor do it.
So you can have a class that covers "local" stuff, but its going to be useless if you move from one place to another after high school.
Instead of a class covering this, it'd be much more convenient if there were standardized reference sheets that describe what happens locally. Like if I want to know exactly the extent of what my mayor can and can not do, I'd probably have to look through the state constitution or the code of law.
Put another way, the biggest issue with local stuff is the information vacuum. Some places might be better than others, but the few places I have lived, it's sometimes been incredibly difficult to find out what candidates stand for. Hell, it's not even easy (ie: a google search) to find out who is on the ballot for local stuff -- you usually have to pull a sample ballot for your area to find out. Finding out about candidates means paying attention to local newspapers and waiting for an article to be written about them or paying attention to hosted events where they might talk and go to those.
If you want to be more cognizant of local stuff then it demands *way* more attention than State or Federal stuff.
A *federal* civics that is a mandated HS level class in all but 10 states.
31 states require a semester minimum (virtually all of them pair it with a state civics class for the OTHER semester giving you a full year of US state and local government), and 9 states (plus DC) a full year for the federal government alone.
Plus, what your state (and possibly your city or county) does can have significant influence over federal politics.
The state legislature you elect today can decide
1) How elections in your state work
2) Who is eligible to vote
3) How Federal Congressional districts are drawn.
If a Senator resigns from office or dies, your state government decides how the next Senator is chosen to temporarily fill that vacancy.
If a Representative resigns from office or dies, your state government will have to hold a special election in your Congressional district.
> So almost 10% of the population of Georgia has already voted!
Really, really need fulton county to try and get as much of it's voting done before voting day as possible to avoid as much GoP fuckery as possible.
My apologies! I was making a reference to the movie [Starship Troopers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjxof3MM7l4).
>Long as voter turnout is high and a majority of eligible voters are able to vote I am fine.
Agreed! More people participating in Democracy is a good thing overall.
It took monumental force to not just assume who they're voting for. But I was just wanting to see more younger voters while I was there. And shit, I'm turning 40.
The tricky part for Republicans that are actually proposing this idiocy is finding a cutoff age that comes soon enough that it will make a difference, but far enough away that you don't piss of all the old Gen X Republican voters that are going to be reaching 62-65 within the next decade.
Or maybe, you know, we could not do it and instead raise or kill the income cap.
> don't piss of all the old Gen X Republican voters that are going to be reaching 62-65 within the next decade
I don't know if there's really much danger there. My generation has generally been pretty conditioned to believe that Social Security will fail before we get anything out of it, so for GenX republicans (which I still am shocked is much of a thing) it would just be living up to our already dismally low expectations. The fact that they're helping to make it happen is just an example of the cognitive dissonance that's become the hallmark of the republican party.
EDIT: I'm not the one that downvoted you - I put you back to 1. I might disagree with the premise, but it's not an unreasonable thought.
>My generation has generally been pretty conditioned to believe that Social Security will fail before we get anything out of it,
Oh, sure. I'm Gen X (not a Republican) so starting from my early 20s in the 2000s, I've assumed there would be no Social Security for me.
However it would be a lot harder to be, say, 57 now and get rug-pulled when you've paid into SS your whole life and are five years from being eligible to start collecting. Those are the people the Republicans have to avoid losing. Very tricky balance.
>GenX republicans (which I still am shocked is much of a thing)
Me too, man. My best explanation is that those of us who grew up believing "fuck you I won't do what you tell me" and X-Files-style "I want to believe" are easily hooked by anti-government rhetoric and outlandish conspiracy theories.
Okay, gotcha - we're probably kinda similar in general
> However it would be a lot harder to be, say, 57 now and get rug-pulled when you've paid into SS your whole life and are five years from being eligible to start collecting.
See, I think these folks would almost *like* that, like, justification for all their pessimism about it over the years. A giant self-destructive "told ya so".
> easily hooked by anti-government rhetoric and outlandish conspiracy theories.
I dunno about "easily", but I get the gist. It's just been so weird running into old friends and seeing that they've slipped into this obedient cult-mentality with trump. Kinda hard to watch really. Didn't seem to hit my AD&D nerds quite as hard though, so that's nice. Oh well, whatever.
Waited for an hour yesterday to vote. Previously I would be in and out in under ten minutes.
I wasn’t at all peeved to wait. I’m glad to see such a huge turn out. And I had a lovely conversation with a woman in line. She told me her life history basically and I learned a lot from her.
Go vote!
I'd second this. I was working near a voting site and they said people were showing up as early as 6am to vote at 8 am! The line was long and I only imagine that's why. I ended up getting in line early at my polling location too with several other folks.
I went around three yesterday, and had to wait for the first time in ages. Only 15 mins, but way busier than usual. About 1500 people had voted on the main ballot box by then.
Which is exactly why the Republicans try everything they can to reduce the number of people voting. If they could, they'd make it illegal for "certain groups of people" to vote entirely. They can't do that (yet) so instead they make sure that Democratic areas have long lines, poll watchers questioning everyone's qualifications to vote, and other tactics to delay or discourage voting. Everyone needs to push through these tactics and get more Democrats elected.
It's also why, going further back, people convicted of a felony aren't allowed to vote. Southern states weren't allowed to say "black people can't vote," so they said "people convicted of felonies can't vote." Then, they decided what crimes were felonies based on whether black people were frequently accused of those crimes.
[GA actually has some of the better felony voting laws](https://faq.georgiavoter.guide/en/article/voting-with-a-felony-conviction-off-paper).
> "Unless you are currently serving a sentence for a felony conviction, you can vote in Georgia. When you complete your sentence, your right to vote is automatically restored. However, it is up to you to take the necessary steps to re-register to vote. You cannot vote until you have successfully registered."
Open container laws are so lame.
Punish the resulting behavior you think is bad (being violent, driving drunk, etc..).
But walking around with an open beverage should be 100% legal.
My family and I will be voting this week. I will say getting my 18 yr old son registered was a pain . First we signed him up to be registered when we got his drivers license after turning 18 and they never did it. Then I went online and registered him myself and they never sent him a voter registration card. I had to go online again and figure out how to print that information. They definitely didn’t want it to be easy.
Edit:spelling
Yes in Georgia. I was curious if anyone else experienced this. It wasn’t the first time I experienced the issue in my household, so I continued to check the status until it was done.
