Newsletter chitchat - October 22, 2024

[Cassel]

Elections happen everywhere (I assume) and the process might be similar or different between countries.

How are they performed? Is the voting still on pieces of paper? Is the counting done manually or electronically?

How is everything tallied?

This is NOT meant to be a political thread, but just a discussion about the process in this age of technology.

Let's share.

[Rene Marker]

We have early voting in Ohio and I went today to cast my ballot. I had to give them my ID, they verified that all information was still the same which I had to sign that it was on an electronic tablet. Then my ballot was sent to be printed on a printer across the room. I went there and was given my ballot to fill out (both sides). When done I was to put it in the counting machine where it showed on screen that my vote was counted. 

There was no line to sign in and several people were at the voting tables when I got there. I had 19 positions to vote for which included the 3 federal level government. The rest were state and county level positions. 12 of the state positions had no opponent, made it easy to choose! I also had a couple of local tax levies. It didn't take me long to make these choices. There was one state issue to make a change to the state constitution that I read through very carefully before making my choice.

It took me maybe 10 minutes for the whole process. Glad I went when I did, there were people coming in the door when I left and a line was starting.

Then I came home and got my mail which was election propaganda... which is every day! My recycle bin is getting full.

I have voted early for quite a few years. The County Board of Elections is in my town and about a 5 minute drive to get there. Since I'm retired I can go anytime during the day and avoid the rush. I always hated standing in line on election day. At one time the election place for my precinct was in a township building which didn't have a large area for the poll workers and the line was always outside. Miserable if the weather was bad. It has been moved to another location which has more space but I've never voted there since I do the early voting. I honestly don't know how the signing in works on election day anymore. They used to have a great big book with computer printouts that they would mark your name off. You also had to go to a specific table (my township had several different precincts at that time, now it is 2) where they would have the specific ballot you needed.

[Susan Ewart]

I've had the same experience as Rene.  I voted early and it was so much better than going on voting day then rushing to work or going after work when I just want to go home.  It seems like the days of long line ups are over, but I do remember waiting in a long line up.  I also worked at an election years ago.  It was an interesting experience and paid very well too.  

[Michele]

It's all electronic now. Before then, we had curtained voting booths where we had to turn levers and once we opened the curtain back up, that was it. Voting always makes me feel good. I mailed in my ballot today! I'm getting a little too old and broken down to wait in lines outside in the cold. 

[Ann Seeber]

This will be the third election where I voted by mail. Necessary in 2020 because of Covid but I find it more convenient now, anyway. @Cassel I don't know what a "riding" is. Here's what you wrote on your blog: "they would add the numbers for each riding." Is it similar to our city which is divided into Wards? 

[Sue Thomas]

27 minutes ago, Ann Seeber said:

This will be the third election where I voted by mail. Necessary in 2020 because of Covid but I find it more convenient now, anyway. @Cassel I don't know what a "riding" is. Here's what you wrote on your blog: "they would add the numbers for each riding." Is it similar to our city which is divided into Wards? 

A riding is an electoral  district, also called a constituency. I presume the Canadians adopted  this word from the British, more specifically from the English.

[Cassel]

Thanks @Sue Thomas for the help. I am not very good at all that terminology. So, here is a summary for Canada (obviously, the names would change in different countries)

• Riding (or Electoral District): This is the main area or region in which voters elect one candidate to represent them in the provincial legislature. Each riding corresponds to a seat in the Legislative Assembly. Each riding elects one Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA). The provincial map is divided into ridings of about 15000 people, on average. (we have 49 ridings)

• Polling Division: Each riding is subdivided into polling divisions. These are smaller geographic areas within the riding. A polling division is the smallest electoral unit, and it determines where voters cast their ballots based on where they live. Each polling division has its own assigned polling station (or polling place). In the end, it is all counted in a riding.

• Polling Station: This is the physical location where voters from a particular polling division go to cast their ballots. There can be several polling stations within a riding, each serving voters from specific polling divisions. Again, it is just a convenient way to allow voters as it is all counted into the same riding total.

[Sue Thomas]

I simplified  my definition. Yours was far more detailed.  Lol