What time of day is a good time to vote?

[richlevy]

The 2004 election was the first election that I had to stand more than 10 minutes in line for. Now I am perfectly willing to stand for 2 hours in the rain to vote, especially if I feel that someone has conspired to make me stand in line for 2 hours. I will still try to actively avoid it.

One of the very few off-year elections I missed was when I got held up at work, so I prefer voting on my way in to work, at about 8:30. This year I am debating about whether to show up when the polls open at 7am and maybe have breakfast afterwards. Or show up after work at about 7pm.

[glatt]

If there is a long wait to vote, I'd rather that wait occur in the morning.

If the polls close at 9PM, and there is a 3 hour wait, and you get there at 7PM, will you be allowed to vote? If you go in the morning, you don't even have to ask that question.

[Sundae]

This year, for the first time evah, I lived and worked in the same place. So I voted at lunchtime and paid the price by being surrounded by pensioners who didn't understand the system.

I've always voted in the morning before. People don't like to alter their daily routine to the extent of getting up earlier. Also the people who are voting at this time are invariably on their way to work, so you can assume at least a baseline IQ.

[Undertoad]

Originally Posted by glatt

If the polls close at 9PM, and there is a 3 hour wait, and you get there at 7PM, will you be allowed to vote?

The polls close at 8, and poll workers are instructed to not close until everyone in line has voted. Some idiot poll workers may not understand, and there is the occasional story about how some latecomer was turned away, but that's rare.

Best times to vote are between 9:30 and noon, and between 1:30 and 4:30. It's rare for there to be a wait during those hours.

[glatt]

I don't have any cites, but I seem to remember stories from previous elections where people in line inside the building were allowed to vote, but those in line outside the building were not, even if they had arrived a long time before the polls closed.

I'm not saying it's a common occurrence. In fact, I think it's quite rare. But going to vote well before the closing time will eliminate that small risk.

[Shawnee123]

Hmmm...my polling place is usually not too bad, but I've been able to go at off times in the past. I guess I should be prepared for being late to work.

I'm guessing "early" voting is during normal business hours? They hold the early voting at the County Seat. I'm old-fashioned about voting on election day, but then again I had not anticipated a new job farther away from home...until now!

[Undertoad]

But going to vote well before the closing time will eliminate that small risk.

Yes, but what you're forgetting is that Rich is desperate for an opportunity to wield his righteous indignation at how the election works. It would really make his day, to be turned away.

[glatt]

In Virginia, they had absentee voting set up with Saturday hours.

[binky]

Looking forward to voting for the first time in my new town. I heard from someone that when he voted once, the poll worker, shouted out "its another Democrat" (This place is overwhelmingly Republican). So I am all geared up to get offensive if that happens to me.

[jinx]

I vote among the 55+ community republicans, amish, and evangelical xtians - in an evangelical church this time around. Never had an issue.

[wolf]

I usually head over around 2:30p or so, never had to wait for more than one or two people ahead of me. I'm using a new polling place now, though, so I don't know how the traffic runs. I did walk right in on Primary Voting Day, despite there being a crowd expected because of all the people who switched registration to vote against Hitlary, as well as first time registrants.

[TheMercenary]

I did it today, took about 15 min total.

[DanaC]

Originally Posted by wolf

I usually head over around 2:30p or so, never had to wait for more than one or two people ahead of me.

Are you in a mainly democrat or mainly republican district?

[richlevy]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

Yes, but what you're forgetting is that Rich is desperate for an opportunity to wield his righteous indignation at how the election works. It would really make his day, to be turned away.

Not really. First I would absolutely not allow myself to be turned away, especially since I have only missed two elections in about 20 years.

Most of the issues will be around first time voters.

PA does not have early voting, just absentee. Since we are a large battleground state, this should be interesting when everyone descends upon the polls on Election Day.

Here is an election guide from the League of Women Voters that should advance the discussion. On pages 25-26 it discusses challenges and how provisional ballot voters can verify that their vote was counted.

Essentially, any voter can be challenged by any other voter, but a challenge does not automatically result in a provisional ballot. People who have been foreclosed upon and are living somewhere else can still vote at their old polling place upon signing an affidavit. However, voters or partisan officials can make unlimited challenges, which could delay voting.

Can a person’s right to vote be challenged at the polls?
Yes, but a challenge alone is not enough to keep a voter from voting.156 A person whose name
appears in the poll book can only be challenged as to identity, residence in the election district, or
a violation of election law.157 But, no voter whose name appears in the poll book may be properly
challenged on the basis that s/he has moved out of the district because where a voter has moved
out the district, s/he is entitled to vote at her/his old polling place one last time after signing an
Affirmation of Elector, updating her/his address.158

BTW, for the voting in Virginia, what are the weekend hours? This situation in sounds horrible, but not as bad as waiting until election day. 5 hours on Saturday, 3 on Sunday, and 8 hours on weekdays. If people have access to computers, they can check wait times in Broward county.

Broward County early voters can cast ballots on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and three hours Sunday, from 1 to 4 p.m.

At Broward's 17 early voting sites Friday, wait times ranged from 30 minutes to three hours.

Election officials expect a record number of people to vote early at the 17 locations in Broward and 20 locations in Miami-Dade as both presidential campaigns make major pushes to encourage people to vote before Nov. 4.

[TheMercenary]

Before early voting I always went before the doors opened and beat the line, or most of it. Never took more than 10 or 15 minutes.