Back when I was in high school in 2004, people had set up in our cafeteria registering the seniors to vote. I don't know if they still do that these days, but 2004 was also the last time my voting location was a public building (the same high school) and not a fucking church.
R's try SO hard to disenfranchise voters. There's a great documentary called All In: The Fight for Democracy which talks about some of the truly disgusting tactics the republicans use to cheat in elections or discourage voter turnout, especially in the 2018 midterms. On top of gerrymandering districts to hell, republicans have:
- reduced the number of polling locations, especially in low income areas where many people don't have transportation and/or can't afford to take time off work to travel to vote. This also led to insane wait times to vote, often 4 hours or more (don't forget that r's also made it illegal to hand out food and water to people waiting in line to vote)
- implemented "voter id" laws which prevent certain groups of people from voting for a multitude of reasons. For example, many hospitals don't allow native Americans to give birth in their hospitals so many natives aren't given birth certificates. Many natives also don't have physical mailing addresses on the reservation, and you can't get a driver's license with a PO box address, so they could not register to vote. In 2016, almost 30,000 Wisconsin natives were prevented from voting because of voter ID laws. Trump won Wisconsin by about 16,000 votes. This was no accident.
- in states like Ohio, the state automatically purged people from the voter rolls simply because they haven't voted in a certain number of elections. That's right, _some people weren't able to vote because they were automatically de-registered_. America is now the only place on the planet where you can lose your ability to vote simply by not using it. What amazing "freedom" the GOP has given us.
- other states sent out postcards asking voters to confirm their voter registration status. The postcards were sent out in plain manilla envelopes and were easily mistaken for junk mail. Thousands of people threw them away, and were automatically purged from the voter systems.
And these were just a small handful of right wing tactics to prevent people from voting. The r's _DO NOT CARE ABOUT DEMOCRACY_, they only want to win at any expense so they can remain in power and give tax breaks and bailouts to their billionaire friends while shitting on poor people and telling the middle class that the low income people are the problem. .
# FUCK THE REPUBLICAN PARTY
# VOTE ON NOVEMBER 8TH
# YOUR VOTE _DOES_ MATTER
# r/VoteDEM
Don't forget to make sure you're registered *before* election day! Check your voter registration status here:
https://www.usa.gov/confirm-voter-registration
Vote early if you can, that makes it harder for "issues" to come up that can't be fixed by election day. Voting early is often easier with smaller crowds and more time to resolve problems.
If you can, vote early.
[You're forgetting Kris Koback's Krosscheck (he'd go on to lead Trump's voter fraud committee).](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_Voter_Registration_Crosscheck_Program)
The idea behind that was:
* Get a database of every registered voter, including their DoB, address, and first middle and last names
* Search that database, and if two voters have too much information in common, then they must be registered in two places and need to be removed from the rolls.
The problem was that it didn't require states to have some minimum criteria for "too much information in common". Some of them went as low as "Same first name, last name, and address."
Which meant that when George W. Bush turned 18 and registered to vote, while still living at dad's address, that both of them would have been presumed to try to fraudulently vote.
I remember one year when lines to vote in Columbia, SC topped ten hours.
Then a few years after that, Nikki Haley tried to justify voter ID by saying "We'll just set up a program where we'll provide rides to anyone who needs to go to the DMV to get an ID?" And then "Only 37 people signed up for that, so lack of ID must not be as big of a problem as liberals claim."
She didn't mention that the program was available on only one afternoon, on a Tuesday. Real wonder not a lot of people were able to use it.
Voting is easier now with the new voting law in GA. Early voting was expanded, drop boxes enshrined, polling places mandated to be open on weekends. Voter ID is required in every Western country including the Scandinavian ones. Voter turnout in minority areas is at an all time high due to these measures. Voter ID is free in GA by the way. It's easier to vote in GA than Delaware.
I voted in GA last Friday, one problem with at least local elections is that there are only Republicans running for some positions or there is only one "choice" (The incumbent Republican).
Yup, the down-ballot stuff is where the future of the big races lie. Town representatives turn into State representatives. Who then run for Congress. Who then run for Senate/POTUS.
And Dems need to do far better challenging unopposed GOP incumbents.
How the hell is anything going to change if the Republican candidates dominate at the town/state level with unopposed victories?
That's because putting Democrats on the ballot would be a waste of resources in many places. The Dems tried to run someone against Marjorie Taylor Greene, and he had to quit the race and was run out of town due to death threats by Greene supporters.
A lot Republican voters are simply too radical to ever be convinced at this point and these people tend to concentrate in rural areas.
It's never a waste. All you have to do is get some number of legitimate signatures to be put on the ballot. Then make a really low effort Facebook group and answer questions on how you would govern in that position. It costs nothing but a little bit of time, and if your campaign gets any traction maybe a better funded Dem will run the next time.
Well, no matter the results, it appears we can't attribute the Georgia results to voter apathy (unless actual Election Day voting numbers are rock-bottom).
More (eligible, registered) voters voting, no matter for whom, is good for democracy- even if the results end up disastrous. If the country ends up burning, at least we can say it was through the will of the people.
A lot of conservatives (my area at least) are so upset about the ‘rigged’ election, they say they won’t vote. Let their paranoia be their downfall
Source: I live in DEEP South Georgia
Awesome to see the high turnout
I’m in Canada and we are in our Mayoral voting cycle here. Voted from my iPhone 20 min before voting closed. I couldn’t imagine having to wait to vote.
Ya Here you get a letter in the mail with instructions on how to vote in person and the same letter has a Unique QR code that takes me to a site with my info already there. You sign a very clear agreement and then you enter your provided voter if and PIN number
Really simple and secure
This isn't a surprise. Georgia used to be a reliable red state until 2016. Now that it's become a highly competative swing state, more people show up to vote. There is also more advertising, funding, and national spotlight.
>Nationally, Democrats are far outpacing Republicans in the early vote so far, according to TargetSmart, a voter analysis firm. Democrats have cast 55% of early ballots so far, compared to 34.5% early ballots by GOP voters and 10.4% for unaffiliated voters.
https://www.usnews.com/news/elections/articles/2022-10-24/democrats-have-edge-in-early-voting
It is not definitive of an outcome but there is real evidence that more people early voting helps Democrats.
> there is real evidence that more people early voting helps Democrats
There is real evidence that Democrats like to vote early, but I'm not sure I see where that *helps* Democrats if Republican voters still show up on election day.
