Elections

[Deleted]

I know I should’ve posted this in politics, but I also know many members avoid that board, and I need as much advice as I can get. I hope the mods will forgive me. Pretty please?

Tomorrow is Election Day here, and I am overwhelmed by the all the positions on the ballots. I’m going to risk getting flamed and admit that I’ve only ever voted in elections for mayors and Presidents. I’ve come to believe now though, that it is imperative to vote in EVERY election, to try to help get our nation back on track.

I didn’t realize there would be so many things to vote for tomorrow and I got a late start trying to figure things out. Now I’m running out of time to research candidates. I’m a bit disgusted with myself for not being more informed, and I don’t know what to do now.

I guess I don’t really have a question since I feel like I’ve already messed it up. I am however, open to advice about how not to mess up next time, if we even make it to a next time where we get to vote. I guess I do have a question after all….. in elections where there are dozens of positions to vote on, how do you figure out who you want to vote for without spending countless hours of research for everything on the ballots?

[Sharon]

We receive voters pamphlets put out by the county and state.  The candidates write up what is usually a half page of information.  That is very telling.  In some instances it is very easy to eliminate a candidate based on what they write.  I also read the endorsements at the bottom, and take into consideration who is or isn't supporting this candidate.

People/Groups/Organization will also submit pro and con pieces for ballot measures.  Again I will look who is supporting or opposing a certain measure.

It helps eliminate candidates and cuts down on the research.

[Opti]

Pink, if I don't have enough time, I just vote on the things or people I did have time to research. Prioritize what you want to vote on and start from there. I Google local candidates to see if they have a presence and read about them if they do.

[Tennesseer]

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaried in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vote in elections for all those primaried in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections here because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

[giramomma]

You also might do a search on a local new web site to see if they have a list of what's on the ballot.

Some of the positions only have one person running.

I would scan position titles. One office that gets voted on is the Register for Deeds, ie, the person who leads the vital records office.

Seriously, I don't care about that position, or say the county clerk position like I would the sheriff's position.

Can you vote straight one ticket (all republican or all democratic)? That's another option.

You know your area and how it aligns to your beliefs.

I'm  fiscally conservative but socially liberal. However, when push comes to shove, I prioritize learning liberal socially over being financially conservative. Which lends me to vote one way across the board.

[Deleted]

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaries in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vitevin elections for all those primaries in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

I’m going to say it even though it’s embarrassing, I don’t even understand most of your post about primaries and such. 

My Grandmother might show up in my dreams to fuss at me, and she probably should because she voted every chance she got and tried to encourage us do the same, but I’ve never paid any of this stuff any attention.

There is literally only 1 vote that I’m sure of, and that is just me knowing that I want to vote for whoever is running against this person.

[minnesotapaintlady]

My state has a really good website for voting that you can print out the ticket for your area and read info about each of the candidates. The bigger races like govenor and district representatives have video interviews asking about hot topic views and such.  I just brought home a copy of our ticket today to show DS as our primary is next Tuesday.  I do much better than the old days of showing up in the booth and not knowing half the names!

[Deleted]

I declare myself non-partisan. Both the Democrats and the Republicans seem to pick the most extreme members of their parties and in the final elections I vote for the "least awful". I can still vote on issues in the primaries, which I just did. It's perilous for me to vote straight ticket- there are extremes in both parties. Sometimes I vote for a Libertarian or Independent if they have a fresh viewpoint and seem capable of playing nicely with others.

You should be able to get a sample ballot with a Google search. From there, research the candidates and issues, also with a Google search. No info? I don't vote for them. Sometimes who endorses them (NRA, Teacher's Union, etc.) can be meaningful. I may save all the mailings I get- that can rule a few out. It doesn't take that long. I then go in with my "cheat sheet".

DO vote. Read the history of what women went through to get the vote. Hint: It was NOT like the society ladies in Mary Poppins singing "Sister Suffragette". It was brutal.

In our little town (population 30,000, don't know number of people actually eligible to vote) 3 tax proposals failed by about 250 votes. I'd voted for 2 out of the 3 and was disappointed to see all of them voted down. So your vote CAN count.

