# Share your dirty little Election Day secrets **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 6, 2012, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076 "2012-11-06T14:00:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/41 "2012-11-07T00:48:40Z")
> [@SmellMyWort](#): > > How can you be sure that one of you isn’t planning to sneak out at some point? 😃 I was at home all day with an 8-month-old and a 2.5-year-old, both with a stomach virus. You don’t just run out for a minute in that circumstance. He left at 7 this morning for an active shooter training exercise and then dog training. His knee is so bad right now that I’d have heard the snap, crackle, and popping when he got out of the car at our polling place! ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/42 "2012-11-07T00:49:05Z")
> [@Winston\_Smith](#): > > I’ve voted for Joe Walsh in every Presidential Election since 1988, when I was first eligable to vote.\* > > \*Not true, but I wish it was. … I assumed you meant [this Joe Walsh](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Walsh_%28Illinois_politician%29). :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Ludy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Ludy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludy)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/43 "2012-11-07T00:57:59Z")
> [@Queen\_Tonya](#): > > My son was born on the eighth of November, 1992, although my original due date was nearly three weeks earlier. When I hauled my hugely pregnant self out of the car at the high school that was my polling place, I was dismayed to see hundreds of people in line. > > I faked contractions. I didn’t fall to the ground writhing or anything, I just let a look of vague alarm cross my face as I put one hand on my stomach while looking at my watch. The people nearest me started to notice and grew concerned, asking if I needed an ambulance or ride to the closest hospital. I reassured them that the pains were just starting and still 10-15 minutes apart, and that I was going to stay right there as I really really wanted to vote. > > I was hustled to the front of the line immediately, cast my vote and left. :o That is the best thing I have read today! I love it. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/44 "2012-11-07T01:07:39Z")
I voted for three people I’ve never heard of for Water Reclamation Something or Other…just because they’re Green Party. I can’t quite bring myself to “throw away” my Pres vote on a third party, but I do wish the Greens the best. Even worse…I lost the cheat sheet I’d prepared for Judges yay/nay voting. So I voted to boot the men and keep the women. Yep. I voted vagina. I do feel actually guilty about that, but I couldn’t remember a single damn name once I got into the booth, only that I mostly liked some of the women, and couldn’t remember much liking any of the men… ---
**Author:** ![Caricci](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/85f322/32.png) [@Caricci](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Caricci)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/45 "2012-11-07T01:58:25Z")
I have a good one : I voted for Al D 'Amato for senator because Howard Stern recommended it. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/46 "2012-11-07T02:01:20Z")
One more for me: I missed the 1988 election. Waited too long to try to register from over here. It was more difficult back then, what with no Internet, but it was my fault completely for not being more on the ball. ---
**Author:** ![GreasyJack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/df705f/32.png) [@GreasyJack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreasyJack)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/47 "2012-11-07T02:28:36Z")
Errr… yeah, I might have voted in a slightly more competitive legislative district for a few years after I moved across town. Sorry about that, democracy. I hope this thread doesn’t come up as evidence of genuine voter fraud somewhere down the line. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/48 "2012-11-07T02:33:50Z")
> [@Queen\_Tonya](#): > > My son was born on the eighth of November, 1992, although my original due date was nearly three weeks earlier. When I hauled my hugely pregnant self out of the car at the high school that was my polling place, I was dismayed to see hundreds of people in line. Bah, [this woman](http://www.nbcchicago.com/blogs/ward-room/Pregnant-Woman-Votes-En-Route-To-Hospital-177482731.html) was voting today with contractions 5 minutes apart. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/49 "2012-11-07T03:23:58Z")
I voted for John Anderson for Prez in 1980. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/50 "2012-11-07T03:33:13Z")
In past elections and even in this one, I cast votes for referenda on issues I didn’t fully understand. In some cases had never heard of before, and had no idea what the impact of the measure passing or failing would be. ---
**Author:** ![missred](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/missred/32/14096_2.png) [@missred](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missred)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/51 "2012-11-07T04:49:10Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Putting this in MPSIMS because it really is mundane and pointless, but if it needs to get moved to Elections then so be it. > > Here’s mine: I voted for Nader in 2000. Living in a predominantly red state, I figured voting for Gore would be pointless. So I voted for the Green Party in the hopes that maybe they could pull a high enough percentage of the vote that they could get Federal matching funds in the next election. Of course, that didn’t work either. 😃 > > What’s yours? Me too! And I live in Tennessee. ---
**Author:** ![chizzuk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chizzuk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chizzuk)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 6:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/52 "2012-11-07T06:08:24Z")
I voted for Obama in the Minnesota primaries in 2008 despite being registered in Maryland and not a Minnesota resident. They never checked my registration or ID at the polling station and just sent me right on through. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/53 "2012-11-07T06:25:11Z")
> [@swampbear](#): > > The very first time I was eligible to vote at the tender age of eighteen, I voted for Nixon. I haven’t felt clean since. For me, it was Reagan. I still don’t feel quite right. ---
**Author:** ![NinjaChick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/71c47a/32.png) [@NinjaChick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinjaChick)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/54 "2012-11-07T07:20:41Z")
I voted for third parties for all non-federal positions because, hey, why not? No idea what they stand for. And for the school board election, I could vote for three people and there were four on the ballot. So I ruled out one person by noting that his name sounded very similar to a bad guy in a movie. Also I’m registered to vote at an address where I haven’t really lived since 2006 and have no intent to ever return there on a permanent basis. I feel vaguely guilty about this, but it’s the closest I have to a permanent address and I literally can’t register where I actually live, as I don’t currently live in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/55 "2012-11-07T13:17:02Z")
I didn’t watch any Election Day TV coverage, saw a “Law and Order - SVU” rerun. Felt good. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/56 "2012-11-07T13:30:28Z")
I voted for Bush 41 while wearing nothing but tighty-whities. ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/57 "2012-11-07T17:17:22Z")
Just yesterday, I mistakenly went into the back door and skipped a huge (30 minute wait) line. When I saw the line, I told the poll worker that I’d come in from the other door and hadn’t stood in any line. She assured me that it was their mistake and to go ahead and vote. (The polling place was a gymnasium inside a school. The line had originally been configured so that people queued up outside in the cold. After many complaints, they reconfigured it so that the crowd lined up inside the school. However, there was a gap of time when the 'VOTE HERE —\>!" signs outside still pointed to the original door. That’s when I arrived. I still feel guilty. ---
**Author:** ![anya\_marie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@anya\_marie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anya_marie)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/58 "2012-11-07T18:31:24Z")
I voted for at third party POTUS candidate in 2000. I am not sure if it was Nader or Green party, but I wasted my vote and my time. I’ve been ashamed since. ---
**Author:** ![Satchmo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/satchmo/32/4223_2.png) [@Satchmo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Satchmo)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/59 "2012-11-07T19:56:43Z")
> [@Lacunae\_Matata](#): > > I don’t think so… maybe? Is your grandmother a remarkably lovely, brilliant, and witty woman with a charming southern accent and far more political acumen than your grandfather? 🆒 Nope, though you are a bit like my Grandma. Sadly they both passed away 37 years ago. Your post definitely reminded me of them, though. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2012, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076/60 "2012-11-07T20:10:00Z")
> [@chizzuk](#): > > I voted for Obama in the Minnesota primaries in 2008 despite being registered in Maryland and not a Minnesota resident. They never checked my registration or ID at the polling station and just sent me right on through. Ok, so that is the 8th confirmed case in twenty years. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/share-your-dirty-little-election-day-secrets/640076.md?page=4)