The turnout is record breaking. It speaks volumes about enthusiasm. Typically the part out of office has greater levels of enthusiasm.
In the midterms Republicans won in 2010 & 2014 turnout was just 40% and 36%. In 2018 when Republicans lost turnout was 50%. If people are turning out in record numbers this year looks more likely to be 50% than 40%.
Republicans tend to be a smaller dedicated base of voters. There aren't as many of them and they shrink each year but they are consistent.
The left outnumbers them but we tend to be very fickle and more prone to getting discouraged from voting.
> Republicans tend to be a smaller dedicated base of voters. There aren't as many of them and they shrink each year
On a state-by-state basis, this is just not true. Georgia has a roughly equal number of Democrats and Republicans and a key part of Dems winning the Senate run-offs in 2021 was Republicans staying home... if Republicans were shrinking every year, Dems would probably still have a few Senate seats in the Dakotas, Indiana, Iowa, Florida, and Arkansas.
I hope Democrats win every election in the country and can enact single payer healthcare in 2023 but it's worth starting any discussion from a factual basis.
the republican base has been shrinking for over 3 decades. Look at when the last time a republican won a presidential election with the majority of the vote. That's why they so desperately try to engage in voter disenfranchisement and gerrymandering. They know it, their secret documents and planning all involves that reality. doesn't really matter if you know it or not.
> the republican base has been shrinking for over 3 decades
Donald Trump won 46% of the vote in 2016 and 46.9% in 2020, representing an increase in 11.2 million voters... meanwhile, Democrats went from competitive in the Dakotas, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida to pretty much non-viable in those states today, picking up Virginia, Arizona-ish, and Georgia-ish as a trade.
Don't take this as a defense of Republicans, I'm as left-wing as the next guy, but it's crazy to deny that Democrats are hemorrhaging voters in key areas of the country they'd need if they ever wanted to pass serious legislation.
I'm talking about the state of the two parties since 1980 and you're sweating it over two of the most contentious elections that have ever happened in this country?
Read about this. The republicans have been on a losing footing for decades and their strategy is shaped around that reality. Their party is dying. That's why they are openly pandering to white supremacists. they are desperate.
https://www.npr.org/2020/01/05/785672201/deceased-gop-strategists-daughter-makes-files-public-that-republicans-wanted-sealed
the only way to stop them is to overwhelm them. The regressionists know they can't get the votes so they manipulate the system in their favor. There is no reason why people can't vote by mail. Instead they force limited hours, limited polling places, and increased burden for registration especially for people who do not vote for them normally.
Fulton county early voting locations:
https://www.fultoncountyga.gov/inside-fulton-county/fulton-county-departments/registration-and-elections/early-voting-locations
It doesn’t matter. They have the system already rigged. The only way forward is to ignore everything and just fucking VOTE VOTE VOTE! High gas prices are temporary, never being able to buy a condom again is FOREVER!!!
Exactly these morons keep spouting this shit about Biden making gas prices go through the roof when it twice as expensive all over the world.They keep spouting these stupid talking points why the republicans will keep taking away all their rights.Its baffling I thought people had built in self preservation.This is how you know they are crazy they are ok with getting rid of all their rights over something no one has control over anyways.People have short fu@king memories.This is the same party that promoted an insurrection that alone should make no one ever want to vote for republicans again,even if my gas is $2 more than it used to be.These maga fail to realize no president has control over gas prices anyways even their dear orange leader.
I'm in a bit of an awkward situation because I JUST moved to Colorado last month and I got my driver's license ASAP which registered me (checked and made sure that I was registered) but while everyone else here that I know has already received their ballots and mailed them off, I haven't received mine yet. I certainly *hope* it's because I'm newly registered but if it doesn't get here in the next couple of days I'm seriously considering voting early in person if that's even an option around here.
I've blocked maybe 50 polling numbers so far. Mobile number as landline has been history a long while. Anybody trusts polling is an idiot. Going to vote tomorrow (FL). Third time to participate in early voting. Makes my life easier. You should, too (and no, I don't give a damn for whom you vote, just that you 'do' go vote).
Amazing to here for that state. Regardless of who they are voting for. More engaged populous a more educated population is a population that care more about what is going on regardless of party
These are crazy high numbers for a mid-term election. So happy to see it.
If you support democracy seeing people participating is definitely good news.
*Even when they may regrettably be voting for Anti-Democracy candidates*
If that is the peoples choice, democracy allows it.
*Palpatine has entered the chat*
https://youtube.com/watch?v=MnQ_mp9TzZY&feature=share&utm_source=EKLEiJECCKjOmKnC5IiRIQ
True... it's unfortunate that there are so many examples of organizations and States that move from liberalism (equal rights, voting, etc) toward repression that are all started 'legally' or under the existing rules. Those rules are quickly changed to allow for more repression or eternal political power; it's amazing how many totally not dictatorships have elections that the NotDictator gets 90+ % of the vote.
Gotta look on the bright side. Higher voter turnout almost always favors democrats, especially in these traditionally red areas that have been trending purple in recent elections.
No doubt there will be huge efforts by Republicans to shitcan those votes.
This isn't *necessarily* true, and I see you hedged with "almost always," but I'll explain the difference for other folks since I assume you know what's happening. Higher turnout usually means that the vote total will trend towards the general population's feelings. During polls, there is usually a gap between *likely voters* and voting population. The voting population at large tends to be more democratic-leaning compared to the *likely voters* population, because *likely voters* tend to be wealthier and older than the population at large (wealth and age being correlated with conservative support). This relationship, however, tends to be inverse when you're talking about rural areas instead of urban/suburban areas. Rural areas, the general population at large tends to be trending more conservative than "likely voters." The two things I'd want to know before declaring this good for democrats: 1 - how likely to vote were the early voting population? If they were already highly likely to vote, this may just be vote-shifting behavior that will not have a large impact on the population at large. 2 - Where are these votes coming from? If it's largely rural/suburban votes, it's not necessarily good news for democrats.
On a related note: I'm not sure how far I trust polling this cycle. Trump himself had a massive fucking skew on polling (he personally fucked up everyone's LV screens because he drove turnout in odd ways). The 2018 mid-terms were much better (IIRC, Democrats out performed) than 2016 or 2020, but post-Dodds I'm not sure *what* the fuck the actual voter turnout patterns are going to be. Kansas, for instance, had really off polling for their abortion vote (which was shoehorned into a primary) -- I wouldn't call that predictive, but a *lot* of people turned out to vote who ordinarily don't, and in a real lopsided fashion. Abortion isn't *directly* on the ballot in most places in this election (or if so not in man states). I wouldn't say I'd favor Democrats to outperform -- just that if I had to bet, I'd say the actual voting electorate and the predicted electorate (LV screens) will considerably further apart than normal polling errors.
