# HOW did you vote today?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [November 2, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257 "2010-11-02T21:36:19Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/1 "2010-11-02T21:36:19Z")
_How_ did you vote today? I voted by filling out a paper ballot with an inkpen and dropping the ballot in a big metal box. There wasn’t anything electronic in site (well other than the lights & a coffee pot).
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### Author:  [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/2 "2010-11-02T21:50:08Z")
Electronic.
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### Author:  [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/3 "2010-11-02T22:03:08Z")
I filled out a mail-in ballot too late to mail it in, so I’ll have to deliver it to a polling place. One day. One day I will mail in my absentee ballot.
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### Author:  [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/4 "2010-11-02T22:06:07Z")
Electronic.
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### Author:  [@RadicalPi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RadicalPi)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/5 "2010-11-02T22:06:24Z")
Scantron form.
(Sample ballot: [http://www.sbcvote.com/ElectionDataLookup/SampleBallots/12.pdf](http://www.sbcvote.com/ElectionDataLookup/SampleBallots/12.pdf)) PDF warning. Ballot starts on page 8.
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### Author:  [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/6 "2010-11-02T22:16:35Z")
They had both electronic and optical scan, and I voted electronic. (They’re phasing out electronic voting, because people have complained there’s no paper trail and they’re scared their vote didn’t get counted, but we’ve had it for like the past 10 years).
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### Author:  [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/7 "2010-11-02T22:19:06Z")
I voted very well, thank you. I even got a sticker from the poll workers!
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### Author:  [@Pleonast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pleonast)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/8 "2010-11-02T22:26:22Z")
I’m not sure what it’s called. I was given a card with lots of ovals. I slid the card into a slot. As I viewed each ballot page, a column of ovals is exposed. I then marked the appropriate oval with a tiny marker that put a blob of ink in it. When done, I pulled the card out the slot and fed it through an optical scanner. If there was a problem it’d be spat out, but there wasn’t so it dropped into the ballot box.
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#):
>
> I voted very well, thank you. I even got a sticker from the poll workers!
I avoided getting any ink on my hands. The sticker is the true payoff for voting. 🆒
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### Author:  [@LH75](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LH75)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/9 "2010-11-02T22:45:25Z")
I voted using the pencil provided to fill out ovals on the card stock ballot.
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### Author:  [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/10 "2010-11-02T22:50:57Z")
Electronic touch-screen, here in Virginia.
I really hate it. There is _no_ paper trail, no means for a _real_ verification or recount. We have to just… trust the machines.
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### Author:  [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/11 "2010-11-02T22:51:06Z")
I voted (two weeks ago) on a touch screen. It had a printer attached that printed each of my choices as I touched them, and I was able to read the printout. After I was done voting, the display reviewed my selections for each candidate/issue, and after that it allowed me to confirm and cast my ballot.
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### Author:  [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/12 "2010-11-02T22:52:24Z")
Touchscreen here in IL
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### Author:  [@outdoor1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outdoor1)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/13 "2010-11-02T22:58:05Z")
With the punch card and the infamous hanging chad. I still was looking for the option to fire them all and start over.
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### Author:  [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/14 "2010-11-02T23:02:36Z")
Touchscreen
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### Author:  [@Kolga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolga)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/15 "2010-11-02T23:05:16Z")
We had a choice of electronic or paper ballot. I chose paper (just 'cause it would be faster). I filled out ovals with a black pen, then the paper ballot was scanned into a machine.
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### Author:  [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/16 "2010-11-02T23:08:40Z")
Bubble-in sheet, filled in by hand at a shaky privacy booth, and then fed into a machine that scanned it to verify it was valid and dropped it into a box below. All the convenience of electronic voting, all of the transparency and security of a paper trail. I can’t imagine why anyone does it any other way.
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### Author:  [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/17 "2010-11-02T23:09:57Z")
Mail-in ballot. Oregon’s nice that way.
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### Author:  [@samclem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/samclem)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/18 "2010-11-02T23:11:21Z")
> [@Chronos](#):
>
> Bubble-in sheet, filled in by hand at a shaky privacy booth, and then fed into a machine that scanned it to verify it was valid and dropped it into a box below. All the convenience of electronic voting, all of the transparency and security of a paper trail. I can’t imagine why anyone does it any other way.
Ditto in Akron OH today.
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### Author:  [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/19 "2010-11-02T23:13:06Z")
> [@appleciders](#):
>
> Mail-in ballot. Oregon’s nice that way.
Sure is. No machines, no polling place to drive to, no people to pay except the counters.
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### Author:  [@Reepicheep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reepicheep)
#### Post date: [November 2, 2010, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-did-you-vote-today/559257/20 "2010-11-02T23:14:17Z")
I filled in the ballot with a felt tipped pen, forgive me, I used the ballot marking devise, as directed by the poll worker. I then took the two sheets of card stock and put them in a large machine that looked like an expensive copier. They gave me an I voted sticker and I left.
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