Employees at the election board implored me to get the word out to as many as possible that everyone should try to vote absentee. Even in early voting they are expecting very long lines and wait times. They noted that the elderly and disabled will not be able to stand in line for an hour or more.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Plea from the Election Board
I was just forwarded this from Greg:
Voting Info pt. 2
Yesterday I gave out some information to help prepare you to vote. So now that you presumably know what you are going to to, the next question is when.
The obvious answer is election day, Tuesday November 4th. On that day you can show up at your polling place any time between 7AM and 7PM.
However, we expect turnout for this election to be huge. Even in the last election, I ended up in a large line that took me half an hour to get through in the morning. This year, I'd say budget an hour, and be prepared to excuse yourself from anything else you might miss if it takes longer. If you try to show up at 5:30 after you get off of work, I wouldn't expect to be out of there before 7.
Don't let this deter you though! I don't care what else you think you are doing that day, you won't do anything more important. If you are worried about your job, don't. By Oklahoma law your employer must give you time off to vote. In fact, under some circumstances it must be paid time off. If you absolutely can't stand this happening on Tuesday though, there are other options.
Absentee Voting
If you don't want worry about waiting all that time, you do have other options. The first is to vote absentee. To do this, print out this form, fill it in, get it notarized, then get it to your county election board. You'll need to write down the address of your polling place, which again can be found here. I'd suggest hand-carrying it there rather than mailing it, as they have to receive it by the 29th of October. If want to mail it in, do so soon! That's only a week from today. You will need it notarized, and your county board is likely to have a notary there or nearby. Any nearby lawyer's office, real-estate agent's office, or car dealer will have a notary too.
Early Voting
Your second option is to vote early. To do this simply show up at the county election board office of the county in which you are registered to vote. For Tulsa County this is 555 N Denver in downtown Tulsa. For other counties you can find the address of your office here. If you live in one of those counties (eg: Osage) for which only a P.O. box is listed, you will need to call the office during business hours to find out the address to show up for early voting. The times and dates of early voting are:
This is the option we at the campaign are suggesting everyone take, if the travel distance isn't too much of a hardship on you. I know that some folks in northwest Tulsa actually dwell in Osage county, the seat of which is more than an hour's drive away (and through some territory which has not historically been overly friendly to those of us blessed with an abundance of melanin). Even then, if you can't easily squeeze in a 2 hour wait at the polls on Tuesday, a 2 hour round trip on Saturday may be just the thing for you.
Late Voting
There is no such thing as late voting! This is something Repubs like to spread around poor communities before elections to try to trick people into missing the deadline on Tuesday. If you hear or see someone talking about this, you are being lied to.
This is probably the most important election any of us will ever see. Make sure you are a part of it, whatever it takes.
The obvious answer is election day, Tuesday November 4th. On that day you can show up at your polling place any time between 7AM and 7PM.
However, we expect turnout for this election to be huge. Even in the last election, I ended up in a large line that took me half an hour to get through in the morning. This year, I'd say budget an hour, and be prepared to excuse yourself from anything else you might miss if it takes longer. If you try to show up at 5:30 after you get off of work, I wouldn't expect to be out of there before 7.
Don't let this deter you though! I don't care what else you think you are doing that day, you won't do anything more important. If you are worried about your job, don't. By Oklahoma law your employer must give you time off to vote. In fact, under some circumstances it must be paid time off. If you absolutely can't stand this happening on Tuesday though, there are other options.
Absentee Voting
If you don't want worry about waiting all that time, you do have other options. The first is to vote absentee. To do this, print out this form, fill it in, get it notarized, then get it to your county election board. You'll need to write down the address of your polling place, which again can be found here. I'd suggest hand-carrying it there rather than mailing it, as they have to receive it by the 29th of October. If want to mail it in, do so soon! That's only a week from today. You will need it notarized, and your county board is likely to have a notary there or nearby. Any nearby lawyer's office, real-estate agent's office, or car dealer will have a notary too.
Early Voting
Your second option is to vote early. To do this simply show up at the county election board office of the county in which you are registered to vote. For Tulsa County this is 555 N Denver in downtown Tulsa. For other counties you can find the address of your office here. If you live in one of those counties (eg: Osage) for which only a P.O. box is listed, you will need to call the office during business hours to find out the address to show up for early voting. The times and dates of early voting are:
- Friday, October 31, 8 AM - 6 PM
- Saturday, November 1, 8 AM - 1 PM
- Monday, November 3, 8 AM - 6 PM
This is the option we at the campaign are suggesting everyone take, if the travel distance isn't too much of a hardship on you. I know that some folks in northwest Tulsa actually dwell in Osage county, the seat of which is more than an hour's drive away (and through some territory which has not historically been overly friendly to those of us blessed with an abundance of melanin). Even then, if you can't easily squeeze in a 2 hour wait at the polls on Tuesday, a 2 hour round trip on Saturday may be just the thing for you.
Late Voting
There is no such thing as late voting! This is something Repubs like to spread around poor communities before elections to try to trick people into missing the deadline on Tuesday. If you hear or see someone talking about this, you are being lied to.
This is probably the most important election any of us will ever see. Make sure you are a part of it, whatever it takes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
