Wow, we haven't even received ours yet.

Got our ballots yesterday and they went back in the mail today.

Just got ours in the mail yesterday will send it this week .

I will be in Europe on election day in the USA. I did not vote early frivolously. My vote was an absentee ballot, not an early ballot. I wanted to vote, but I needed to be in Europe (Spain).

You are correct, you statement is going to end up unpopular and short-sighted. And, besides, it is no longer September, we are well into October.

Can you defend yourself with the September comment?

Illinois began early voting on Sept. 29th.

Jim your situation is casting a vote you would otherwise be unable to on an absentee ballot. That is not the same as early voting for anyone and everyone for no good reason at all. There is a difference as you actually stated in your post.

Why do you want the country to go back to all same day voting?

Time wise, the change I think would make a big difference would be to shorten the campaigning periods. I believe in Europe, they're two months long or less, start to finish. The long period we have is really unnecessary and accomplishes little.

Nothing wrong with early voting. I'll be glad to get it over with.

We too have already voted and I totally agree on shortening the campaigning periods. If the campaign funds that are spent in all the extra months could actually be put to good use somewhere else that would be great! I don't expect this to happen any time soon however.

OP here,

For years I didn't want to vote absentee ballot, but for the last several years I never knew when I would be in town, as my mother needed me.

I truly enjoyed going into that little booth, seeing friends working the polls and getting my little sticker that says "I Voted". But, I would rather not miss my chance to vote by being out of town, and I enjoy looking over the ballot and doing my due diligence by researching what and who are on it.

So I'm very happy I can vote by absentee ballot!

I have mine as a disability because it is very difficult to get to the live voting site and find Handicap parking and get through the line. This is my first year to take advantage of this opportunity. My husband also qualified for mail in voting. I personally am very thankful.

Any voter in California can choose to vote by mail, no reasons or qualifications need be met. I've had that as my default status for many years, there's no need to request it more than once.

Even though ballots come in the mail, I often don't mail them in. By personal choice.

With the recent signing of SB 450, California is encouraging counties to adopt a mail-in only ballot system. There will be vote centers open for 10 days where the ballots can be dropped off, rather than mailed. However, there will be far fewer locations than the number of current polling places. It is expected to be used by some areas in 2018; the push is for this system to be adopted statewide by 2020.

I currently get a mail-in ballot, but drop it off at the local polling location. We may have to do things differently after the change, if the drop off location is much less conveniently located.

I am nowhere ready to vote this early. Our 223 page Voter Information "book" finally arrived today. I have some reading and researching to do.

The problem with early voting is you can't take it back. I mean if something happens, say a video of one of the candidates behaving disgustingly should arise, and it causes someone to change their mind, they can't do anything to change it. The die is cast.

Annie, that is very true, but I still appreciate the absentee ballot.

Annie,

Sometimes one is not able to have a perfect scenario. I will be gone before the end of the month. I gotta go with what I have.

When I was in the US Navy in the late 1960s, there was a general election that include some unusual candidates (at least for me): Nixon, Humphrey and Wallace. Since I could not be at my voting site on election day, I requested an absentee ballot. It had to be done in writing: no phone calls allowed and the computer as we know it did not exist. My ballot finally reached me the Friday after the election. Nixon won. And, look what happened as a result of that.

Our entire state-wide voting system is by mail and has been the last 5 or 6 years. We don't have ballots yet, it seems like they are delivered about 2 1/2 weeks before their final return by date.

Thank you to all who have casted their vote already. I'll be waiting until election day. Fortunately, our voting center is very close and DH will be there super early, then probably to grab breakfast at Mickey D's and say, "whew".

Like Kathy above, I love going to the voting location, the booth, turning in my ballot, getting the sticker, especially when I feel strongly about my candidate. It's very satisfying.

I believe Washington state is all mail-in.

I like getting my sticker, too. I put the last one on the back of my rear view mirror ;-)

I'm with Annie. The campaign 'ain't over 'til it's over', and I'd be pretty sick to have already voted for a candidate who only proved unfit shortly before election day.

