# \* \* \* ! Official 2016 US Presidential Election Day Thread ! \* \* \* **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [November 7, 2016, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947 "2016-11-07T14:05:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/61 "2016-11-08T15:25:55Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > How wrong is it that I considered doing a full Lebowski? > We got the day off, and I’m feeling really lazy. I walked outside to smoke, in my robe and sandals and noticed the flag pole from my voting place, since it’s only about 2 blocks away. It occurred to me I could just walk over and be there just as my smoke was finishing up. > > Unfortunately I didn’t have a White Russian handy. ☹ I’m back, and actually put on pants to go. I deserve a medal for the sacrifices I make for Democracy. ---
**Author:** ![oft\_wears\_hats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7993a0/32.png) [@oft\_wears\_hats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/oft_wears_hats)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/62 "2016-11-08T15:40:52Z")
So how soon can the rational world breathe easy? I know things could end up being close enough that we won’t know by tomorrow, or even weeks from now after mailed and provisional ballots are counted (these historically tend to support the Democratic candidate, BTW). But if Clinton, say, decisively wins Florida by 11PM ET, is Trump probably screwed? I’d like to be able to actually sleep tonight. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/63 "2016-11-08T15:50:51Z")
> [@oft\_wears\_hats](#): > > So how soon can the rational world breathe easy? I know things could end up being close enough that we won’t know by tomorrow, or even weeks from now after mailed and provisional ballots are counted (these historically tend to support the Democratic candidate, BTW). But if Clinton, say, decisively wins Florida by 11PM ET, is Trump probably screwed? > > I’d like to be able to actually sleep tonight. If Clinton decisively wins Florida or North Carolina, it’s all over. And if she decisively wins New Hampshire that’s an INCREDIBLY good omen just because of the likely pattern it indicates. (Note: I don’t really know what I’m talking about, just repeating what I’ve heard on various podcasts etc.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/64 "2016-11-08T16:11:09Z")
Oh, I should also mention: I actually met some international poll observers on my way to vote. Well, OK, they were just from Canada, but that technically counts as “international”, and I’m not sure if they were there in any official capacity or just wanted to watch the fireworks. But they were there. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/65 "2016-11-08T16:17:15Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Oh, I should also mention: I actually met some international poll observers on my way to vote. Well, OK, they were just from Canada, but that technically counts as “international”, and I’m not sure if they were there in any official capacity or just wanted to watch the fireworks. But they were there. It’s possible that they were there as part of the [OSCE observer delegation](http://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/usa). OTOH, they may have been there selling maple cookies, or just out of sheer incredulity that someone like Trump is actually on the ballot – who knows! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![skdo23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a5b964/32.png) [@skdo23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/skdo23)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/66 "2016-11-08T16:27:19Z")
**Potentially good news from Colorado.** As of yesterday at least, [more registered Republicans than Democrats had cast early ballots](http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/07/politics/colorado-early-voting-election-2016/index.html), however [it appears that Clinton is beating Trump by 2.7 points among early voters](http://www.slate.com/votecastr_election_day_turnout_tracker.2.html) (which represent 59.8% of the CO electorate). Looks like the “Never Trump” movement is a real thing. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Ace](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/6bbea6/32.png) [@Johnny\_Ace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Ace)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/67 "2016-11-08T16:41:02Z")
Arrived at 6:20 am, first in line. No one else showed for 20 minutes. I was somewhat surprised, but hopefully the fact that I live in an area where there’s generally an older demographic means a lot of early voting. And hopefully they don’t live in truth-free bubbles. This is the most important day in American history, folks. GOTV if you can. ---
**Author:** ![ThisIsTheEnd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisistheend/32/4713_2.png) [@ThisIsTheEnd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisIsTheEnd)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/68 "2016-11-08T16:41:20Z")
> [@oft\_wears\_hats](#): > > So how soon can the rational world breathe easy? I know things could end up being close enough that we won’t know by tomorrow, or even weeks from now after mailed and provisional ballots are counted (these historically tend to support the Democratic candidate, BTW). But if Clinton, say, decisively wins Florida by 11PM ET, is Trump probably screwed? > > I’d like to be able to actually sleep tonight. You can start easing the cork out of the bottle if/as any of these things start happening: NH gets called by 8:00pm PA gets called by 9:00pm NC isn’t called for Trump by 9:00pm ET OH isn’t called for Trump by 9:00pm ET FL isn’t called for Trump by 9:00pm ET I’m not planning on staying up past 9:00pm. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/69 "2016-11-08T16:42:34Z")
