Tuesday, June 7, 2016

Finally a Vote...A Vote That Almost Wasn't

Today was the day!  California had its Primary election as well as our state elections today.  Finally!  As I've previously mentioned, CA is the most populous state in the country, and it really irks me that our primary vote is all but useless.  This year, it was predicted that we might actually have some influence over the selection.  As it turned out however, that influence was very little.  Since all but one of the Republicans candidates had dropped out, that race had already been decided before it was our turn.  However, the Democrat candidacy was still (narrowly) up in the air, so there was a slim chance that California (and New Jersey) could be the deciding factor between Hillary and Bernie, or at least an influencing factor over what the DNC might do at the convention.  As it turns out, Hillary took the state by a wide margin (far more than I'd expected), so if anything our vote more solidified the candidacy for Hillary rather than help choose it.  Well, at least we had state elections that hadn't already been decided before we got to vote.  And I did vote, so I get to complain as much as I want now! :)
However, today's vote wasn't as easy as I expected it to be.  A few weeks ago, I had filled out my application for an absentee ballot.  Tuesdays tend to be hard for me to get to the polling place after school and my mornings are already early enough without having to leave even earlier to vote.  In the past, the absentee hasn't been one iota of a problem.  This time though, it was.  For the last couple of weeks, I've been hearing chatter about people receiving their absentees, but I had yet to receive it.  Election Day got closer and I was still without one.  I decided I'd just go to the polls in the morning and tell them my tale of woe.  Weirdly enough, when I picked up yesterday's mail after my walk this morning, the absentee ballot had arrived...that would have been the day before the election day.  It was too late to mail in, so it came with me to the polls this morning.
That's where I hit another road block.  I will admit, I hadn't checked the address of my polling place before I left this morning as I've gone to the same place since I've lived in the house (11 years). It's about a block away and an easy in and out location on my way to work.  I arrived at just a few minutes after 7:00 am and waited to check in.  There I was told that this was no longer my polling place.  Instead, rather than going a block away, on the same main road as my house, my polling place was now about a mile away going in the opposite direction of my work.  Ugh!
I seriously contemplated just going to work and trying to go afterwards, but I knew I wouldn't.  I talked myself into it and headed over to the new polling places.  (BTW, it seems as if many of our polling places were changed this year as I was NOT the only one who went to the wrong place!)
Considering I needed to make 3 left turns (at punishment left turn lights) I made pretty good time and was relieved when I pulled into the parking lot of the nearby retirement community's recreation center where my precinct was polling.
My relief was short-lived however when I walked into the center and there was a line about 6 deep.  All 6 were residents of the local retirement community and looked to have been retired for quite some time...let's just say they were not on their way to work.  After about ten minutes of waiting, my patience was waning.  Most of the wait was due to the people in front of me needing a lot of help with the entire process of the voting.  After 15 minutes of waiting, I was ready to vote for a change in policy...if you don't have to be at work in the morning, you don't get to arrive at the polls before 9:00 am!  I was having hanging-chads-in-Florida flashbacks when it got to 20 minute mark waiting in line.  Finally, there was an opening at one of the Democrat booths.  Thankfully I had filled in my sample ballot ahead of time so I was able to punch those chads out quickly and efficiently.  By the time I fed my ballot into the voting machine and sprinted out the door to my car it was 7:40, ten minutes later than I normally leave for work.  But I made it.  I don't know if my vote was worth all the trouble, but I proudly wore my "I Voted" sticker throughout the day.

11 comments:

  1. Well I'm glad you got to vote and can now complain! :D What a nightmare the process turned out to be for you, though. Do y'all have "early voting"? We do and it usually opens about two weeks prior to the election and takes place in the centrally located courthouse. I always try to take advantage of that and can't remember the last time I actually went to my polling location (which I think has changed!).

    I know we're opposites politically (but probably not on all issues), but I almost get physically ill when I think of my options for November. If only a third party vote counted for anything... *sigh* It's the most depressing election I can remember in a lifetime.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We don't have early voting here. Absentee is our option and anyone can get one. You don't have to prove anything, just fill out the paperwork. And I just recently read that you can become a lifetime absentee voter if you wish. I didn't do that because some elections I do wish to actually vote. But I was told that I can always take my absentee ballot and surrender it in order to vote at the precinct.
      It seems to me that our opinions on civil rights are more inline that opposite. I don't have a hatred for Hillary, so I'm ok with that choice, not thrilled but ok. My biggest issue with her is that she's status quo, the rich get richer while the rest of us pay the bills. But I feel that the civil rights of many groups will remain intact with her in office. I fear that they won't be with the alternative. But I do understand the dilemma.

      Delete
    2. Yes, it's probably the social issues we'd most agree on (where I tend to be very moderate or even a bit to the left), but fiscally, I'm pretty hard core conservative. I've always liked that saying about keeping the Democrats out of your wallet and the Republicans out of your bedroom and things might be okay. ;)

      And...I realize I differ from 99% of my blogging buddies when it comes to gun rights, but just consider where I live - I guess in part it's a cultural thing.

      The biggest drawback to early voting at our courthouse? I never get one of those "I voted" stickers there! Waahh!

      Delete
    3. I also wonder if there's any issue with the early voting keeping people away on the actual day due to any results given earlier? I know they say that early results often keep people away later in the day. They called Hillary here around 4:00, and there were still 4 hours of voting left on Tuesday. I'm sure people just stayed home after that. I wonder if that happens with early voting.
      I can respect a difference in financial issue between the parties, but am having a very hard time respecting the hate that some on the right bring to the table. That has been difficult to stomach, to be honest.

      Delete
    4. Calling states on the east coast early in the evening during the general election has always bothered me. And I hate exit polls. How do they know people are telling them the truth?

      Early voting results aren't counted (as far as I know) until the election is over. We use voting machines and I assume all that is just kept inside them until all is said and done.

      I've been disgusted by the rhetoric from both sides, candidates and supporters alike. Sadly, it will only get worse over the next four (!!!) months.

      Delete
  2. Still,you'd have to wonder between the two parties who'd be happier if Trump said in the morning, 'Hay guys, big joke, gotya'.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh I agree. I think the Right establishment is falling all over themselves right now. They know they are alienating people left and right, but aren't sure what to do about it. The Speaker has basically said, "Yah, he's racist, but I still support him." AHHHHHHHH!

      Delete
  3. Like Kelly, I haven't voted on Election Day in years thanks to early voting. It's great and unless you are unable to get to the polls or are on an extended trip away, it largely eliminates absentee voting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am mistaken, I just looked up why we didn't have early voting and it says WE DO! I have not seen or heard anything about it and don't know anyone who has voted early. Maybe we're all just lazy and choose absentee. :) I'll have to research further.
      As I've mentioned above, it's never been an issue to do absentee as we don't need an excuse to apply for it. Most of the time I'd prefer not go to the polls, but for the big elections I like to for my students. Government is a large portion of our social studies curriculum so we do a lot with it. They LOVE the voting! When I came in with my sticker yesterday they gasped with excitement. :)

      Delete
  4. My polling place didn't even have stickers this year. Can you believe it? I am glad you were able to withstand the wait so you could place your vote.

    ReplyDelete