IF you're an American, will you vote absentee, vote early, or wait until Election Day?

[Loren Pechtel]

Just checked with the UT state site, and our ballots are being mailed out to us the week of OCT 13. We will be filling ours out and I'll be delivering them to the county dropbox.

Our sample ballots were supposed to go out on the 25th, the real ballots go out on the 7th.

I find they added tracking stuff this year which is a good thing, although I'm not impressed by the security--it's trivially easy to set up/alter tracking on anybody whose personal details you know. I also found they have my wife's name harmlessly wrong.

 

[southernhybrid]

I just tracked my absentee ballot that I put in the drop box two days ago. It was accepted and counted, so I'm relieved, at least for now.

 

[Angry Floof]

I received my mail in ballot yesterday. I will probably vote that way. We have a drop box outside of the place where we vote early, and a close friend of mine put her ballot in the box yesterday.

I just found a link where one can track the status of their absentee ballot. I'll look for it again and add it to this thread if anyone is interested. Still, I do have some reservations about voting by mail due to the things that dear leader is saying. Plus, there are always tales of one's signature not being an exact match and other excuses for throwing out a ballot.

I just don't really want to expose myself to COVID by standing in line with idiots who never wear masks or practice social distancing. I usually vote early as we have 3 full weeks to vote in Georgia. I've checked my voting status online numerous times. I haven't voted on Election Day since 2004 and hope never to have to do that again. Georgia does require ID to vote in person, but interestingly enough, anyone can request a absentee ballot for any reason. You can even apply online to vote by mail, and most cities have drop off boxes if you don't trust the mail.

How does your state vote? Do you live in a state that only does mail in voting? If not, is it hard to get an absentee ballot? Does your state have early voting? If so, for how long? Does it include any weekend days? Do you need to present ID? If so, which IDs are acceptable?

So, how will the rest of you vote? If you're voting absentee, do you have concerns? I'm just interested in knowing how the rest of you are feeling about this election. Do you think your vote will be counted? Are you worried about an absentee ballot being thrown out or not counted due to some detail, like your signature isn't an exact match? Share your thoughts? I've never been so anxious about any other election and would like to know what others think.

Re the bold: Check with your elections office about what to do with your absentee ballot if you decide to vote in person. Here, I can just take the ballot, unmarked, still in the envelope, to the polling place and they will take the unused ballot and give me an in-person ballot.

Derp. I just saw that you already sent it in. Didn't look at the date of your OP. Well, for anyone else who gets an absentee ballot and is thinking about voting in person instead, be sure to check what to do with the unused ballot.

 

[ZiprHead]

I just tracked my absentee ballot that I put in the drop box two days ago. It was accepted and counted, so I'm relieved, at least for now.

Ours won't start being counted until the day before the election. That was all the concession the Michigan Republicans would give when Democrats when they tried to moving the counting date forward.

 

[fromderinside]

When we lived in Florida we first shopped at Wynn Dixie. You may recognize our checker by the following "one potato, two potatoes, three potatoes ....."If vote counter works that way in Michigan you may get your final tally by Dec.23, the last day to certify votes, and send the certification on to Congress.

Later we found Publix. Much better. More like Oregon.

All registered voters get ballots in the mail in mid-October. There are drop boxes by every city hall and many other state offices throughout the state. We drop our completed, double enveloped, signed and sealed ballots off mostly at the drop boxes. The are collected daily, taken to county seats, certified, opened and tabulated daily. Results are posted to state by counties at 8 PM on voting day. There are several checks and validations including a barcode individual tracking available to voters and officials with paper trails tracking each ballot through the processes. And it's a damn sight cheaper than are most states which use machines mechanical and electronic.

Eyup Publix. Fresh, certified, sweet, personal service.

Looking forward to the day when we get rid of representatives and move government processes of taxing, legislating, and law making to the individual voter/citizen by way of the internet. there I see much of activity can be reduced to local level except for taxation, general welfare, and citizen general rights and privileges.

Actually if it weren't for Corvid 19 I'd enjoy going back to walking or driving to voting centers to share the pleasure of citizenry with others.