[Deleted]

Aug 3, 2022 18:13:48 GMT -5 giramomma said:

You also might do a search on a local new web site to see if they have a list of what's on the ballot.

Some of the positions only have one person running.

I would scan position titles. One office that gets voted on is the Register for Deeds, ie, the person who leads the vital records office.

Seriously, I don't care about that position, or say the county clerk position like I would the sheriff's position.

Can you vote straight one ticket (all republican or all democratic)? That's another option.

You know your area and how it aligns to your beliefs.

I'm  fiscally conservative but socially liberal. However, when push comes to shove, I prioritize learning liberal socially over being financially conservative. Which lends me to vote one way across the board.

That’s how I got overwhelmed, looking at the website to see what’s on the ballot.

Yes, some of the positions are more important to me than others, but it’s still a bit overwhelming.

My bottom line is I want people in office that believe in treating everyone fairly and with decency and respect.

It looks like some are Democrat vs Republican, those are easy because I’ve always tried to be open minded, I am not impressed at all with todays Republicans and have no intention on helping them advance their asinine agendas.

[Deleted]

Aug 3, 2022 18:27:01 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

I declare myself non-partisan. Both the Democrats and the Republicans seem to pick the most extreme members of their parties and in the final elections I vote for the "least awful". I can still vote on issues in the primaries, which I just did. It's perilous for me to vote straight ticket- there are extremes in both parties. Sometimes I vote for a Libertarian or Independent if they have a fresh viewpoint and seem capable of playing nicely with others.

You should be able to get a sample ballot with a Google search. From there, research the candidates and issues, also with a Google search. No info? I don't vote for them. Sometimes who endorses them (NRA, Teacher's Union, etc.) can be meaningful. I may save all the mailings I get- that can rule a few out. It doesn't take that long. I then go in with my "cheat sheet".

DO vote. Read the history of what women went through to get the vote. Hint: It was NOT like the society ladies in Mary Poppins singing "Sister Suffragette". It was brutal.

In our little town (population 30,000, don't know number of people actually eligible to vote) 3 tax proposals failed by about 250 votes. I'd voted for 2 out of the 3 and was disappointed to see all of them voted down. So your vote CAN count.

Well I live in a little blue corner of a red state. Aside from local elections, we get outvoted on other elections by the rest of the state. I don’t care, I still want my voice to “be heard” through my voting. Even if it doesn’t change anything, at least I tried.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

WA is vote by mail only, which allows you to time.  We receive the ballot a few weeks before it is due, and at the same time receive a mailing of all the candidates.  I go through the mailing, then go onto google and check out web sites of candidates.  

I do have to admit that voting by mail I am far more likely to vote in all the elections.  There have been very few elections that I have missed, whereas when I had to go to the polls I always voted in the major elections and minors or midterm were hit and miss.  I should be ashamed as to missing so many of the minor/midterm ones because my apartment was one building away.  

[irishpad]

Aug 3, 2022 18:13:53 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

I’m going to say it even though it’s embarrassing, I don’t even understand most of your post about primaries and such. 

My Grandmother might show up in my dreams to fuss at me, and she probably should because she voted every chance she got and tried to encourage us do the same, but I’ve never paid any of this stuff any attention.

There is literally only 1 vote that I’m sure of, and that is just me knowing that I want to vote for whoever is running against this person.

Bless (not in the Southern way) your Grandma.  Have been working through the book "The 1619 Project" and loved the chapter on how the black community since the end of slavery has been so forceful in participation in the democratic process and are also very patriotic.   On a side note, proof of patriotism.  

[Tennesseer]

Aug 3, 2022 18:13:53 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaries in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vitevin elections for all those primaries in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

I’m going to say it even though it’s embarrassing, I don’t even understand most of your post about primaries and such. 

My Grandmother might show up in my dreams to fuss at me, and she probably should because she voted every chance she got and tried to encourage us do the same, but I’ve never paid any of this stuff any attention.

There is literally only 1 vote that I’m sure of, and that is just me knowing that I want to vote for whoever is running against this person.

What's there not to understand? Memphis and Shelby County elections.

[saveinla]

After using mail in ballot, its been much easier to vote. We also get a book with details of all the candidates and I then go to a few newspaper sites about recommendations. That said in a lot of smaller positions, I vote the party line.