I’m back. Normally this time of day my ward has like 20 voters; I was 107. There was a line - something I’ve never seen before. Most (judging by the time spent at the machine) were straight Party Ticket votes which around here means Democrat. And if you spent any time picking candidates the poll worker made sure to clarify the ballot initiative on judges for you which also gave her a chance to check out your ballot; a little strange but not without precedent in this county. No actual poll volunteers outside trying to persuade voters but the local Democrats are running a solid car pool getting voters to the poll and bending ears at the local market (half a block away) and steering people. Our machine here is well organized and in full swing and doing a terrific job. My prediction is Hillary takes PA big and Toomey/McGinty is close but a win for McGinty. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/70 "2016-11-08T17:03:51Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > Trump does. You win the spit-water-at-the-screen award of the day! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Fiveyearlurker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/da6949/32.png) [@Fiveyearlurker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiveyearlurker)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/71 "2016-11-08T17:06:36Z")
> [@wolfman](#): > > I’m back, and actually put on pants to go. I deserve a medal for the sacrifices I make for Democracy. Did you ever get that Russian handy? ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/72 "2016-11-08T17:31:03Z")
I am trying to decide which news channel to watch coverage. So far Fox is ahead by a leg. Well, four amazing pairs of legs actually. ---
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/73 "2016-11-08T17:35:39Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > I am trying to decide which news channel to watch coverage. So far Fox is ahead by a leg. Well, four amazing pairs of legs actually. I don’t generally watch the TV news, and as I’ve been watching recently I literally cannot distinguish visually between the innumerable hot blonde all-American female presenters/pundits on the various channels. Ironically, this forces me to stop ogling them as sex objects, since the only way I can distinguish between them is to listen to what they are saying, “oh, right, that’s the smart one that I like”, or “oh, right, that’s the Trump surrogate moron”. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/74 "2016-11-08T17:38:38Z")
The election is big enough news here in Canada that CBC will be providing live coverage. But in typical sedate CBC style, the coverage doesn’t begin until 9:00 PM tonight. I think the idea is that at that point, they will have solid information to go on, instead of incessant nattering just fill airtime. But the 9:00 PM is obviously an arbitrary decision – I suspect lots of really significant information will have trickled in long before then. My prediction: Trump will be announcing that “Crooked Hillary” rigged the election sometime between 7 and 8 tonight. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/75 "2016-11-08T17:52:06Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I don’t generally watch the TV news, and as I’ve been watching recently I literally cannot distinguish visually between the innumerable hot blonde all-American female presenters/pundits on the various channels. Ironically, this forces me to stop ogling them as sex objects, since the only way I can distinguish between them is to listen to what they are saying, “oh, right, that’s the smart one that I like”, or “oh, right, that’s the Trump surrogate moron”. But CNN has those silly desks blocking their short skirts. Really just kidding though. Probably will watch CNN. Wolfpup, CTV News coverage starts at 7 apparently. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/76 "2016-11-08T17:55:55Z")
> [@Riemann](#): > > I don’t generally watch the TV news, and as I’ve been watching recently I literally cannot distinguish visually between the **innumerable hot blonde all-American female presenters/pundits** on the various channels. Ironically, this forces me to stop ogling them as sex objects, since the only way I can distinguish between them is to listen to what they are saying, “oh, right, that’s the smart one that I like”, or “oh, right, **that’s the Trump surrogate moron** ”. Way to narrow it down. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Jragon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jragon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jragon)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/77 "2016-11-08T17:59:07Z")
This is amazing: [![](https://i.imgur.com/JjzpsSK.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/JjzpsSK.png) Edit: Like father like son [![](https://i.imgur.com/thVUkkK.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/thVUkkK.png) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/78 "2016-11-08T18:07:34Z")
> [@Jragon](#): > > This is amazing: > > [Imgur: The magic of the Internet](http://i.imgur.com/JjzpsSK.png) > > Edit: Like father like son > > [Imgur: The magic of the Internet](http://i.imgur.com/thVUkkK.png) I can’t stop laughing. I can just imagine Melania trying to vote for Hillary. ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/79 "2016-11-08T18:14:23Z")
Very heavy turnout at most polling places in my area. Took my wife 40 minutes to vote at 7:30 this morning–that NEVER happens around here. Took me about 20 minutes about 9:30 today. I cast the 726th ballot at that location, which is amazing. Most elections won’t see 700 votes cast there all day. Lots of congestion, people parking every which way. Saw a wreck as I was leaving. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2016, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947/80 "2016-11-08T18:15:50Z")
Not sure if this has been posted already, but [Slate and VoteCastr are publishing real-time estimates](http://www.slate.com/votecastr_election_day_turnout_tracker.html) of voter turnout throughout the day, ignoring the customary blackout of exit poll data until the polls close. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/official-2016-us-presidential-election-day-thread/770947.md?page=5)