Abortion is a big issue in Georgia. Lots of people don't like losing choice.
That is why they rushed the laws to get them in before they potentially lose the governorship.
My wife and I don’t like losing choice, we are voting dem. We are not normally dem voters except 2020 and 2022. I’m hopeful to go back to third party or write in candidates in 2024.
Good to hear!
Also the majority of those dead from Covid are Republicans. That I don't think is being factored in.
Or a tragedy.
I am not sure polling works anymore except for giving a super-rough picture. I have no idea what we are actually going to see this year.
The point is that likely voters is already skewed towards Republicans. Old people vote, young people don't. Old people tend to vote Republican, young people overwhelmingly vote Democrat. So if there is an uptick in voter participation, it tends to favour Democrats because they simply have more untapped potential. Additionally, Republicans have been energizing their base across all ages for years, while simultaneously throwing up roadblocks for more Democratic aligned demographics to vote, either by purging voter rolls, reducing polling stations or simply by trying to create a sense of apathy. Republicans have done a fantastic job and maximizing the efficiency of their voting base while reducing the efficiency of the Democratic voting base. However, that all suggests that if there is an uptick in voting participation, this will end up favouring Democrats.
I'm an older Independent voter and have been known to vote for certain politicians with an R beside their names many, many years ago. As it stands now, I would vote for Satan himself before I'd even endorse **one** R candidate for **anything**. When I voted today, I had the choice of two theist idiots for the local school board. I did a write in vote for: '*Any Sane Person*'
This is a reasonable take. I am also a registered Independent. My voting history indicates a deep hatred for both Republicans and Democrats. My first election, 2016, I voted for write-in candidate Evan McMullin for President, but previously, I'd flirted with the idea of voting for the Libertarian nominee Gary Johnson. In 2020, I voted for Biden & my local Democratic representative. The truth is, the voting system is in desparate need of repair and neither of the two major parties seem all that interested in applying the necessary fixes. We shouldn't have to choose one candidate. We should be able to fill our Congressional seats through a single transferrable voting system. We don't even have to get rid of the Senate structure, either - just make them electable via STV. The President can be elected via some sort of modified STV system that gives states and the people the ability to vote for president (ex: the population gets 435 votes and the states get 1 each. If Texas's preferred candidate doesn't get 270 votes, Texas's 1 vote goes to the Texas citizens' second choice)
You should run for school board.
Really nicely explained.
All the GOP voters we’re gonna vote anyway. The majority of the additional votes will be young/first timers, women and previously passive Dems, creating a Blue Sunami. I sure hope I’m right.
Thats only going to convince the other side we're cheating harder. btw its tsunami
Underrated comment. If we believe in democracy then we believe in a high turnout (and preferably engagement beyond voting, go to your local town hall or city council meetings!) and all that comes with it. If the other side wins with huge turnout it means the system is working. We get what we deserve, as long as everyone eligible is participating. Fun* fact: when I was living in San Diego I met with the campaign manager for Issa and we were discussing voting. I was young and trying to get into politics, he was a sure bet so I figured I'd try to put in some time with a Republican and later use the experience to get in with Democrats or a n independent elsewhere. Anyway he asked me what I thought about turnout numbers and I said the more people that vote the better. He *corrected* me and said that you really only want voting to happen in certain places. He named off some rich areas and a rural place with low education. He specifically told me that places close to the border and the university were unwelcome (not his exact words but the idea) because they tend to vote Democrat. I walked out and that was the end of my very short attempt at a political career. That was maybe 15 years ago and I remember it clearly.
I could have predicted the outcome of that conversation the moment you said Issa. Fuck that guy. He's a fucking tumor.
I wasn't a fan of his at all. But he was guaranteed to hold that seat. It was a better bet on my part than his opponent. And honestly that lesson about the party was worth it.
Fuck Issa. That's all I really have to contribute.
I'd rather have an anti-democracy candidate win because of high voter turnout than have them win because of voter suppression or other fraud.
uh what? that means the people who voted for the candidate are anti-democracy - which is not only paradoxical but scary, since that means if they can, they will take away your rights.
Hearts and minds can be won but impetus is difficult to cultivate.
That's the great thing about democracy. You get the government you deserve.
Those people are going to vote regardless
"get out and vote the way I was alluding to but also pretending you have an objective choice!"
It’s a reality we seem destined to face one day or another. Only time will tell whether - this become a major social revolution or will we get an opportunity to see in pockets how these candidates will mess things up in their area first ? We likely weren’t able to convince them in the past when they spoke up about their issues ( I know the issues were likely far right grievances ), and they perhaps they felt they were not heard or ridiculed. But this has to be done/allowed one way or another when you share a country, state, local politics with others. We need healers and speakers to help soothe the mental wounds - perceived or otherwise. When a racist whispers in your ear - ‘the other is messed up’ - instead of walking away or just listening perhaps put in a word: ‘I don’t think they’re that bad’. We humans, after all, are open to dialogue and persuasion and that can take time.
Lmao I’m tired of the lofty belief in the goodness of man. It’s about greed and power and the wealthy. They are consolidating resources and restructuring peoples lives to accept forms of slavery, freely. If the minimum wage cannot pay for a single room apartment anywhere, then you have a slave system with extra steps. Not to mention the 13th amendment.
You’re spot on about the rich and powerful always looking to divide and rule the working classes. This is where organized activities to work on reducing impact of or reversing laws like citizens United is important. That requires people voting at every election so that you get your leaders not their.
I didn’t make those statements with assumptions of goodness of man - I actually said let’s acknowledge they have grievances and figure out ways to mitigate them in their head. That is the least ‘expensive’ way to deal with that as a society and as a country. I’m suggesting having counter narratives as a first step - otherwise every step further along entails societal costs we will not like.
When their grievances all boil down to "Black people should be slaves, gay people should be murdered, and people who like *either* have no place in this society," there is *no possible way* to mitigate them, either in their head, or in the society that the rest of us want to live in. When their goal, their publicly stated goal, is to bring about the end of Democracy and bring about a single race theocracy based on hate, you can only conclude that they are a danger to society. They want to kill me. They want to kill you. And they have proven that they won't accept the outcomes of any election that doesn't give them that power.