However, I am grateful that people take time to vet the candidates and do vote, best they can. I'm not for compulsory voting, nor polls-only voting.

For most of my adult life, when looking at candidate choices at both the national and local levels, I see very little vetting having gone on and very little to choose from. For individual office races, the winners are either the incumbent or if there isn't one, the person who has raised the most money or who's a member of the party whose Jerry-mandered district has a majority. We could save a lot of time and money by deciding the winners on these criteria and keep the clowns away from staging phony public events and being on TV.

The problem is, other than in places like California where we have the referendum process for laws to be enacted outside of the legislature, these very clowns who have manhandled the system to be what it is are the only ones who could change or improve the election systems and they're not about to do that.

What is imitating to me is that all those clowns don't wear clown suits. They dress like regular people in suits.

Many people simply won't vote if it's only a one day event....if there's a hassle parking and long waits, especially outside in cold weather. I remember just that in the 1980 election. We went after work....no Election Day off back then....it was bitterly cold and the line went around the building. I lasted about 45 minutes. I left and came back later to get DH.

Absentee ballots are necessary not only for the disabled and military, but for business travelers and others who need to be or will be out of their voting areas. My DD is a consultant and often needs to travel to a client last minute. My son already knows he'll be working in another state on Election Day. Both are doing absentee ballots.

Our county will do early voting October 27-Nov 3 at about 10 community centers throughout the county. We will take advantage of this....usually no crowds or waiting. This just makes so much sense. More people are able to fit it into their schedules, especially being able to vote on the weekend.

I would like to see campaigns be limited to 6 months. You must declare by mid April. No late entries to avoid the Ralph Naders and Gary Johnsons who have no chance of winning and serve only to skew the results.

Limit campaigning--absolutely. Limit voting to one day?--absolutely not. The more people who vote, the better. There are myriad reasons one may need to vote early and no reason to limit this.

So, let's talk about Tuesday. I believe that most of Europe votes during the weekend, either Saturday or Sunday. Why Tuesday. Would the turn-out be different if the election were to be held on a Saturday? Less work interference (not completely, but lessened at least). How about changing the hours? Tuesdays are dumb.

So, yes, why Tuesday? It all goes back to farmers. I think it's time we changed it. It doesn't take a day or more to get to a polling place anymore. Time to make it more convenient for most of the working public.

http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/why-do-we-vote-on-a-tuesday-in-november

D-U-M-B!

My grandfather was a farmer in rural central Illinois. He went to to down in a buggy pulled by a horse just to get his face shaved (1906). If the crops were due to be brought in, one stayed at home and did that, it did not matter what else was going on.

Along those same lines, many marriages were in the home. And not on Saturday. Often, it was whenever the minister was available and it was sort of short notice. Traveling to a wedding was either a train ride or buggy. It was way different in the good ole days.

So much can happen in the next 30 days, yet you've cast your vote? What a shame.

I know enough about the policy positions of both major party candidates to make a decision now. It is hard for me to believe anyone is on the fence at this point.

Jim 1_Zone9a, I did look at what happened after Nixon was elected.

He established friendly relations with China, which many analysts agree led to greater freedom and prosperity for that country's citizens.

He decreased tensions with Russia, creating a foundation for our future interactions that led to the eventual end of the cold war and collapse of the soviet empire.

He advocated for the creation of the EPA and DNR, along with other environmental protection proposals (Even one of his most severe critics who labels him a complete crook says his work on environmental protection was hugely important).

OHSA was also established in his administration.

He instituted revenue sharing between the federal government and the states.

He signed Title IX into law. He enforced school desegregation (continuing the efforts started during the Eisenhower administration, when he was vice president).

He got us out of Vietnam and ended the draft -- he actively lobbied Congress to end the draft, calling it unfair.. He brokered negotiations that led to disengagement between Israel and Egypt + Syria.

