I spoke to a friend up in Boston, MA last night. Her grandma who lives in Akron, Ohio is in her 80s, and up until a recent downturn in her health, had been campaigning and canvassing for Obama. She would hook up with her friends and do the round of the neighborhoods handing out campaign material. Her main motivation, she always said, is that she never taught she would "live to see this day". She's African American.
So, after small talk last night, I asked Mammie how her grandma is doing and if she's voted. She said, no, she hasn't, because she wants to make it on election day and cast her vote on that historic day. The problem with that is that anything can happen on election day to keep someone from casting that "historic" vote. Which is why it's best to take advantage of early voting, and make sure that vote's in the bag. More over the fold (with early voting deadlines in applicable states).
I have come across quite a few stories like this the past couple of days: elderly African Americans deciding that they would rather wait and cast their vote on "that historic day" because it means just so much to them. And it definitely does.
The problem, as I told Mammie to tell her grandma, is that there are just so many little things that could go wrong on election day that could end up making it a tad more difficult or inconvenient to vote on that day, especially for the elderly. Beginning with the weather. Freezing rain like they have in Ohio today, combined with long, impossible lines winding round the block on election day, and a senior might just find that it isn't very practical to stand or sit in line for any length of time before casting their vote.
On election day, many states and precincts will experience ballot machine malfunction resulting in delays. Some may be resolved quickly, others may not. That is now a given of our electoral process. Depending on the whims of poll workers or election commissioners, some may extend voting times to accommodate such problems, others simply won't. In some cases, even last minute law suits may not persuade officials to be flexible. We saw that in Ohio '04 and we can anticipate it especially in states like Florida this year.
And of course, the dubious GOP deception machine that will try to confuse voters by either directing them to the wrong precincts or feeding them wrong information about date changes etc, is already in full swing. Granny Doc's rec'd diary today mentions such a case in Virginia. Plus, they will come up with other tactics we don't know about right now, and target certain populations to keep them from the polls. Anyone who has no quick access to information, especially the internet, could fall for the ruse.
There is, of course, that most unpredictable of all conditions: ill-health. You wake up and your whole body feels like it's been replaced with a lead effigy and you can't get out of bed, and you can't vote absentee because the deadline for absentee ballots was days ago, so, there you have it! Can't make it to the polls; can't cast your vote.
Also, early voting gives you the chance to discover any problem or error that may occur with your registration or voting status while there is still time to resolve it, whereas on election day it would be all last minute. In many instances, provisional votes from election day are not counted.
So, I told Mammie to call her grandma and tell her and her friends to please, go ahead and vote early. Take advantage of early voting while she can. Her vote will still be counted on "that historic day". Better have it in the tank than have some unanticipated emergency keep her from finishing this thing she's been working so hard for all campaign season.
And I thought the rest of us could help, too. If you have family or know anyone in early voting states, especially battleground states, who may be waiting around and banking on the symbolism of voting on November 4 itself, or simply procrastinating because there's still "plenty of time", please call them and ask them to go ahead and vote now. On election day they can go out and help others, help protect the vote, record and share reports, drive others to the polls, and so on. That way, they would not only have secured their vote, they could also help us bank a couple more votes and make that day truly "historic".
Currently there is early voting going on in 31 states, 9 of them battleground states. Below I have indicated last days for voting in all 31 states, with battleground states in bold. Most will allow voting until election day, but others will close early voting this week, beginning with Louisiana which closes its early voting window today. Illinois and Tennessee end early voting this Thursday, while Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Nevada and Texas close early voting on Friday. In New Mexico, North Carolina, West Virginia and Hawaii, you may vote early till Saturday. In some polling centers in the great state of Florida, they'll allow voters to cast early votes even on Sunday, November 2.
So, please, call your folks and tell them to go ahead and do it right away. Time and tide wait for for noone. A bird in hand is worth more than, well, all birds are equal but some are more equal, well, whatever. The earlier the better. The earlier the safer. If they have questions, they can call Call 1-866-687-8683. That's a number that anyone in any state can call if they don't have their local information numbers. And those who have internet access can check their voter registration status by searching registration lists at - http://www.canivote.org/
Last Day for Early Voting
Alaska - Monday, November 3
Arizona - Friday, October 31
Arkansas - Monday, November 3
California - Monday, November 3
Colorado* - Friday, October 31
Florida* - Sunday, November 2
Georgia - Friday, October 31
Hawaii - Saturday, November 1
Idaho - Monday, November 3
Illinois - Thursday, October 30
Indiana* - Monday, November 3
Iowa* - Monday, November 3
Louisiana - Tuesday, October 28
Kansas - Monday, November 3
Maine - Monday, November 3
Montana - Monday, November 3
Nevada* - Friday, October 31
Nebraska - Monday, November 3
New Mexico* - Saturday, November 1
North Carolina* - Saturday, November 1
North Dakota - Monday, November 3
Ohio* - Monday, November 3
Oklahoma - Monday, November 3
South Dakota - Monday, November 3,
Tennessee - Thursday, October 30
Texas - Friday, October 31
Utah - Sunday, November 2
Vermont - Monday, November 3
Wisconsin* - Monday, November 3
West Virginia - Saturday, November 1
Wyoming - Monday, November 3