# What's with these long lines? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 3, 2008, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839 "2008-11-03T08:57:18Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 3:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/41 "2008-11-04T15:58:02Z")
Well, I’m properly chastened. I just got back from voting. For the first time ever in my 18 years as a voter (and four years at this precinct location), I had to stand and wait in line. The entire process from putting the car into park and putting it back into reverse took 35 minutes. Compared to what we saw on TV for early voting, it’s still nothing, and in relative terms very quick. Up to now, though, I’d been bragging about how it’s never taken more than five minutes. So, I’m humbled. ---
**Author:** ![sideshowkar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5e9695/32.png) [@sideshowkar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sideshowkar)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/42 "2008-11-04T17:06:09Z")
> [@Darryl\_Lict](#): > > I voted by absentee ballot a week ago and I sure as hell hope my vote got there without any problem. You can make sure your ballot arrived by going here: [Page Not Found!](http://www.sbcvote.com/BallotStatusLookup/Default.aspx) ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/43 "2008-11-04T18:43:43Z")
> [@kunilou](#): > > On my ballot there will be 10 elective offices (from President down to State Representative and county council represenative) > Two amendments to my state constitution > Four state referenda > Four county tax issues > And votes to retain or turn out 19 judges > > So I will be voting on 39 separate items. Thank heaven there are no local tax issues and our municipal government is elected at a different time. Wow, that’s a lot. I only had five offices (president, senator, one state representative, and two local races), and two state consitution amendments (one about issuing bonds, the other about appointing judges), to vote on this time. Very small ballot this year. For the record, we voted at about 7:30 this morning (an hour and a half after the polls opened), and there were only a couple of people in front of us at my tiny local place. This was actually a distinct upswing from previous years, where there’s traditionally been pretty much no one else there when I showed up. But we were in and out within five minutes, and that included me spending a minute wavering on the judge issue. ---
**Author:** ![Henrichek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5daacb/32.png) [@Henrichek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Henrichek)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/44 "2008-11-04T19:27:35Z")
> [@Tom\_Tildrum](#): > > For the non-US voters, I’d be curious to know how many items you might typically be voting on. In a busy election, a ballot in the US might include federal elections (President, Senate, H.Reps), state elections (governor, attorney general, state senate, state house, judges), local elections (mayor/city council/county commissioners, clerk of the court, prosecuting attorney, treasurer), bond issues (for capital investments), state constitutional amendments, and propositions of law. > > The lesser races generally get little publicity (unless there is a hot social issue somewhere), so a long ballot can lead to cumulative delays as people puzzle over various elections and questions that they’re encountering for the first time. In Sweden there are three elections in parallel, national, county council and municipal. For each election, you pick up a pre-printed paper corresponding to your preferred party (there are papers available for each party) and put it in an envelope. Each election has differently colored papers so that they can be distinguished from one another. So you end up with 3 envelopes if you decide to vote in all elections, one of each color. All in all, it rarely takes very long since it consists only of putting the paper of the chosen party into an envelope. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/45 "2008-11-04T19:40:13Z")
Here is a video of the lines where my son and daughter and their spouses had to vote this morning. Apparently there were lines around the block when the polls opened at 6AM. [http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2008/11/long\_lines\_ever.php#comments](http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/2008/11/long_lines_ever.php#comments) ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/46 "2008-11-04T21:25:24Z")
Excellent! The whole voting process, from leaving my apartment to returning was about 15 minutes! It felt much more important than I thought it would. I actually got a chill as I filled in the oval for Obama/Biden. I heart voting! ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2008, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839/47 "2008-11-04T21:29:35Z")
> [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](#): > > Excellent! The whole voting process, from leaving my apartment to returning was about 15 minutes! It felt much more important than I thought it would. I actually got a chill as I filled in the oval for Obama/Biden. I heart voting! Hold on to that feeling, because we still don’t know for sure that we’re going to win. It’s harder to heart voting when it feels like you’ve just been mugged by the other party. Keeping hold of that feeling is important, win or lose. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-with-these-long-lines/470839.md?page=2)