 

[KeepTalking]

I filled out my absentee ballot yesterday. We don't have a drop box location in the county yet, but I can take it down to the Election Board and deliver personally. Not sure if I am going to do that or just stick it in the mail. This being the first time I voted absentee, it was great, and I plan to only vote absentee in the future. For the few unknowns on the ballot, I was able to look them up online while I was filling it out, and make a more informed decision. That was only the case for three judges who we were being asked to vote if they should continue as a judge. I almost always vote no on these, and after looking them up that was definitely the right choice this time.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

I think I'll be voting in person early.

Same here (all I have is a white side). No fewer Trump signs but many competing Biden signs. I have scant hope for Ohio flipping. I think the Biden signs are more a result of what has happened to the country these past four years rather than an increase in Dem support. The Biden signs might as well say, "Holy Fuck" on them as they do "Biden Harris".

How are the signs over in Medina? Generally a red county, but not blood red like Huron County.

Akron is pretty blue, even my precinct which is a mix of millionaires and people on food stamps. Most support Biden. Cuyahoga (Caucasian) Falls, it falls to 3 to 2 Trump from what I've seen. Could level out to even, but that isn't good enough. Out east in Lake county, closer to 2 to 1 for Trump. It is incredible the virus Trump is. I'll be curious about the general Youngstown rust belt area that didn't see a resurgence in jobs. Oddly, they saw a resurgence during the Obama Admin when fracking was going crazy and metal pipe production was big... as well as the local fracking. Of course, the small energy companies consolidated like crazy and with that, the job losses.

2 to 1 Trump in Medina. It's pretty easy to gauge from the city center to the rural outskirts. With density of housing comes more Biden signs. The Trumpkins are more boisterous. It's not just signs. It's banners and flags.

That is actually a bit surprising, not that I know the deep insides of Medina. I just knew my Grandmother's neighbors. And some of them were very passively racist and she was just inside the City lines. I always wanted her to sell her house to an African American family. It would have been scandalous... and we are talking the 2000's.

 

[ZiprHead]

I filled out my absentee ballot yesterday. We don't have a drop box location in the county yet, but I can take it down to the Election Board and deliver personally. Not sure if I am going to do that or just stick it in the mail. This being the first time I voted absentee, it was great, and I plan to only vote absentee in the future. For the few unknowns on the ballot, I was able to look them up online while I was filling it out, and make a more informed decision. That was only the case for three judges who we were being asked to vote if they should continue as a judge. I almost always vote no on these, and after looking them up that was definitely the right choice this time.

We did that too. That is definitely an advantage.

 

[ZiprHead]

2 to 1 Trump in Medina. It's pretty easy to gauge from the city center to the rural outskirts. With density of housing comes more Biden signs. The Trumpkins are more boisterous. It's not just signs. It's banners and flags.

i've noticed the trump supporters are pretty passionate too.

Passed a car yesterday on my way up to Midland to pick up my wife. An older buick pretty beaten up, front grill missing, with Trump stickers and slogans all over it. Cognitive dissonance is a helluva thing.

 

[southernhybrid]

I received my mail in ballot yesterday. I will probably vote that way. We have a drop box outside of the place where we vote early, and a close friend of mine put her ballot in the box yesterday.

I just found a link where one can track the status of their absentee ballot. I'll look for it again and add it to this thread if anyone is interested. Still, I do have some reservations about voting by mail due to the things that dear leader is saying. Plus, there are always tales of one's signature not being an exact match and other excuses for throwing out a ballot.

I just don't really want to expose myself to COVID by standing in line with idiots who never wear masks or practice social distancing. I usually vote early as we have 3 full weeks to vote in Georgia. I've checked my voting status online numerous times. I haven't voted on Election Day since 2004 and hope never to have to do that again. Georgia does require ID to vote in person, but interestingly enough, anyone can request a absentee ballot for any reason. You can even apply online to vote by mail, and most cities have drop off boxes if you don't trust the mail.