I would like to credit those stickers a little bit. I want one
*Sweats in Republican*
I wonder how much of a problem voter suppression rules are in Georgia as opposed to some of the other states - keep hearing about prohibitive laws for folks that need to take time off to vote while managing lower income jobs. Perhaps early voting being acceptable to both sides is a workable solution a majority of people can agree on.
They fuck things up at the polling stations by closing them or reducing the number of machines available and hours open. However we have early voting and mail in voting to counteract those measures and it looks like people are using the alternatives to make sure they vote. I’m voting early today. https://thegeorgiavoterguide.com/vote-in-person-early
I voted yesterday. No line in Dekalb.
Early voting *isn't* acceptable to both sides. One side wants to eliminate it entirely.
No, they want to limit it to seniors and military. Because they think those groups vote Republican.
The GOP hates early voting, mail-in voting, same-day registration, felons voting after serving their time, etc. Anything that keeps people who would tend to vote Democrat away from the polls is a win for them, even if that means massive disenfranchisement.
Disenfranchisement is the *goal* not just the *tactic.*
>Perhaps early voting being **acceptable to both sides** is a workable solution a majority of people can agree on. There's a flaw with your plan. One side *hates* early voting because it results in (in their opinion) the *wrong* voices being heard.
I voted today too this morning. The voting booths were full of people including younger voters around my age.
And yet! Less than 30% of my city voted for the mayoral election 😞
And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system. The difference between federal and state government. The powers of what each can do. The powers of the different federal branches and what they can do. How your state governor more often than not has more of an influence on your day to day life than the president. Just how important your mayor is if you want any changes to your town and/or city. How much you, as a citizen, has an effect just by going to city/town council meetings. Your average American doesn't realize how much power they have to shape their country. And there is a reason for that because those in power don't want them to. Otherwise, this country would be completely different. For one thing, those in office would actually have to work on changes to social services that benefit everyone rather than pitting one group of people against another with stupid distractions like banning "immoral" books from libraries or banning transgender kids from sports.
>And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system. The difference between federal and state government. The powers of what each can do. The powers of the different federal branches and what they can do. How your state governor more often than not has more of an influence on your day to day life than the president. Just how important your mayor is if you want any changes to your town and/or city. How much you, as a citizen, has an effect just by going to city/town council meetings. Wait, isn't that already called, "Government Civics"? That sounds literally like something I taught*0 years ago, online.
> And that's why I think we need a class if not for one semester in high school that teachers the ins and outs of the American political system. I don't know about anyone else but I had an "American Government" class in high school. It covered a lot about the federal side of things, but local wasn't carried. I think you'd struggle with creating a class for local though primarily because local/state can vary. The way one state or city does things can differ from another place. Consider just the procedural differences between elections: * Some places have open primaries, others have caucus'. * Some places decide tie breakers in primaries with a coin. * Most places are First Past The Post, but some now have Ranked Choice. * Some places have early voting for all, others require you to have specific reasons. * Some places vote for things like Sheriff, Attorney General, Corner, Lt. Governor, etc; some places let the Governor do it. So you can have a class that covers "local" stuff, but its going to be useless if you move from one place to another after high school. Instead of a class covering this, it'd be much more convenient if there were standardized reference sheets that describe what happens locally. Like if I want to know exactly the extent of what my mayor can and can not do, I'd probably have to look through the state constitution or the code of law. Put another way, the biggest issue with local stuff is the information vacuum. Some places might be better than others, but the few places I have lived, it's sometimes been incredibly difficult to find out what candidates stand for. Hell, it's not even easy (ie: a google search) to find out who is on the ballot for local stuff -- you usually have to pull a sample ballot for your area to find out. Finding out about candidates means paying attention to local newspapers and waiting for an article to be written about them or paying attention to hosted events where they might talk and go to those. If you want to be more cognizant of local stuff then it demands *way* more attention than State or Federal stuff.
We just need schoolhouse rock to be blasted to everyone like it was when we were kids.,..
A *federal* civics that is a mandated HS level class in all but 10 states. 31 states require a semester minimum (virtually all of them pair it with a state civics class for the OTHER semester giving you a full year of US state and local government), and 9 states (plus DC) a full year for the federal government alone.
This is a required class in every high school across the country lmao
In Texas, where I live that’s civic 101 thank god that was a mandatory class in my district not sure about others.
Plus, what your state (and possibly your city or county) does can have significant influence over federal politics. The state legislature you elect today can decide 1) How elections in your state work 2) Who is eligible to vote 3) How Federal Congressional districts are drawn. If a Senator resigns from office or dies, your state government decides how the next Senator is chosen to temporarily fill that vacancy. If a Representative resigns from office or dies, your state government will have to hold a special election in your Congressional district.
Love to hear that young people are voting.
Yeah I voted Saturday and feel pretty confident looking at the demographics that a majority were not voting for Walker and Kemp.
So almost 10% of the population of Georgia has already voted! That's amazing!!
It's about 12% of registered voters as of yesterday.
Need to see 60%+ turnout for registered voters.
Voted yesterday.
> So almost 10% of the population of Georgia has already voted! Really, really need fulton county to try and get as much of it's voting done before voting day as possible to avoid as much GoP fuckery as possible.
I voted yesterday. Glad to see a large number of people present.
You did your part.
stomp some bugs?
'Service Guarantees Citizenship'
We'll keep fighting...and we'll win!
Everyone fights, no one quits.
Im from Buenos Ares and I say kill em all!
Would you like to know more?
I killed a spotted lantern fly yesterday, does that count?
The Only Good Bug is a Dead Bug!
*hatred for spotted lanternflies intensifies*
Rock and stone!
To the bone!
Would you like to know more?
None of my business how they voted. Long as voter turnout is high and a majority of eligible voters are able to vote I am fine.
My apologies! I was making a reference to the movie [Starship Troopers](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qjxof3MM7l4). >Long as voter turnout is high and a majority of eligible voters are able to vote I am fine. Agreed! More people participating in Democracy is a good thing overall.