Nixon's terms in office were about much more than Watergate, but sadly that has overshadowed his accomplishments.

I was not a fan of RMN. When he was re-elected to The White House, I was so upset that I shaved off my beard. My then wife had never seen me that way and was sorta floored. Later that month at her sister's house for Thanksgiving, her family took a vote - regrow the beard.

"So much can happen in the next 30 days...."

Especially after last night's "debate" (I saw only snippets, but it was hardly a debate), I'm not sure there's anything left to happen that could change or swing anyone's opinion in one direction or the other.

I was undecided (and uninterested) during primary season but I found the decision was easy to make once the two conventions had been held.

we voted today, and dh didn't leave it to chance, he personally mailed it tonight...too much at stake...not only the national but other locals and a brand new bus system...from our county to Detroit city....

I imagine there's a half dozen people or so who haven't made up their mind, whether it's one of the major candidates, a protest vote for someone else or not voting for someone at all, but I wanted it over and went in and voted a couple days after early voting began. I think you should go in and mailing should be a rare thing for special circumstances, out of the country, etc. I SURE don't want the Post Office getting involved with handling any more of the ballots than they have to. Maybe they'll send the ballots to Romania or something! :)

Many years I had to work on election day and no it was not easy to just go and vote. I was having major surgery one time, and for other reasons had to absentee vote. I see no logical reason for having the elections limited to one day only for a few hours. Makes no sense at all.

It would be nice if the campaigns were limited but nobody can really think that would work in this country. The campaign for the next election begins essentially the day after taking office, if not before. People like the scandal. People like the bickering. Too many people are brainwashed by their assorted cults so the chances of true reform are slim and none and we know dang well that slim in in hiding in an undisclosed location.

I believe people have a duty to vote, but I also think they have a duty to be at least reasonably informed and do some fact checking. All I know is I haven't seen the birth certificates on any of the Presidential candidates and therefore I don't know if any of them qualify to take office!

I am interested in the voting in other states. I was in San Diego last year for a conference, and while chatting with 2 other attendees from northern CA was asked how I liked living in Ohio. I told them that it was a very pleasant place to live (as it is!) and they were surprised -- "Even with your government?" "What about the government?" "It's so oppressive!" "In what way?" "Well, the voting!"

Here we can request the registration forms by phone, computer or mail, register by mail, vote by mail or in person for 28 days before election day, and if voting in person can use any "official" document/envelope that shows your name and address (like a utility bill, letter from a government agency, bank statement etc) as ID.

And yet, nationally we have a reputation as being a place that is hard to vote?

How do we compare to other states?

Yup. Still on the fence here. The only thing I have done is rule out one of the five candidates that will be listed on my ballot.

There is no way in heck I will change my vote. Can't believe I have to choose between these two. But I will be in Williamsburg that day, and have done my civic duty by going to the clerk's office and casting my vote.

cynic, good point about the post office. I just had to put a stop payment for a large check and send a new check.

Another point about dropping your vote off. In our small township you have to go to the persons house to deliver your taxes. In fact, in the newsletter, I quote "A location is also at this location for dropping off payments. It is located on the south side of the driveway in front of a tree." It gives the Treasurers address.

I remember, when we were fighting our assessment and had to go to the assessors home and all his files were on the porch facing Lake Huron!

Small town living for sure.

When we moved to Florida earlier this year we got new plates for the car, new driver's licenses and registered to vote all at the same place. It was convenient.

Not so in Illinois. Plates and licenses were state operated and the voting thing was done at the county level.

At one point in my life I was a deputy registrar. They asked me if I wanted to continue with doing good deeds and be an election judge. Nope. That is a long day. Thanks for asking.

I was glad that I watched the debate clear through instead of watching just the snippets. Different networks choose different sound bites to show and they each edit them carefully to slant what the candidates said in the way they wish. I have noticed that over and over. I was tempted not to watch the debate since it is all so disgusting, but I think it is important to see the context of the comments.