And not because Massachusetts is suddenly having a rush to encourage early voting. It feels weird to vote two weeks before the election. However, I will be traveling between the great states of Oklahoma and Ohio on election day. Hope the relatives don’t want to talk too much politics…or ask who I voted for… 
Anybody else voted yet?
Robin
Shan and I will vote this Saturday.
–James
I will NOT vote !
My absentee ballot never arrived but I just requested another from the US Embassy in London. They said you can get one through them if you requested an absentee ballot more than 30 days before the election and hadn’t received it by 15 Oct. So I should be voting in about a week!
My father, who is overseas, said he will not cast an absentee ballot, as he doesn’t believe it will be counted.
… do you really think your voting is counted in a regular way ..??
..Here in “old” europe it seems that the technical standard of your voting machines is from the middle ages …..
off topic…
Well, if you do vote, it may or may not get counted, and it may or may not have much meaning, even if it is counted.
Yet, if you do not vote, you will certainly not be counted.
At least one way you might have a chance of having a voice, no matter how small or insignificant it proves to be.
–James
Another to move to the political thread? Robin’s post was innocent enough, but this looks like it is going to venture into the “evil” realm of politics.
All the Best,
Tom
I’ve mentioned elsewhere that I work at the polls in my township on election day. The commitment is from 6 or 6:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. or later, continuously present (by ordinance, I think).
As “minority inspector,” I also help deliver the ballots to the courthouse while the other poll workers go home. I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t think it were important.
When I first came to this area, something happened that brought the importance of voting home to me. In the race for state representative, the election was so close the ballots were impounded and recounted. The state house was so closely divided that the majority party was unknown until the results of our local election were certified.
Besides, I figure voting is your license to complain about the government. If you don’t vote, you’re letting someone else decide for you.
M
I’ve got to be at a trade show and requested an absentee ballot. It hasn’t arrived yet!! Maybe I’ll get lucky and they’ll send me an absentee electoral ballot! It’s kind of like the magic ticket from Willy Wonka!!
…I’ve got a golden ticket… Great movie.
Tom
In my country every adult (over 18) votes - it is even a legal obligation. A few weeks before the election, you get a letter that tells you when and where you have to vote, and you have to sign the reception of that letter.
People who live abroad or those who are sick or in hospital can also vote by letter instead of going to the voting bureau. Elder people over a certain age (forgot the detail) do not have to vote.
We use paper forms to vote and they are counted by a group of people in every voting local. So a control is always possible and there has not been a major voting scandal yet - at least not as long as I remember.
Some citizens say that the voting obligation is not compatible with democracy, but most people agree with our system. Generally people think that voting is important. As a citizen you have not only rights but also duties. I think that every adult has a responsibility and should participate in the management of his/her country.
Are you allowed to just go and cancel your vote, or have you got to vote for someone?
You can give a blank paper or make it recognizable by writing anything else on it than the regular signs. That will make it invalid. Every vote must be anonymous.
Legal obligation in Brazil too. I never liked it, because i think it forces people who don’t know what they want, to vote, and they tend to vote random or sell their vote for candy. Probably just prejudice on my part. I grew up not being allowed to vote, and i now that i can, i wouldn’t think of not voting. The only elections i can vote in, from overseas, are presidential elections, and i always go to the Consulate to vote.
Glauber, the system has advantages. It is not possible to prevent people from voting by intimidation or registration frauds or whatever. On the other hand, it is not possible either to have a government who has the votes of only 15 or 20% of the population. And the 3rd advantage: a disaster like the LePen/Chirac election can’t happen either. And people can hardly sell their votes, because the vote is secret. So there is no way to control who voted for whom.
Well, to drag this thread kicking and screaming back to its OT topic:
I voted today. So did my son. So did my business partner.
I agree with James. If you don’t vote, you certainly won’t be counted.
Also, if you choose not to vote, you don’t get to complain.
Them’s the rules.
Yikes!
Yeah, you do. People complain all the time… voters… nonvoters… locals… foreigners… it’s what people do… especially in political threads.