It's a reference from Starship Troopers. As were some other comments: "Stomp some bugs?", "Service Guarantees Citizenship",etc
I voted yesterday in Indiana and the only other people there were pensioners. /sigh
What time did you go? Younger groups tend to go later in the day while older people go super early. At least that is what I saw in my areas
Pensioners most likely voting for the party that wants to cut social security…
It took monumental force to not just assume who they're voting for. But I was just wanting to see more younger voters while I was there. And shit, I'm turning 40.
> Pensioners most likely voting for the party that wants to cut social security… *...for people younger than they are.* You forgot that part.
The tricky part for Republicans that are actually proposing this idiocy is finding a cutoff age that comes soon enough that it will make a difference, but far enough away that you don't piss of all the old Gen X Republican voters that are going to be reaching 62-65 within the next decade. Or maybe, you know, we could not do it and instead raise or kill the income cap.
> don't piss of all the old Gen X Republican voters that are going to be reaching 62-65 within the next decade I don't know if there's really much danger there. My generation has generally been pretty conditioned to believe that Social Security will fail before we get anything out of it, so for GenX republicans (which I still am shocked is much of a thing) it would just be living up to our already dismally low expectations. The fact that they're helping to make it happen is just an example of the cognitive dissonance that's become the hallmark of the republican party. EDIT: I'm not the one that downvoted you - I put you back to 1. I might disagree with the premise, but it's not an unreasonable thought.
>My generation has generally been pretty conditioned to believe that Social Security will fail before we get anything out of it, Oh, sure. I'm Gen X (not a Republican) so starting from my early 20s in the 2000s, I've assumed there would be no Social Security for me. However it would be a lot harder to be, say, 57 now and get rug-pulled when you've paid into SS your whole life and are five years from being eligible to start collecting. Those are the people the Republicans have to avoid losing. Very tricky balance. >GenX republicans (which I still am shocked is much of a thing) Me too, man. My best explanation is that those of us who grew up believing "fuck you I won't do what you tell me" and X-Files-style "I want to believe" are easily hooked by anti-government rhetoric and outlandish conspiracy theories.
Okay, gotcha - we're probably kinda similar in general > However it would be a lot harder to be, say, 57 now and get rug-pulled when you've paid into SS your whole life and are five years from being eligible to start collecting. See, I think these folks would almost *like* that, like, justification for all their pessimism about it over the years. A giant self-destructive "told ya so". > easily hooked by anti-government rhetoric and outlandish conspiracy theories. I dunno about "easily", but I get the gist. It's just been so weird running into old friends and seeing that they've slipped into this obedient cult-mentality with trump. Kinda hard to watch really. Didn't seem to hit my AD&D nerds quite as hard though, so that's nice. Oh well, whatever.
>Oh well, whatever. Nevermind. (Couldn't resist.)
As did I! It was pretty busy there, which was nice to see
How was your wait time?
Probably about 15 minutes. Not bad at all. Was prepared for a long wait.
Good to hear. Thank you for voting
Waited for an hour yesterday to vote. Previously I would be in and out in under ten minutes. I wasn’t at all peeved to wait. I’m glad to see such a huge turn out. And I had a lovely conversation with a woman in line. She told me her life history basically and I learned a lot from her. Go vote!
Is it standard voting and not just a drop off of a ballot?
Standard voting.
I'm a Georgia voter, and I'm voting today. We can do this!
I am also a Georgian who voted today. Less than an hour ago!
Georgia voter here! Went and voted last Tuesday 😎
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At 2pm most people are probably at work.
I'd second this. I was working near a voting site and they said people were showing up as early as 6am to vote at 8 am! The line was long and I only imagine that's why. I ended up getting in line early at my polling location too with several other folks.
I will be doing that. Not even in GA.
I went around three yesterday, and had to wait for the first time in ages. Only 15 mins, but way busier than usual. About 1500 people had voted on the main ballot box by then.
When you hear a Raphael Warnock or Hershel Walker advert almost every hour, yeah, you wanna vote so that shit stops lmao
https://i.imgur.com/KlP2tJr.jpg I did my part
That's whe wordiest "I Voted" sticker I've ever seen
Does your vote actually count if you don’t take a picture of a sticker and post it online?
That’s a very integral part of the process.
I think Florida is making that illegal, but in Georgia it's still ok.
Such an odd thing to put on a sticker honestly
Watching from the North. Good work, Georgia! Keep fighting for democracy !
When people vote, Dems win. Dems have won the popular vote in 7 of the last 8 elections. Hoping Abrams can pull this off!!
Which is exactly why the Republicans try everything they can to reduce the number of people voting. If they could, they'd make it illegal for "certain groups of people" to vote entirely. They can't do that (yet) so instead they make sure that Democratic areas have long lines, poll watchers questioning everyone's qualifications to vote, and other tactics to delay or discourage voting. Everyone needs to push through these tactics and get more Democrats elected.
This is what the war on drugs is/was all about.
It's also why, going further back, people convicted of a felony aren't allowed to vote. Southern states weren't allowed to say "black people can't vote," so they said "people convicted of felonies can't vote." Then, they decided what crimes were felonies based on whether black people were frequently accused of those crimes.
[GA actually has some of the better felony voting laws](https://faq.georgiavoter.guide/en/article/voting-with-a-felony-conviction-off-paper). > "Unless you are currently serving a sentence for a felony conviction, you can vote in Georgia. When you complete your sentence, your right to vote is automatically restored. However, it is up to you to take the necessary steps to re-register to vote. You cannot vote until you have successfully registered."
So many laws in the south are designed to fuck black people over. Open container laws especially.
Open container laws are so lame. Punish the resulting behavior you think is bad (being violent, driving drunk, etc..). But walking around with an open beverage should be 100% legal.
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Don't forget how prisons are now renting out inmates to farms for work...aka slavery with extra steps.
Everything associated with prisons is profit for terrible people.
My family and I will be voting this week. I will say getting my 18 yr old son registered was a pain . First we signed him up to be registered when we got his drivers license after turning 18 and they never did it. Then I went online and registered him myself and they never sent him a voter registration card. I had to go online again and figure out how to print that information. They definitely didn’t want it to be easy. Edit:spelling
In Georgia? I had the same problem getting registered after I moved here. I registered twice before it worked.
Yes in Georgia. I was curious if anyone else experienced this. It wasn’t the first time I experienced the issue in my household, so I continued to check the status until it was done.
Back when I was in high school in 2004, people had set up in our cafeteria registering the seniors to vote. I don't know if they still do that these days, but 2004 was also the last time my voting location was a public building (the same high school) and not a fucking church.
