Having just left this question on someone else's LJ, I'm going to put it here too.

[splodgenoodles]

So why do Americans have to wait so long to vote? Even the early voters? I am seriously puzzled by this

Comments

[mishymoocow_2]

Can't answer the question of "why do you have to wait so long?" except to say it's being handled by bureaucracy. Most of the people where I am have already voted absentee because they are busy with the conference, or they didn't want to travel to where their voter registration is lodged.

[splodgenoodles]

But ours is run by bureaucrats too.

I like the ease with which they can do early voting - that's a good idea.

Actually

[erudito]

The answer is that it is not handled by bureauracy.

Oz does disinterested bureaucracy quite well at times. We have a single Australian Electoral Commission that handles all aspects of a Federal election.

In the US, elections are organised at County level. So it is not one national election, it is a quazillion County elections on the same day.

Imagine if all voting was handled by your local government area and you get the picture.

[bookgirlwa]

Funnily enough, the post directly below yours on my FL is an American who says she went down to her local community centre when the polls opened at 6 am, only had to wait for one person and was in and out by 6.15 am.

She had to vote with one of the lever-machine thingies.

[nightengalesknd]

Idiot beaurocrats not funding enough machines?

I waited about 20 minutes this AM. Not bad.

[flickersticked]

I don't know but I voted this morning at 9 am and didn't have to wait at all. Around here we use the touch screens. I will be proudly wearing my "I Voted" sticker today :)

[pondhopper]

I don't know why. I've been gone too long and only vote absentee. From the depths of my mind I know it wasn't like that long ago, at least not when I first started voting. And considering the traditionally poor voter turnout in the US, you'd think that waiting would be minimal. Good question.