Isn't the concern for this considerably diminished by early voting everywhere??? If you can vote over a month before election day on any given Saturday, what's the problem? And allowing ex-felons to vote....still thinking about that. http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=sto..._on_go_co/voting_machines_clinton_1&printer=1 Sen. Clinton Pushes for Voting Holiday 1 hour, 28 minutes ago By DEVLIN BARRETT, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (news - web sites), a possible White House candidate in 2008, joined 2004 nominee John Kerry (news - web sites) and other Democrats Thursday in urging that Election Day be made a federal holiday to encourage voting. She also pushed for legislation that would allow all ex-felons to vote. Standing with Massachusetts Sen. Kerry and other Democrats who had alleged voting irregularities in the 2004 contest, Clinton said, "Once again we had a federal election that demonstrates we have a long way to go." "I think it's also necessary to make sure our elections meet the highest national standards," said the New York senator. She and Kerry, both considered contenders for the 2008 nomination, were joined by Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones (news, bio, voting record), D-Ohio, and Sen. Barbara Boxer (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., who forced a highly unusual House and Senate debate Jan. 6 on the presidential election results. Kerry, who lost the national contest by 3.3 million votes nationwide, and 118,000 within Ohio, denied the bill was an attempt to discredit the 2004 results. "This has nothing to do with me," said Kerry. "It is not partisan, or shouldn't be." Clinton echoed those comments, though her senatorial re-election committee, Friends of Hillary, is pushing the bill hard. Visitors to the group's Web site are greeted first with a full-page form asking people to endorse the Count Every Vote Act. "My Web site has information about everything I work on. This is one of my biggest priorities and obviously I hope that people who share our goal of making sure every vote counts will support us," said Clinton. In addition to creating a federal holiday for voting, the bill would: _Require paper receipts for votes. _Authorize $500 million to help states make the changes in voting systems and equipment. _Allow ex-felons to vote. Currently an estimated 4.7 million Americans are barred from voting because of their criminal records. _Require adoption of the changes in time for the 2006 election. Boxer said the bill "is meant to ensure the election debacle of 2000, and the serious election irregularities of 2004, never ever happen again." Both parties have called for changes to ensure a more accurate vote count. Republican efforts have centered on reducing voter fraud, while Democrats have called for making access to the ballot box easier and simpler.
I wonder how much it would increase voting. A lot of people who vote now on the way to work or way home.. might not vote at all because they'd be sleeping in instead... and of course not everyone gets federal holidays off
opps didnt meant to submit yet... It would be awesome if there was someway to vote online or something.. I think they let military people do that overseas... But I'm sure its probably way too hard to ensure the security of online voting.. the right person actually voting etc... at this point.. maybe one day.
I'm for all the recommendations, except one. I would be against all ex-felons getting back the right to vote. Those convicted of violent crimes should be left out of the voting process, in my opinion. They have proven to be unworthy of the privilege, and a privilege it is. I don't have a problem with the other felons who have served their time, rehabilitated themselves, and moved on with their lives in society. Keep D&D Civil!!
Iraq just beat us in voter turnout. I think we have to at least try it out and see if it helps. I don't know why people would complain about a day off though.
If you keep losing over and over, what better way to solve the problem that to change the rules! (hint, hint, libs, it might be time to change your stance on some issues....)
i dont like a voting holiday. cause every other federal holiday is connected to the weekend and it would be odd having a holiday in the middle of the week. i know it requires a change of the constitution and stuff but i think it would be better to have voting no a saturday or such. or at least open polls on saturday and continue em till tuesday or something. i definitely think felons should have the right to vote. why not? drugs/bribes etc aren't violent crimes anyway. plus its a fundamental disenfranchisement issue. i think everyone should be allowed to vote. its not a privilege its a right. the whole social contract stuff. i believe it. and absolutely if they commit crimes they should be punished for harming society. however that doesn't mean they should be denied a public voice. and thats what voting is. voting is fundamentally freedom of speech/opinion/belief.
If Dems are so off on the issues, wouldn't having a voting holiday just make the margin of loss even bigger?
Screw this idea. I can file my taxes online, I want to be able to vote online. I voted absentee ballot this last election. Save a tree and put the voting online.
Oh come on, Hilary. Most of the liberal supporters you're trying to pull in don't have jobs, they're just sucking the government teet collecting welfare and union disability benefits. Everyday is a holiday for them! A holiday is just going to allow successful Republicans more time to break away from their economy-boosting jobs in order to go vote against you. This really is proof that the liberals are currently grasping for straws in attempt to do something about their current state of failure.
IMO the lack of people participating in our democracy is one of the greatest problems facing us. It amounts to voluntarily having an ogliarchy because of apathy. Pardon me while I get on my high horse. There still are countries where people are willing to die for the right to vote and if you buy GW's rhetoric US solidiers are dying to give people the right to vote. Yet millions of Americans on voting day just sit on their asses letting others decide for them who's going to lead their schoolboard, city, state and country. Getting off my high horse. While I was in Thailand about two weeks ago they had an election that was held on Sunday that seemed to work out pretty well for turnout. Of course they have mandatory voting but compliance was certainly easier since most businesses were closed. I wouldn't go so far as having mandatory voting but weekend voting IMO would certainly make it easier for people to vote. On a tangential note from 6PM on Sat. to 9PM on Sun. election days the Thais were also forbidden to sell alchohal which put a huge damper on the nightlife in Phuket, hurting already from the tsunami. I talked to a few bar owners who had tried to appeal to have an exception for Phuket since most of the tourists weren't Thais and it wouldn't matter since they wouldn't be voting drunk or rioting over who lost or won.
Again...when you have early voting that lasts for about a month...and is open on weekends....and open every day of the week, save Sundays...why is having a national voting holiday necessary? There is apathy...that's why we have low voter turnout. I don't think anyone in Texas, at least, can argue that they wanted to vote but just couldn't find the time, unless they had some serious family emergency or something to that effect.
I've never understood while Republicans and Conservatives are so fearful of reforms that would make it easier to vote. As the last election showed higher turnout doesn't necessarily translate to Democratic victories.
yes...i don't know what they are elsewhere. that's why i said here in Texas. but i'm assuming early voting is similar around the country.
They are allowed to vote in many states already. Some states even allow incarcerated convicts to vote. It is a common misconception that they are not allowed to vote ever.
How can people be against holidays? I like holidays. The more the better. We need a lot more plus more vacations. Actually it could be a voting celebration day. It could be a big party. I have no problem with it at all. I think the cons should be able to vote but we get to throw rocks at them and pee on their tow trucks while they wait in line.
I agree that either there should be a national holiday or walk up voting on weekends several weeks before the election. I also think they should do away with mailed in registration and go straight to walk and vote systems like Minnesota (?) has. IIRC you don't have to pre-register you just walk up with an ID and vote. I don't think ex-felons should be allowed to vote. Sure the argument is that they have been rehabilitated, but I also think they should have to give up that civil liberty. Just because I am a liberal doesn't mean I can't have a different opinion on this.
does anybody have any idea how many states already have this early voting stuff on weekends? we've had it for a few years now. i'm just guessing that most states have that.