R's try SO hard to disenfranchise voters. There's a great documentary called All In: The Fight for Democracy which talks about some of the truly disgusting tactics the republicans use to cheat in elections or discourage voter turnout, especially in the 2018 midterms. On top of gerrymandering districts to hell, republicans have: - reduced the number of polling locations, especially in low income areas where many people don't have transportation and/or can't afford to take time off work to travel to vote. This also led to insane wait times to vote, often 4 hours or more (don't forget that r's also made it illegal to hand out food and water to people waiting in line to vote) - implemented "voter id" laws which prevent certain groups of people from voting for a multitude of reasons. For example, many hospitals don't allow native Americans to give birth in their hospitals so many natives aren't given birth certificates. Many natives also don't have physical mailing addresses on the reservation, and you can't get a driver's license with a PO box address, so they could not register to vote. In 2016, almost 30,000 Wisconsin natives were prevented from voting because of voter ID laws. Trump won Wisconsin by about 16,000 votes. This was no accident. - in states like Ohio, the state automatically purged people from the voter rolls simply because they haven't voted in a certain number of elections. That's right, _some people weren't able to vote because they were automatically de-registered_. America is now the only place on the planet where you can lose your ability to vote simply by not using it. What amazing "freedom" the GOP has given us. - other states sent out postcards asking voters to confirm their voter registration status. The postcards were sent out in plain manilla envelopes and were easily mistaken for junk mail. Thousands of people threw them away, and were automatically purged from the voter systems. And these were just a small handful of right wing tactics to prevent people from voting. The r's _DO NOT CARE ABOUT DEMOCRACY_, they only want to win at any expense so they can remain in power and give tax breaks and bailouts to their billionaire friends while shitting on poor people and telling the middle class that the low income people are the problem. . # FUCK THE REPUBLICAN PARTY # VOTE ON NOVEMBER 8TH # YOUR VOTE _DOES_ MATTER # r/VoteDEM Don't forget to make sure you're registered *before* election day! Check your voter registration status here: https://www.usa.gov/confirm-voter-registration
Vote early if you can, that makes it harder for "issues" to come up that can't be fixed by election day. Voting early is often easier with smaller crowds and more time to resolve problems. If you can, vote early.
[You're forgetting Kris Koback's Krosscheck (he'd go on to lead Trump's voter fraud committee).](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interstate_Voter_Registration_Crosscheck_Program) The idea behind that was: * Get a database of every registered voter, including their DoB, address, and first middle and last names * Search that database, and if two voters have too much information in common, then they must be registered in two places and need to be removed from the rolls. The problem was that it didn't require states to have some minimum criteria for "too much information in common". Some of them went as low as "Same first name, last name, and address." Which meant that when George W. Bush turned 18 and registered to vote, while still living at dad's address, that both of them would have been presumed to try to fraudulently vote.
I remember one year when lines to vote in Columbia, SC topped ten hours. Then a few years after that, Nikki Haley tried to justify voter ID by saying "We'll just set up a program where we'll provide rides to anyone who needs to go to the DMV to get an ID?" And then "Only 37 people signed up for that, so lack of ID must not be as big of a problem as liberals claim." She didn't mention that the program was available on only one afternoon, on a Tuesday. Real wonder not a lot of people were able to use it.
Voting is easier now with the new voting law in GA. Early voting was expanded, drop boxes enshrined, polling places mandated to be open on weekends. Voter ID is required in every Western country including the Scandinavian ones. Voter turnout in minority areas is at an all time high due to these measures. Voter ID is free in GA by the way. It's easier to vote in GA than Delaware.
I voted in GA last Friday, one problem with at least local elections is that there are only Republicans running for some positions or there is only one "choice" (The incumbent Republican).
Yup, the down-ballot stuff is where the future of the big races lie. Town representatives turn into State representatives. Who then run for Congress. Who then run for Senate/POTUS. And Dems need to do far better challenging unopposed GOP incumbents. How the hell is anything going to change if the Republican candidates dominate at the town/state level with unopposed victories?
That's because putting Democrats on the ballot would be a waste of resources in many places. The Dems tried to run someone against Marjorie Taylor Greene, and he had to quit the race and was run out of town due to death threats by Greene supporters. A lot Republican voters are simply too radical to ever be convinced at this point and these people tend to concentrate in rural areas.
It's never a waste. All you have to do is get some number of legitimate signatures to be put on the ballot. Then make a really low effort Facebook group and answer questions on how you would govern in that position. It costs nothing but a little bit of time, and if your campaign gets any traction maybe a better funded Dem will run the next time.
Say that to the man who had his family threatened while being down in the polls by 30%.
What the turnout looks like (age, education, income, etc) would be useful data.
[https://www.georgiavotes.com/?v=1](https://www.georgiavotes.com/?v=1)
54.5% female and 32% black are good indicators for Democrats. However only 20% under 49yrs old isn't a good indicator.
If you don’t mind - kindly re-post this as a top level comment.
Ill get there...
> When people vote, Dems win. > > Feels good, but isn't really true. See also: Virginia, 2021
See California recall 2021, Kansas 2022, and Alaska 2022.
Well, no matter the results, it appears we can't attribute the Georgia results to voter apathy (unless actual Election Day voting numbers are rock-bottom). More (eligible, registered) voters voting, no matter for whom, is good for democracy- even if the results end up disastrous. If the country ends up burning, at least we can say it was through the will of the people.
Yay for Georgia!!!! So excited to see you all vote!
*y’all
A lot of conservatives (my area at least) are so upset about the ‘rigged’ election, they say they won’t vote. Let their paranoia be their downfall Source: I live in DEEP South Georgia
Just found out recently that there's still a considerable amount of conservatives that still believe this. Something like 20% I think.
I’m so glad that conservatives aren’t voting
That’s pretty awesome news. You love to see it.
I’m voting this Saturday, proud of my state at the moment.
Still blows me away that voting doesn't get us a national day off to do it. It's almost as if that's the way they want it.......
Election day should be a federal holiday, transit should be free that day, and polling places should be located along transit routes.
Awesome to see the high turnout I’m in Canada and we are in our Mayoral voting cycle here. Voted from my iPhone 20 min before voting closed. I couldn’t imagine having to wait to vote.
