Forcing African Americans to wait in excessively long lines was literally a tool that Jim Crow states used to suppress the vote. I'm glad people are enduring them to save our democracy, but a true democracy wouldn't have them at all. - ThreadSky

kevinmkruse.bsky.social • 110 days ago

Forcing African Americans to wait in excessively long lines was literally a tool that Jim Crow states used to suppress the vote.

I'm glad people are enduring them to save our democracy, but a true democracy wouldn't have them at all.

Reposted from Omar Wasow

Long lines are a modern poll tax

Comments

mattferrel.bsky.social•110 days ago

Meanwhile, there are no lines in vote by mail states

erictjohnson.bsky.social•110 days ago

Wouldn't it be sweet if we could vote "from the comfort of your car"? During covid lockdowns people could purchase guns "from the comfort of their car" I called and verified. The owner bragged about all the folks that drove across the country to buy a gun at a drive thru window

liberalkmd.bsky.social•110 days ago

One party works to make voting harder and the other works to make it better…gee I wonder which party actually believes in democracy?

locopells.bsky.social•110 days ago

The one that gets rid of the electoral college?

msittner.bsky.social•110 days ago

I think vote by mail states have it better figured out. There are still challenges for unhoused people, but there aren't lines, you don't have to take time off work to vote, and you can actually research everything you are voting on while you do it. It's also been proven to be quite secure.

nobody-important.bsky.social•110 days ago

How nice would it be if the right to vote was as sacred as the right to bear arms to our courts.

The idea that one right (to vote) can have any restriction applied to try and prevent eligible voters from voting is ok, but the other (guns) can't have even the slightest restriction is fucking insane

paula2168.bsky.social•110 days ago

Thank you to those who wait on long lines

sarahchurchwell.bsky.social•110 days ago

The British historian @alexvont.bsky.social was commenting to me about this yesterday:

themeangene.bsky.social•110 days ago

This may oddly help Harris, as we keep hearing that Trump does better with low-propensity voters who may not care to wait a long time to vote. Could Trump lose by being hoisted on the GOP's racist petard?

zwitterion.bsky.social•110 days ago

But Trump’s voters typically have shorter voting lines.

ghostyspook.bsky.social•110 days ago

I get lines for early voting because there are (or should be) way more precincts on Election Day but if you don’t have enough early voting spots you should add some next election. Refusing to do that says a lot

calmthoughts.bsky.social•110 days ago

💯 IT IS VERY BLATANT RACISM !!!

beninquiring.bsky.social•110 days ago

Always grateful this time of year to be back in Colorado.

viviennesoton.bsky.social•110 days ago

We don’t typically have long lines at polling stations on election day but that’s because we have a pitifully low turnout at elections. Which is also bad for democracy!

seen4.bsky.social•110 days ago

Now living in an “all mail ballot” state I kinda believe it should be a model everywhere

aeronaute.bsky.social•110 days ago

I've always voted in New England, and back in the days before no-excuse mail-in ballots or early voting, the longest I every had to queue was maybe 20 minutes if I went at a busy time. I've voted early or by mail for the last 10 years, so no waiting at all. (Except the nail biting during counting.)

mlamb.bsky.social•110 days ago

Something else for Harris to add to her to do list.

papagenopdx.bsky.social•110 days ago

Oh it's transparent voter suppression. Alas, thanks to the terrible Shelby decision, the Neo-Confederates can do what they please and one can only seek redress and sue them after the electoral damage is done. Neat trick, that.

motelkalifornia.bsky.social•110 days ago

Too right. Here in Australia, with compulsory voting, I've never waited more than 30 minutes to vote. Then we have a democracy sausage and a coke.

slkrr9.bsky.social•110 days ago

In Brazil (also compulsory voting), it usually takes 5-10 minutes. There was only 1 time I had to wait more than 30 minutes and it was because the fingerprint-reading machine for my voting section was broken.

reallyreal.bsky.social•110 days ago

Wait, what? A fingerprint reading machine?

slkrr9.bsky.social•110 days ago

It’s a new thing the last 2 or 3 elections. When you register to vote in Brazil, they capture your fingerprint, then you use that when you vote to prove who you are.

bookishclaire.bsky.social•110 days ago

In the UK, I’ve never had to wait. Just walk straight in. There are lots and lots of polling places.