[Opti]

Aug 3, 2022 20:38:35 GMT -5 irishpad said:

Aug 3, 2022 18:13:53 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

I’m going to say it even though it’s embarrassing, I don’t even understand most of your post about primaries and such. 

My Grandmother might show up in my dreams to fuss at me, and she probably should because she voted every chance she got and tried to encourage us do the same, but I’ve never paid any of this stuff any attention.

There is literally only 1 vote that I’m sure of, and that is just me knowing that I want to vote for whoever is running against this person.

Bless (not in the Southern way) your Grandma.  Have been working through the book "The 1619 Project" and loved the chapter on how the black community since the end of slavery has been so forceful in participation in the democratic process and are also very patriotic.   On a side note, proof of patriotism.  

Thanks for sharing this. I saw Chapel Hart on AGT. I hope they do well.

[teen persuasion]

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaried in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vote in elections for all those primaried in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections here because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

It's amazing how different it is in each state.

So you have local primaries first, then Fed primaries on top of the local election, then the Fed election in Nov? Yikes, confusing!

Ours is getting confusing, too, because federal rules have changed our normal system. We formerly had primaries in Sept, and election in Nov, but those pesky rule changes forced our primaries earlier, to June. But House redistricting was still undecided until May, so only the local primary races ran in June, and federal primaries got pushed to Aug 23 to give candidates time to figure out which new district they wanted to run in, get enough signatures of voters in that district to be eligible to run, etc. Also a few special elections for empty seats.

But our primaries are closed, and you have to declare a party months in advance to be a eligible to vote in the primary, so we are always shut out of the primary process, because we refuse to give up our independent unaffiliated status. Hmm, wonder how they handle those empty seat races, because everyone should get to vote those? Wait, only the affected district (old maps) would be voting those -- and the primaries are for candidates for the new map districts -- oh, that's really confusing!!

In general, I don't have many competitive races to vote. Often a candidate is running unopposed, on all lines. Even if there's 2 candidates, I try to vote my choice on a third party line instead of D or R, because the stats from how many votes each party gets influences which party gets listed first, and ultimately which parties get listed at all. I want more choices, so I support more choices. So if I want the D candidate, I vote for that name, but on the Working Families line instead of the D line, if that makes sense. Or if the R candidate is unopposed, I'll tick him under some other line, like Independence.

It's pretty rare to get state referendums, or direct questions here. That's much more common on school budget votes in May. The school district is required to send the basic budget numbers and school board candidates with bios, and any extra budget questions, out to residents before the vote. I also get a detailed budget file to post on the library website for residents to access, so I go thru it each year.

[Tennesseer]

Aug 3, 2022 21:14:01 GMT -5 teen persuasion said:

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaried in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vote in elections for all those primaried in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections here because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

It's amazing how different it is in each state.

So you have local primaries first, then Fed primaries on top of the local election, then the Fed election in Nov? Yikes, confusing!

Ours is getting confusing, too, because federal rules have changed our normal system. We formerly had primaries in Sept, and election in Nov, but those pesky rule changes forced our primaries earlier, to June. But House redistricting was still undecided until May, so only the local primary races ran in June, and federal primaries got pushed to Aug 23 to give candidates time to figure out which new district they wanted to run in, get enough signatures of voters in that district to be eligible to run, etc. Also a few special elections for empty seats.

But our primaries are closed, and you have to declare a party months in advance to be a eligible to vote in the primary, so we are always shut out of the primary process, because we refuse to give up our independent unaffiliated status. Hmm, wonder how they handle those empty seat races, because everyone should get to vote those? Wait, only the affected district (old maps) would be voting those -- and the primaries are for candidates for the new map districts -- oh, that's really confusing!!

In general, I don't have many competitive races to vote. Often a candidate is running unopposed, on all lines. Even if there's 2 candidates, I try to vote my choice on a third party line instead of D or R, because the stats from how many votes each party gets influences which party gets listed first, and ultimately which parties get listed at all. I want more choices, so I support more choices. So if I want the D candidate, I vote for that name, but on the Working Families line instead of the D line, if that makes sense. Or if the R candidate is unopposed, I'll tick him under some other line, like Independence.