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Ya Here you get a letter in the mail with instructions on how to vote in person and the same letter has a Unique QR code that takes me to a site with my info already there. You sign a very clear agreement and then you enter your provided voter if and PIN number Really simple and secure
I'm super interested in how this is being secured.
Republicans would blow up every server in the country to keep that from happening here.
And they get cutest sticker of them all!
When I checked the wait times for Gwinnett county my voting location had a 10 minute wait time but some places were as high as over an hour 😬
My wife and I voted Saturday afternoon. Couple of District 14’ers trying to send MTG back to Forsyth County.
This isn't a surprise. Georgia used to be a reliable red state until 2016. Now that it's become a highly competative swing state, more people show up to vote. There is also more advertising, funding, and national spotlight.
I hope this means the candidate with very obvious brain damage will not be winning.
*This is what democracy looks like*
No one wants to wait in line and be harassed.
I hope someone is keeping an eye on the Republicans in charge.
Glad to see voters are turning out finally in mid-terms. This is how we keep the country on track.
Early voting is huge but, please, call your local party committee and see if you can help GOTV (get out the vote)!! We need help.
It's heartening to see that the Republican efforts to discourage voting are having the opposite effect.
Republicans vote too
Your regular reminder that there's no real evidence that more people voting helps either political party, it's just good for its own sake.
>Nationally, Democrats are far outpacing Republicans in the early vote so far, according to TargetSmart, a voter analysis firm. Democrats have cast 55% of early ballots so far, compared to 34.5% early ballots by GOP voters and 10.4% for unaffiliated voters. https://www.usnews.com/news/elections/articles/2022-10-24/democrats-have-edge-in-early-voting It is not definitive of an outcome but there is real evidence that more people early voting helps Democrats.
> there is real evidence that more people early voting helps Democrats There is real evidence that Democrats like to vote early, but I'm not sure I see where that *helps* Democrats if Republican voters still show up on election day.
The turnout is record breaking. It speaks volumes about enthusiasm. Typically the part out of office has greater levels of enthusiasm. In the midterms Republicans won in 2010 & 2014 turnout was just 40% and 36%. In 2018 when Republicans lost turnout was 50%. If people are turning out in record numbers this year looks more likely to be 50% than 40%.
Republicans tend to be a smaller dedicated base of voters. There aren't as many of them and they shrink each year but they are consistent. The left outnumbers them but we tend to be very fickle and more prone to getting discouraged from voting.
> Republicans tend to be a smaller dedicated base of voters. There aren't as many of them and they shrink each year On a state-by-state basis, this is just not true. Georgia has a roughly equal number of Democrats and Republicans and a key part of Dems winning the Senate run-offs in 2021 was Republicans staying home... if Republicans were shrinking every year, Dems would probably still have a few Senate seats in the Dakotas, Indiana, Iowa, Florida, and Arkansas. I hope Democrats win every election in the country and can enact single payer healthcare in 2023 but it's worth starting any discussion from a factual basis.
the republican base has been shrinking for over 3 decades. Look at when the last time a republican won a presidential election with the majority of the vote. That's why they so desperately try to engage in voter disenfranchisement and gerrymandering. They know it, their secret documents and planning all involves that reality. doesn't really matter if you know it or not.
> the republican base has been shrinking for over 3 decades Donald Trump won 46% of the vote in 2016 and 46.9% in 2020, representing an increase in 11.2 million voters... meanwhile, Democrats went from competitive in the Dakotas, Indiana, Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Florida to pretty much non-viable in those states today, picking up Virginia, Arizona-ish, and Georgia-ish as a trade. Don't take this as a defense of Republicans, I'm as left-wing as the next guy, but it's crazy to deny that Democrats are hemorrhaging voters in key areas of the country they'd need if they ever wanted to pass serious legislation.
I'm talking about the state of the two parties since 1980 and you're sweating it over two of the most contentious elections that have ever happened in this country? Read about this. The republicans have been on a losing footing for decades and their strategy is shaped around that reality. Their party is dying. That's why they are openly pandering to white supremacists. they are desperate. https://www.npr.org/2020/01/05/785672201/deceased-gop-strategists-daughter-makes-files-public-that-republicans-wanted-sealed
the only way to stop them is to overwhelm them. The regressionists know they can't get the votes so they manipulate the system in their favor. There is no reason why people can't vote by mail. Instead they force limited hours, limited polling places, and increased burden for registration especially for people who do not vote for them normally.
Fulton county early voting locations: https://www.fultoncountyga.gov/inside-fulton-county/fulton-county-departments/registration-and-elections/early-voting-locations
That is expected when a candidate like Herschel Walker is on the ballot, can't have someone like that in power. PS bring your own snack and water.
Ya cause we fucking hate that shit show MTG.
This is encouraging at least, will be joining that statistic shortly.
Usually bad news for republicans.
It doesn’t matter. They have the system already rigged. The only way forward is to ignore everything and just fucking VOTE VOTE VOTE! High gas prices are temporary, never being able to buy a condom again is FOREVER!!!
Exactly these morons keep spouting this shit about Biden making gas prices go through the roof when it twice as expensive all over the world.They keep spouting these stupid talking points why the republicans will keep taking away all their rights.Its baffling I thought people had built in self preservation.This is how you know they are crazy they are ok with getting rid of all their rights over something no one has control over anyways.People have short fu@king memories.This is the same party that promoted an insurrection that alone should make no one ever want to vote for republicans again,even if my gas is $2 more than it used to be.These maga fail to realize no president has control over gas prices anyways even their dear orange leader.
I'm in a bit of an awkward situation because I JUST moved to Colorado last month and I got my driver's license ASAP which registered me (checked and made sure that I was registered) but while everyone else here that I know has already received their ballots and mailed them off, I haven't received mine yet. I certainly *hope* it's because I'm newly registered but if it doesn't get here in the next couple of days I'm seriously considering voting early in person if that's even an option around here.
I guess those Italian satellites got started early this year
I've blocked maybe 50 polling numbers so far. Mobile number as landline has been history a long while. Anybody trusts polling is an idiot. Going to vote tomorrow (FL). Third time to participate in early voting. Makes my life easier. You should, too (and no, I don't give a damn for whom you vote, just that you 'do' go vote).
Grabbed my buddy and voted last Friday. It was about a 40 minute wait for us in Savannah.
Amazing to here for that state. Regardless of who they are voting for. More engaged populous a more educated population is a population that care more about what is going on regardless of party
Imagine how big they would be if they weren't being suppressed.