cosmichomicide.bsky.social•110 days ago

We are down to under 100K polling places nationwide, which is insane. We could increase that by 30K immediately (based on population even) by making every Post Office a polling place.

shirleydunk.bsky.social•110 days ago

Our state has very few "polling places" compared to other states because almost everybody votes by mail. The "polling places" are there for those who need help, or just want to go to a "polling place".

cosmichomicide.bsky.social•110 days ago

One of the advantages of using Post Offices as well in vote by mail states for folks who need assistance. 👍

The USPS was my favorite agency (and will be again after we exit DeJoy) - underutilized gem.

shywoof.bsky.social•110 days ago

Why haven't we managed to get rid of DeJoy again? How hard is it to fire one guy

cosmichomicide.bsky.social•110 days ago

Has to do with the rotation and appointment cycle of the Postal Board of Governors. 😕
https://www.palmbeachpost.com/story/opinion/columns/2024/04/28/why-president-biden-cant-fire-the-postmaster-general-of-u-s-postal/73443709007/

paulclark42.bsky.social•110 days ago

I have voted in every British election since 1979. Never had to queue for more than 10 minutes.

fitforpurpose.bsky.social•110 days ago

In my country I’ve voted 19 times. Never queued for longer than 10 minutes. Often just walked straight in. Furthest walk to a polling station was 1200m.

martinned.bsky.social•110 days ago

True democracies don't.

green496.bsky.social•110 days ago

Yep. Part of the reason I vote early. I got tired of waiting for up to an hour to vote.

kitncaboodle.bsky.social•110 days ago

But, but the state REQUIRES employers to give workers 2 hours off to vote. Yeah great when the line is 3 hours long.

ghostyspook.bsky.social•110 days ago

We technically can get time off to vote but we have to request it ahead of time which seems silly I never do that

jig.bsky.social•110 days ago

nhallerwilson.bsky.social•110 days ago

💯💯💯💯

trexlawyer.bsky.social•110 days ago

Every state should be as easy as CO - mailed ballots for everyone, 24/7 drop boxes everywhere, 3+ weeks early voting, etc.

barbdrummond.bsky.social•110 days ago

In Britain the weather was used. Labour preferred summer when wealthy were abroad, Tories chose winter as rain deterred the poor from polls

redsagitter.bsky.social•110 days ago

so Sunak planned the politacal debacle by calling a general election on the 4th of July? O_o

kclimans.bsky.social•110 days ago

A true democracy would make election day a mandatory day off work so that people can vote at their leisure.

2dognight.bsky.social•110 days ago

There were “glitches” statewide in Ky this morning. 😒

biggsium.bsky.social•110 days ago

It's outrageous.

locopells.bsky.social•110 days ago

I don't get how you endure the ridiculously long campaigns either.

Over here, the whole thing's done in six weeks, and it took me about ten minutes out of my normal commute to vote...

reallyreal.bsky.social•110 days ago

Abso-fucking-lutely! It's insane on so many levels.

fireflyandowl.bsky.social•110 days ago

The short champaign period sounds fantastic. I hate election years. It's months and months of non-stop political rhetoric and debates, but only the same 2 political parties-GOP and Dems.

locopells.bsky.social•110 days ago

At least over here you hear from the other parties, even if trying to convince the undecideds to vote for them is difficult (yes, we all hate the Tories, but there WERE other options than Kier Bloody Starmar)...

fireflyandowl.bsky.social•110 days ago

If you're trying to make me jealous, it's totally working.

locopells.bsky.social•110 days ago

Oops, sorry!

offdamountain.bsky.social•110 days ago

It is wild for me in Europe that people just go voting here, with no drama, no queues, no purging or suppression. The USA is not a democracry.

sazeracla.bsky.social•110 days ago

I would like for us all to lobby for universal nationwide voting standards, including national vote by mail.

scottsd.bsky.social•110 days ago

Donate to pizza to the polls. It's the least we can do to help.

ssmith1520.bsky.social•110 days ago

We should make registering to vote and voting as easy as possible. But, of course, if we did that, unpopular ideas benefiting those who have enough already would never win.