It's pretty rare to get state referendums, or direct questions here. That's much more common on school budget votes in May. The school district is required to send the basic budget numbers and school board candidates with bios, and any extra budget questions, out to residents before the vote. I also get a detailed budget file to post on the library website for residents to access, so I go thru it each year.careful.

You got it right. And its a pain in the ass.

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

I've never had the opportunity to vote other than by mail. I do think it relieves a great deal of stress. However, my husband misses having a poll person (is that the right term?) say "Mr. _______ has voted". So, he says it out loud to himself. Sometimes he texts it to me. I like that guy. 


Anyhoo, I'm sorry you're stressed, but I just want to remind you that you're giving it a go, and that's important. You're not ignoring it. I have been known to leave a section blank if I truly couldn't make up my mind. I've also been known to write in a candidate if I really didn't  want to vote for anyone who was running. 

I cannot fathom any of that actually helps you. 

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Why are people voting in non-May and non-November? I had no idea that actually happened. Well, okay, I guess I know presidential nominees start in February with that whole Iowa and then the Super Tuesday thing. 
I'm pretty darn sure that our primaries are in May and our regular stuff is in November. But measures can be on either the May ballot or the November ballot. I really don't think I've ever voted in a month other than May or November. 

<Chloe no longer wants to make her face scrunch up with this conversation, so she's exiting stage right.>

[teen persuasion]

I was going to suggest BallotPedia to look up your ballot and candidates by your address. But putting my address in to test it, it gave me NY 24, when I was *sure* my district was changing from 27 (lost) to 26. So I went looking for a map of the *new* districts - and looking, and looking, and looking, and LOOKING... It's really hard to find a working lookup tool that wasn't showing me the current districts, or past ones, or was just too blurry to read. I swear I'd looked it up when the maps were finally decided, and all of my county was in 26, and I was doing a happy dance.

Now it appears my side of the county is in a big snake 24 district that slithers around Rochester (Finger Lakes) and continues along the Lake Ontario shoreline eastward around Syracuse in Central NY and on up to NNY. When my region is in Western NY, looking entirely southward to Buffalo (26) and Erie county (partially 23).


I am NOT pleased to learn this! But it appears BallotPedia is correct, unfortunately for me.

Off to research who's running against Claudia Tenney (wondered why she was running tv ads *here*).

[Cheesy FL-Vol]

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaried in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vote in elections for all those primaried in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections here because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

The primaries are the same over on this side of the state. It is a weird system. Having been in FL most of my adult life, I was spoiled by the plethora of available info on candidates and one primary and one Election Day. It was never very hard to find candidate websites and other info on them. In this day and age, if a candidate did not have a website, I ruled them out immediately as a viable candidate.

I was shocked at the lack of information on our current county's elections website. Shortly after moving here, I went to the county elections office to ask some questions about the local elections process and was told to watch the newspapers for candidate information. Really? That is so archaic. So we have a couple of local paper subscriptions just so we can keep tabs on election info. Some major local candidates do have websites. We are in a rural county, so Dem candidates are practically nonexistent, and most of the candidates on the ballot were unopposed.

I could not understand why so many judicial positions are on the ballot, and why were were voting for positions for West & Middle TN. How do those judicial positions affect East TN?

[chiver78]

Aug 3, 2022 18:13:53 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Aug 3, 2022 18:04:55 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

Seeing that you (PC) and I vote in the same elections, I'll give you my take on it.  

These off years we go to the polls in May to vote in the primaries for local position.  Then in August, we vote for the people primaries in May and also vote in primaries for other local, state and federal positions like Congress HOR and senate.

Then in November we vitevin elections for all those primaries in August.

One too many trips to the polls in my opinion.  The local, state and federal folks need to get their act together and primary all at the same time and then vote once for those who won their primaries earlier.

November should always be the actual election month.  Have the primaries either in May or August.  I don't care which.  Just pick one date.  And August is a horrible month for elections because you might be standing outside in 100 plus degree weather for a few hours waiting to get inside.

Now for all those locals hoping they get elected tomorrow, you,  @pinkcshmerem cannot know them all.  I didn't.  So many of the positions they are running for have zero to do with me.  So I don't vote for anyone in that contest.  These positions, to me anyway, are obscure as are the candidates.

