Smooth Process
Sure, I had to wait in line. I went at the peak of the morning rush at 8 AM, but only had to wait 30 minutes, and at my voting location there were two separate precincts! Two women would go down the line verifying your precinct location. Once you knew that, you could get in the correct line inside. And once inside, there were plenty of volunteers to help you with the ballot, or to translate. I saw a Japanese translator, a Russian translator, and a Chinese translator.
Once we voted, we were directed to a checkout location where a cop checked our name off of a list. I didn't have to show ID, or (all things considered) wait that long. My only complaint was that the little community room was crowded!
Long WaitsMy friend who lives in Brookline had to wait 1 hour and 20 minutes to vote. Apparently the polling location didn't have enough volunteers. There was one "little old lady" checking people in, and she was hard of hearing, so the process was slow.
The result was that there were only four to six booths out of 18 booths open at any one time. This friend saw quite a few people leave - they didn't have time or the flexibility with their jobs to wait for over an hour to vote. And that's unfortunate. Hopefully they'll return later today - maybe on an extended lunch break...?
Food and Fuel?
I wrote on Friday about Mayor Menino's Food and Fuel drive. I even separated out some non-perishable food items to bring with me to vote... but I left them on the counter. Good thing, though - I didn't see any volunteers to receive the food, nor did anyone else in line have food to donate.
Question
What was your experience? If the wait was long and you had to leave, will you be going back later today to vote?
Related Posts: Food and Fuel drive during the election; Casting About: Your Massachusetts State Ballot; Presidential Election and Free Speech; 2008 Vote: Whys and Hows of the Electoral College; Are you making your decision based on looks?; Passive Electioneering; Presidential Election, Registering to Vote, and the Ballot Questions; Google wants you to vote
Photos courtesy of Casey. See more election photos on her Flickr page.
The result was that there were only four to six booths out of 18 booths open at any one time. This friend saw quite a few people leave - they didn't have time or the flexibility with their jobs to wait for over an hour to vote. And that's unfortunate. Hopefully they'll return later today - maybe on an extended lunch break...?
Food and Fuel?
I wrote on Friday about Mayor Menino's Food and Fuel drive. I even separated out some non-perishable food items to bring with me to vote... but I left them on the counter. Good thing, though - I didn't see any volunteers to receive the food, nor did anyone else in line have food to donate.
Question
What was your experience? If the wait was long and you had to leave, will you be going back later today to vote?
Related Posts: Food and Fuel drive during the election; Casting About: Your Massachusetts State Ballot; Presidential Election and Free Speech; 2008 Vote: Whys and Hows of the Electoral College; Are you making your decision based on looks?; Passive Electioneering; Presidential Election, Registering to Vote, and the Ballot Questions; Google wants you to vote
Photos courtesy of Casey. See more election photos on her Flickr page.
1 comment:
I was really unhappy with the process. The machine kept breaking in Somerville because the ballotts were cut to thick for the machine to take and was getting jammed.
I had to wait 45 minutes. Could they not have two machines so in case one breaks down.
I left frustrated and late for work, I am glad I voted though.
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