2018 US Elections

Revan said:
I think that was his point, that he is essentially a 'swing' vote which can go either way (same as Heitkamp, Jones, Paul, Murkowski, Collins and how McCain was until his death).
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Yeah, i was just about to edit my post. He's right. But there is a chance after mid terms that Dems may not allow the moderates to do like they wish
 
Pexbo said:
Even with 50-2-48 it’ll be hard for the GOP to push things through. They’ve had enough difficulty doing it with a 51-2-47 advantage.
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They've pushed everything bar repealing Obamacare. Mitch McConnell is very good at uniting them at all costs.

However, 538 is still predicting 52-2-46.
 
Suedesi said:
What does that mean? If you can obtain a driver's license, you can vote. What's the issue here, can someone explain it like I'm 5?
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Why should you have to obtain a drivers licence to vote?

It costs $20 plus fees for photos. For people who are on the breadline, that could be the difference between your family eating for 2 or 3 days or going hungry. You also need a permanent address which some people just don’t have.

So why should people who can’t get a drivers licence for whatever reason be refused a vote?
 
Suedesi said:
What does that mean? If you can obtain a driver's license, you can vote. What's the issue here, can someone explain it like I'm 5?
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That tweet's part of a thread. These are her claims:

  • Texas is the only place where you have to be officially deputised to register voters. It's even a felony to post someone else's voter registration form without this. The governor has been very active in enforcing this law. No-one officially connected to the Beto campaign was allowed to register voters.
  • By law you can and the GOP regularly does "bulk challenge" voter registrations. This often leads to the incorrect suspension of people's voting rights.
  • Local County Clerks can throw away your vote for any mismatch but are not legally obliged to tell you about it. Not knowing means you can't re-vote.
  • Smaller counties exploit early voting laws to circumvent voter drives like Souls to the Polls. If you have fewer than 100k residents you can pick and choose when to hold early voting days. Souls to the Polls happens on a Sunday, many smaller constituencies simply open early voting Monday through Wednesday. This can be changed via petition, but still it requires that petition to enforce a change.
 
Ekkie Thump said:
That tweet's part of a thread. These are her claims:

  • Texas is the only place where you have to be officially deputised to register voters. It's even a felony to post someone else's voter registration form without this. The governor has been very active in enforcing this law. No-one officially connected to the Beto campaign was allowed to register voters.
  • By law you can and the GOP regularly does "bulk challenge" voter registrations. This often leads to the incorrect suspension of people's voting rights.
  • Local County Clerks can throw away your vote for any mismatch but are not legally obliged to tell you about it. Not knowing means you can't re-vote.
  • Smaller counties exploit early voting laws to circumvent voter drives like Souls to the Polls. If you have fewer than 100k residents you can pick and choose when to hold early voting days. Souls to the Polls happens on a Sunday, many smaller constituencies simply open early voting Monday through Wednesday. This can be changed via petition, but still it requires that petition to enforce a change.
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Thanks, much appreciated.
 
Pexbo said:
Why should you have to obtain a drivers licence to vote?

It costs $20 plus fees for photos. For people who are on the breadline, that could be the difference between your family eating for 2 or 3 days or going hungry. You also need a permanent address which some people just don’t have.

So why should people who can’t get a drivers licence for whatever reason be refused a vote?
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What's the alternative, vote without showing any ID?
 
Suedesi said:
What's the alternative, vote without showing any ID?
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That's what happens in the UK. There's a push from certain folk to introduce voter ID laws but in 2017 there were only 8 cautions and 1 conviction. There just doesn't seem to be any sense of fear that people are fraudulently voting here.
 
An ID is obviously needed to vote (how you prevent someone voting twice otherwise?), but that's it. There should be no need for any kind of registration.

Every citizen inside the legal age to vote, should be able to walk into any voting location with his/her national ID and vote.
 
I think the more genuine claim is that many US states have more stringent ID requirements than other 'developed democracies' while at the same time remaining incredibly lax in ensuring their citizenry is in possession of that ID.
  • Some (like the UK and Australia) don't require any.
  • Some (such as Ireland and Sweden) only require it when the voter's identity is called into question.
  • Some (eg Canada) require ID's but accept multiple forms and they do not require photo ID.
  • Some (eg Spain, France) require photo ID but this is a compulsory ID required to get other public services (Great efforts are made to make sure each citizen has one).
I guess the argument is that if the US requires its voters provide identity documents it should be proactive in ensuring that it's citizens receive such documents rather than making it the responsibility of each individual to acquire one.
 
