There are 18 days left until Election Day and more Americans than ever are choosing to get their vote in early. Due to the pandemic, all Connecticut residents are eligible to vote via absentee ballot this year, which can be mailed in or returned to a secure drop box location. Georgia, Texas, Ohio, Virginia, and Illinois are among the states offering in-person early voting opportunities ahead of Election Day, which has resulted in high levels of voter turnout, long lines and technical difficulties.
According to data from the U.S. Elections Project, 17.7 million voters have already cast their ballots for the upcoming general election. At this point in the 2016 election, the number of ballots cast was 1.4 million.
Georgia opened early voting polling locations this week and officials reported 128,590 votes cast. Problems emerged with the electronic voting systems, contributing to long wait times. In Atlanta, some voters waited up to eight hours to cast their ballot.
Early voters surged to polling places in Texas for the first week of early voting, surpassing 1 million votes on Monday. Voters reported hours-long wait times, sharing photos of socially distanced lines stretching through parking lots and around polling locations. Unlike Connecticut, Texas has limited vote by mail to people who are over 65 and people with disabilities, which is why so many are choosing to cast their ballots early in-person.
We’ve also seen disagreements this week about ‘poll watchers’ after President Trump urged his supporters to “to go into the polls and watch very carefully." His statement, made during the first presidential debate sparked concerns about possible voter intimidation. Poll watchers are appointed by political parties to ensure the election is being conducted fairly, but Trump critics fear his supporters will take matters into their own hands.
Some questions:
What is your voting plan? Will you cast your vote on election day, participate in early voting, mail in your ballot, or utilize a ballot dropbox?
How long would you be willing to wait in line to cast your vote on Election Day?
Do you want to go to the polling place for that in-person experience or is it because you are worried your vote won’t be counted if you mail in your ballot?
Does COVID-19 play a role in your voting plan? Are you concerned about waiting in long lines with a large group of people amid a pandemic?
Are self-appointed poll watchers a legitimate concern?
Talk about it with your friends and family! 🗣🗯
(Photo by Elliott Stallion via Unsplash)