# Coming soon: Google tells you where to vote **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2008, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570 "2008-10-18T21:58:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/1 "2008-10-18T21:58:18Z")
[http://maps.google.com/vote](http://maps.google.com/vote) Right now, entering your address will get you a map of your house as well as links to your state’s voter information site. Soon the map will contain data about your polling place as well. Watch this space. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Carrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@Captain\_Carrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Carrot)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/2 "2008-10-18T22:03:05Z")
For a second I thought that said ‘Google tells you what to vote’. ---
**Author:** ![ultrafilter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/3d9bf3/32.png) [@ultrafilter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ultrafilter)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2008, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/3 "2008-10-18T22:06:45Z")
Resistance is futile. ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/4 "2008-10-19T00:33:33Z")
It’s a week late; I don’t see the point. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 9:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/5 "2008-10-19T09:55:14Z")
I can find my polling place just fine. What I really need and can’t find anywhere, is what and who will actually be on my ballot, ahead of time so I can research my vote. The major elections are obvious, but not the smaller and local ones, nor the various propositional issues. ---
**Author:** ![Suburban\_Plankton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/suburban_plankton/32/219_2.png) [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/6 "2008-10-19T18:42:49Z")
> [@jackdavinci](#): > > I can find my polling place just fine. What I really need and can’t find anywhere, is what and who will actually be on my ballot, ahead of time so I can research my vote. The major elections are obvious, but not the smaller and local ones, nor the various propositional issues. Here in California, we are mailed Sample Ballots some weeks before the election. They contain the listings of all candidates in all races that we will be voting on, texts of all propositions, etc., as well as the location of our local polling place. Do you not have something similar in New York? ---
**Author:** ![Nanoda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ce73a5/32.png) [@Nanoda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nanoda)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/7 "2008-10-19T22:28:11Z")
Actually, for the 'states, I _do_ see a point. For our elections, I entered my postal code at the [Elections Canada](http://www.elections.ca) website which showed me where I was voting and who I could vote for. A few hours later, I went to the page totalling [election results](http://enr.elections.ca/National_e.aspx) to check how poor the vote turnout was (pretty bad, as expected), found out my riding had a surprise NDP win, and went to bed. A few minutes searching gets me what seems to be the U.S. counterpart at [http://www.fec.gov](http://www.fec.gov), but it doesn’t seem nearly as helpful. Are U.S. federal elections run independently at a state level or something? ---
**Author:** ![Public\_Animal\_No.9](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Public\_Animal\_No.9](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Public_Animal_No.9)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2008, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/8 "2008-10-19T23:00:06Z")
> [@Captain\_Carrot](#): > > For a second I thought that said ‘Google tells you what to vote’. When are they starting that service? It’s such a time-saver! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/9 "2008-10-20T00:26:07Z")
> [@Nanoda](#): > > A few minutes searching gets me what seems to be the U.S. counterpart at [http://www.fec.gov](http://www.fec.gov), but it doesn’t seem nearly as helpful. Are U.S. federal elections run independently at a state level or something? States run elections according to federal regulations, but there are also state and local races on the same ballots. Local boards of elections determine things like polling places. I vote in the same place every election, so there’s no need for that information for me. However, I’m passing that along to various friends who might want to pass it along for people who do need it. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Kozmik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8dc957/32.png) [@Kozmik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kozmik)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/10 "2008-10-20T01:24:01Z")
> [@Captain\_Carrot](#): > > For a second I thought that said ‘Google tells you what to vote’. Well, Google will tell you _when_ to vote. ---
**Author:** ![jackdavinci](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackdavinci/32/3259_2.png) [@jackdavinci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jackdavinci)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2008, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coming-soon-google-tells-you-where-to-vote/468570/11 "2008-10-20T17:58:44Z")
> [@Suburban\_Plankton](#): > > Do you not have something similar in New York? All we get here is a postcard reminding us where our polling place is.