George Owen said:
An ID is obviously needed to vote (how you prevent someone voting twice otherwise?), but that's it. There should be no need for any kind of registration.

Every citizen inside the legal age to vote, should be able to walk into any voting location with his/her national ID and vote.
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In the UK you register to vote, rock up at the polling station and give your name and address to the registrar. They then cross you off the list.
 
Ekkie Thump said:
I think the more genuine claim is that many US states have more stringent ID requirements than other 'developed democracies' while at the same time they remain incredibly lax in ensuring their citizenry is in possession of that ID.
  • Some (like the UK and Australia) don't require any.
  • Some (such as Ireland and Sweden) only require it when the voter's identity is called into question.
  • Some (eg Canada) require id's but accept multiple forms and they do not require photo ID
  • Some (eg Spain, France) require photo ID but this is a compulsory ID required to get other public services (Great efforts are made to make sure each citizen has one).
I guess the argument is that if the US required its voters provide identity documents it should be proactive in ensuring that it's citizens receive such documents rather than make it the responsibility of each individual to acquire one.
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Agree with this. You can debate whether needing proof of ID to vote is a good idea, but it's quite clear that in many (most/all, delete as appropriate) cases in the US it's being used as a tool of disenfranchisement, in the guise of countering the very low levels of voter fraud that exist.
 
The Firestarter said:
What?
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Kristjan said:
Really?
In Iceland you can't vote without showing a valid ID.
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shamans said:
Don't think that's true
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Ok sorry, bit of an exaggeration on my part.

There’s a lot of countries that don’t require ID to vote... UK, Australia, Denmark, New Zealand. Ireland, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland and Netherlands only require you to produce it if your identity is in doubt. India and Canada only require utility bills.

The main point is that most countries that do require photo ID make it incredibly easy to obtain and in most cases free.
 
George Owen said:
So you can vote for someone else?
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Though illegal it is certainly possible so long as that person doesn't attempt to vote themselves. You can also apply to have someone else vote for you (voting by proxy) although you have to apply for that a week or so before.
 
Ekkie Thump said:
That's what happens in the UK. There's a push from certain folk to introduce voter ID laws but in 2017 there were only 8 cautions and 1 conviction. There just doesn't seem to be any sense of fear that people are fraudulently voting here.
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That doesn't sound like a great solution in a country like the US. It gives credence to Trump and his sycophants saying that illegals are voting Democrat, altering the elections and giving rise to further xenophobia.

I think you need to show a state ID or driver's license, or birth certificate or passport at the voting booth and then be able to vote.
 
Ekkie Thump said:
Though illegal it is certainly possible so long as that person doesn't attempt to vote themselves. You can also apply to have someone else vote for you (voting by proxy) although you have to apply for that a week or so before.
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That doesn't sound too good at all to be honest. It's the future of the country on the line here.

I much prefer the system here in Chile.

Every citizen is automatically registered to vote. You go to your assigned voting station with your photo identity document (national ID card), vote with the paper ballot, put your signature in some book next to your ID number, and done.

the votes are then counted right there in front of representatives of all the candidates, so there is no cheating.
 
Suedesi said:
So how does it prevent me voting 3 times? Genuinely asking. "Hi I'm Michael Smith, I'm here to vote."
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What’s the difference? ID or not you still get your name ticked off a list. I take a polling card along with me to smooth things over but it doesn’t matter if I forget it. My name is on the register and when I vote, my name is ticked off and I’m not allowed to vote again.

If my name was already ticked off and it wasn’t me, then I’d report it and I’d assume that police would check cctv as it would be time stamped.
 
Suedesi said:
So how does it prevent me voting 3 times? Genuinely asking. "Hi I'm Michael Smith, I'm here to vote."
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I mean you theoretically could, if you could identify three people in multiple voting locations that hadn't yet voted and weren't likely to vote and if you could be sure the people checking the names on the list didn't know the ones you're impersonating. For most people, the inducement of their preferred candidate getting an extra couple of votes in constituencies numbering in the tens of thousands isn't quite worth the threat of jail.
 
I don't know anything about US politics, Is it as black and white as it seems through the media & celebrities though? i.e. the democrats are good & tolerant & the republicans are bad & racist? Surely that can't be totally right? How can it be so close if one side is so terribly awful? Not trolling, genuinely uninformed. Thanks.
 
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