So you can skip those contests or just vote (if you must) for the candidate who is a member of the same political party as you.

Don't try to figure out who's who.  You'll go nuts trying to do so.

I’m going to say it even though it’s embarrassing, I don’t even understand most of your post about primaries and such. 

My Grandmother might show up in my dreams to fuss at me, and she probably should because she voted every chance she got and tried to encourage us do the same, but I’ve never paid any of this stuff any attention.

There is literally only 1 vote that I’m sure of, and that is just me knowing that I want to vote for whoever is running against this person.

that's how I ended up with the primary ballot that I got in the mail yesterday. I need to do some research to figure out the other names on this ballot, myself. I'm in a new county since the last time I voted local stuff, so I don't know any of the names. 

does your county (or state, or whatever level you're voting now) have a voting website? in MA, there's a space where you can put in your address - to determine what your specific ballot looks like - and it has more detail about each entry. it also explains any ballot questions in detail, as well as emphasizing the tricky-worded ones as to what a YES vote actually means. 

[Tennesseer]

So @pinkcshmere, did you vote today?  Did you vote in all the one hundred plus contests today?  

[Deleted]

Aug 4, 2022 20:13:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

So @pinkcshmere , did you vote today?  Did you vote in all the one hundred plus contests today?  

Yes! But I only voted on a few things.  Please don’t tell my Grandma!

[Tennesseer]

Aug 4, 2022 20:37:46 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Aug 4, 2022 20:13:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

So @pinkcshmere , did you vote today?  Did you vote in all the one hundred plus contests today?  

Yes! But I only voted on a few things.  Please don’t tell my Grandma!

You're secret is safe with me.

And that is why I dislike the August election and primary years. Too damn many contests.

[billisonboard]

Aug 4, 2022 20:37:46 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Aug 4, 2022 20:13:03 GMT -5 Tennesseer said:

So @pinkcshmere , did you vote today?  Did you vote in all the one hundred plus contests today?  

Yes! But I only voted on a few things.  Please don’t tell my Grandma!

From what Tennesseer was saying, sounds like November will be easier and you now know you need to get an earlier start looking at how to vote. Thinking Grandma would approve that you are growing.

[Tennesseer]

Aug 4, 2022 20:46:56 GMT -5 billisonboard said:

Aug 4, 2022 20:37:46 GMT -5 @pinkcshmere said:

Yes! But I only voted on a few things.  Please don’t tell my Grandma!

From what Tennesseer was saying, sounds like November will be easier and you now know you need to get an earlier start looking at how to vote. Thinking Grandma would approve that you are growing.

I think November will mostly be voting for governor, congressional rep and senator. Should be easy.

[bean29]

Wisconsin has a web site called MyVoteWi, (I think) and I go in and print my ballot.  Then I know who to research.  I try to figure out the best candidates for School Board, and Local elections.  

I do pretty much vote straight ticket for State and Federal elections.  In the last several years they have held party lines, and I feel my views more closely align with the D's so I vote straight ticket.  I have crossed over and voted for R's or I's in the past, but I would have to really think about it now.

[gs11rmb]

The League of Women Voters has an election site called:  www.vote411.org/

On the home page is a link called "Find What's on Your Ballot".  You can put in your home address and it will pull up all the candidates and and issues that you will be voting on.  I think they will also provide recommendations on who the LWV supports in each race.  From reading your posts, I get the feeling that you are on the left of the political spectrum, which fits with the LWV agenda.  This could be an easy shortcut to learn about the down ballot races.

[TheOtherMe]

I will never vote for a member of the GQP again and voting 3rd party is the same as not voting.

The law changed in Iowa so you can no longer circle straight ticket.  You have to actually mark the boxes for each race.  Doesn't matter.  I will only mark boxes for Democrats for the rest of my life.

There are a few Democrats I can't vote for so I leave those blank.  If the GQP candidate is running unopposed, I skip that race.

Iowa found out how important judge retention votes are after the Iowa Supreme Court said same sex marriage was fine.  The GQP organized and eventually got all the judges who wrote in the affirmative off the court, so now all the judges have been appointed by the GQP.