I’m planning to repeat this diary every day until Nov. 6.
Let’s hope that Election Day—and the lead-up to it—is free of anti-voting disruptions (i.e. foreign/GOP tampering, RWNJ activity, etc.). Regardless, vote early!
In addition to the typical challenges of Election Day (traffic/parking issues, lines, etc), polling stations sometimes run out of ballots, lose/destroy ballots, work with flawed registration lists, or have other logistical snafus. Avoid/resolve these potential problems by voting early!
I’m also reminding everyone that a surprisingly large percentage of mail-in ballots gets rejected due to minor technical mistakes. For those on Team Blue, better to vote early, in person.
A recent commenter wisely noted that Early Voting allows Team Blue to focus its remaining resources on only those Team Blue voters (or potential Blue voters) who have not yet voted.
Again, I assume that few at Daily Kos are still considering their voting options. Sure; perhaps your state has a referendum issue over which you are still pondering. Or perhaps you voters in CA, WA, NE, or LA must agonizingly choose between two candidates of the same party. Or maybe you’re just a DKer in New Mexico (or anywhere else) considering a more-harm-than-good third-party choice.
Nevertheless, I doubt that very many DKers today are weighing a Dem vs. GOP choice. If you are—despite all that we’ve witnessed during these past several years (decades)—then I admit that early voting is not what you need most.
Early voting obviously puts a vote in the bank, removing the possibility (for anyone who votes early) of running into an Election Day voting obstacle. Early Voting also frees up Election Day space at voting locations. (Since this election will likely be a high-Dem-turnout event, we want to ease the process for as many Election Day voters as possible.) Meanwhile, everyone who votes early is likely to become more engaged and ambassadorial during the election run-up. Finally, voting early frees time on Election Day (for those who have already voted) to help with last-minute get-out-the-vote activities.
Early voting, already open in some states, will soon be open in all states which offer this option. Given the advantages mentioned above, liberal/progressive/Dem voters who are ready to vote should just do it—asap!
Please push Early Voting as a top priority—along with everything else you are doing for Team Blue.