How does your state vote? Do you live in a state that only does mail in voting? If not, is it hard to get an absentee ballot? Does your state have early voting? If so, for how long? Does it include any weekend days? Do you need to present ID? If so, which IDs are acceptable?

So, how will the rest of you vote? If you're voting absentee, do you have concerns? I'm just interested in knowing how the rest of you are feeling about this election. Do you think your vote will be counted? Are you worried about an absentee ballot being thrown out or not counted due to some detail, like your signature isn't an exact match? Share your thoughts? I've never been so anxious about any other election and would like to know what others think.

Re the bold: Check with your elections office about what to do with your absentee ballot if you decide to vote in person. Here, I can just take the ballot, unmarked, still in the envelope, to the polling place and they will take the unused ballot and give me an in-person ballot.

Derp. I just saw that you already sent it in. Didn't look at the date of your OP. Well, for anyone else who gets an absentee ballot and is thinking about voting in person instead, be sure to check what to do with the unused ballot.

Yes. That is good advice. I had already looked into it here before I decided to vote with my absentee ballot. In Georgia if you change your mind, you're supposed to bring your absentee ballot to the place where you vote and give it to the poll worker. I would have written void on mine if I did that. I also liked that the ballot tracking site says, "your ballot was accepted and counted, so you can't vote again". While I certainly knew that, I'm sure there are people who don't realize that they can't change their vote after they send in or drop off their ballot.

 

[Worldtraveller]

2 to 1 Trump in Medina. It's pretty easy to gauge from the city center to the rural outskirts. With density of housing comes more Biden signs. The Trumpkins are more boisterous. It's not just signs. It's banners and flags.

i've noticed the trump supporters are pretty passionate too.

Passed a car yesterday on my way up to Midland to pick up my wife. An older buick pretty beaten up, front grill missing, with Trump stickers and slogans all over it. Cognitive dissonance is a helluva thing.

That's not passionate. That's a fucking cult.

 

[Jimmy Higgins]

2 to 1 Trump in Medina. It's pretty easy to gauge from the city center to the rural outskirts. With density of housing comes more Biden signs. The Trumpkins are more boisterous. It's not just signs. It's banners and flags.

i've noticed the trump supporters are pretty passionate too.

Passed a car yesterday on my way up to Midland to pick up my wife. An older buick pretty beaten up, front grill missing, with Trump stickers and slogans all over it. Cognitive dissonance is a helluva thing.

That's not passionate. That's a fucking cult.

Very much so! One large yard sign I saw in Lake County, Ohio (NNE Ohio) read TRUMP/PENCE 2020 "Enough with this shit". It wasn't meant ironically, they had another sign without the "Enough with this shit" part.

 

[ZiprHead]

That's not passionate. That's a fucking cult.

Very much so! One large yard sign I saw in Lake County, Ohio (NNE Ohio) read TRUMP/PENCE 2020 "Enough with this shit". It wasn't meant ironically, they had another sign without the "Enough with this shit" part.

You think that's bad. Our local Republican party office has a portable rental sign out by the road the says:

VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP

MAGA 2020

ENOUGH OF THE IDIOCY​

 

[ZiprHead]

Texas Gov. Abbott restricts absentee ballot drop-off locations
Some Texas counties include millions of people stretched over hundreds of square miles and will require lengthy drives to deliver ballots.

Fuckhead...

 

[TV and credit cards]

That's not passionate. That's a fucking cult.

Very much so! One large yard sign I saw in Lake County, Ohio (NNE Ohio) read TRUMP/PENCE 2020 "Enough with this shit". It wasn't meant ironically, they had another sign without the "Enough with this shit" part.

You think that's bad. Our local Republican party office has a portable rental sign out by the road the says:

VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP

MAGA 2020

ENOUGH OF THE IDIOCY​

Yeah, there’s one with a “Drain the Swamp” sign next to their Trump 2020 sign. I can’t even wrap my head around that.
On the bright side, one place as got a banner to the effect: What used to be called treason is now called being a Republican.

 

[Elixir]

Maybe they left out some question marks.

VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP?

MAGA 2020?

ENOUGH OF THE IDIOCY​