mensenyat.bsky.social•110 days ago

Spanish here. Maybe... Just copy the voting systems of other countries that DO NOT NEED to register? In Spain you are pre-registered to vote, you go to your station and vote. 10 minutes to vote, end of story. It works. We have the results the same day. It is solved, no shame in copying.

shadowhedgie8.bsky.social•110 days ago

Spain requires all residents to register with their local municipality, whether or not they intend to or are even allowed to vote. You'd have to implement something like that first.

mensenyat.bsky.social•110 days ago

I mean, you just register as "living" there. You register in your local municipality not to vote, but for ALL public services. Public healthcare, all that stuff. And this includes "registration" to vote. All in one step.

shadowhedgie8.bsky.social•110 days ago

Right, there's a lot of administrative infrastructure (and cultural norms governing how citizens relate to the administrative state) underlying the fact that in Spain you do not need to register to vote specifically.

You can't just flip a switch and make it happen in the US.

mensenyat.bsky.social•110 days ago

Yeah, of course. I don't mean that it had to be done for this year, but maybe it can be accomplished in 2040 with a minimum, tiny effort each year. But with this, it will always stay like this.

mensenyat.bsky.social•110 days ago

But I mean, we also have an ID, something that is beyond the capabilities of the US, for what I see.

ssmith1520.bsky.social•110 days ago

Probably more accurate to say we have chosen not to develop and implement that capability for everyone to have an ID. Some states have closed the offices where you would get an ID in rural and non-white areas in what seems to be a deliberate effort to disenfranchise particular groups.

ranryu.bsky.social•110 days ago

Requiring ID is one of the easiest ways to deny people on the working class the right to vote

ssmith1520.bsky.social•110 days ago

Voter registration varies from state to state, so it looks different everywhere. I think Nevada went to automatic registration like you suggest, but some states, particularly states that have a history of institutional discrimination, make it as hard as possible to register.

londoner007.bsky.social•110 days ago

Shameful

mensenyat.bsky.social•110 days ago

I never understand initially why is it so difficult to vote in the US. Then I remember: "oh, right, racism".

slkrr9.bsky.social•110 days ago

Sadly, this explains at least 95% of the things that are wrong with the USA: "oh, right, racism."

nwgarcia.bsky.social•110 days ago

Republican officials don't want that, but also there are a lot of Americans who believe it should be difficult for *citizens* to vote. I don't know if it's a Puritanical, self-flagellation thing, but a weirdly large number of people think easy voting is basically immoral.

nwgarcia.bsky.social•110 days ago

Sorry, I should say they believe easy voting is wrong for other people. Heaven forbid they have to wait in a long poll line themselves.

blammarie.bsky.social•110 days ago

Yeah, Canada too. As soon as you file taxes the first time, you’re registered to vote. And every time I move, Canada post snitches to Elections Canada, who send me a notice they updated my voting location. When an election happens I get a card in the mail to tell me where & when to go.

sirschming.bsky.social•110 days ago

Canada does not have these lines like the US does. Voting is quick and painless.

sperfur.bsky.social•110 days ago

I have hopes that a high priority for the Harris administration will be funding to make voting less difficult in high-population areas.

In a city of 100k, I rarely waited in line to vote, and never for long. It should be that way everywhere.

amyconorado.bsky.social•110 days ago

Absolutely agree!

reallyreal.bsky.social•110 days ago

The right can only win by cheating, a tale as old as time.

nada-accomplished.bsky.social•110 days ago

Don't forget making it illegal to hand out bottled water to voters. They're not even trying to be subtle about it.

fireflyandowl.bsky.social•110 days ago

I don't remember ever having to wait this long to vote in a US election before (over an hour). It's insane.

ranryu.bsky.social•110 days ago

A true democracy wouldn't rely on only a handful of states to determine who runs the country

troutfish.bsky.social•110 days ago

Here in Australia, it's compulsory for everyone to vote, and it's literally 2 minutes in and out to do it.

fizz.lol•110 days ago

also, wild that the day is not a national holiday, but i know thats by design

perryanderson1.bsky.social•110 days ago

The GOP is repulsive.

dot-stevie.bsky.social•110 days ago

So happy we can vote at our leisure from home and drop our ballots off a mile up the road.

tfuller3.bsky.social•110 days ago

Look upon your works, Chief Justice Roberts

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