I voted

[Saab2000]

Attachment 110111
In Michigan, proposal 2 passed to let an independent committee form congressional districts. This is great. Our democracy has been damaged by gerrymandering. My 6th district in the southwest corner is manufactured to avoid parts of the city of more liberal Holland so my congressman Fred Upton can keep his job. 30 years ago he was a moderate but has moved right to avoid more conservative challengers. It isn’t a natural fit. I’ve voted for him many times but no more. He needs to go. His ads painting his opponent as extreme and radical really got on my nerves. There is nothing extreme or radical about wanting everyone to have health care. In the past he has won by huge margins like 70% but this time it was remarkably close so something is changing (just like I’ve changed) even if he still won. Our district has had a Republican representative forever and ever.

For the moment I also live in Michigan and also voted for this proposal. It will take several years for its effects to be really noticed but I hope it will bring an end to the absurd district lines that have been drawn solely to keep a few members of congress from getting a real challenge. Some hold office even though they really aren't even close to holding a popular majority in the "regions" they represent.

[jclay]

Attachment 110111
In Michigan, proposal 2 passed to let an independent committee form congressional districts. This is great. Our democracy has been damaged by gerrymandering. My 6th district in the southwest corner is manufactured to avoid parts of the city of more liberal Holland so my congressman Fred Upton can keep his job. 30 years ago he was a moderate but has moved right to avoid more conservative challengers. It isn’t a natural fit. I’ve voted for him many times but no more. He needs to go. His ads painting his opponent as extreme and radical really got on my nerves. There is nothing extreme or radical about wanting everyone to have health care. In the past he has won by huge margins like 70% but this time it was remarkably close so something is changing (just like I’ve changed) even if he still won. Our district has had a Republican representative forever and ever.

Thank you Doug!

The degree of gerrymandering wrt voting districts is mind blowing. A couple of decades ago my middle brother and his small team built the GIS re-districting platform used by the FL legislature. The legislators could enter the parameters that interested them and out popped a district map. You wouldn't believe the shapes districts that came out of it. The manner in which it was used really was, and apparently still is, obscene and clearly used strategically to consolidate power. And from his rather incomparable vantage point (they provided direct tech/instructional help to the users and Linc actually understands his history) it was clear that the Republicans were far and away the most egregious in their perversion of the tool. The Republican Party has been extremely effective at gerrymandering and disenfranchising certain demographics.

That some consider universal health care to be some sort of radical, commie plot, is similarly mind blowing. I've yet to encounter anybody in opposition who's actually done any research on the options and economics.

The progressives who rocked the boat to lay the foundations that support societies that are worth living in today (like representative government which was totally radical), back when doing so could get you killed in most unpleasant ways,....those were tough and gutsy folks; real heroes.

[davids]

More Democratic governors in states with Republican legislatures should help balance the gerrymandering, at least... I guess that's the least bad outcome for states that have been overwhelmingly controlled by Republicans.

Sent from the birthplace of gerrymandering (literally, there's a plaque for Governor Elbridge Gerry down the street from my office)!

[Dave Thompson]

If states, like Washington, would stop requiring voters to state their party preferences/affiliation/registration/etc, there would not be a way to track them and gerrymandering would cease to exist.

[zachateseverything]

Actually it seems I wasn't making myself entirely clear. When I said the guy with the red hat was an idiot, I meant that the time for political posturing was over. Goodness knows we have had enough. It was time to get on to the serious, sacred responsibility of casting a vote.

I'd have worn my ITMFA shirt if we were being political. But no it was dignified black. I respect the process...

just as a reminder, wearing campaign clothing can be considered campaigning and depending on the state there can be pretty strict rules on doing that inside a polling place.

[zachateseverything]

If states, like Washington, would stop requiring voters to state their party preferences/affiliation/registration/etc, there would not be a way to track them and gerrymandering would cease to exist.

they'd still be able to figure it out just by census data and demographics. data science is pretty powerful these days.

[davids]

they'd still be able to figure it out just by census data and demographics. data science is pretty powerful these days.

They'd be able to figure it out by counting the votes in each precinct. Which we all, I hope, can agree is a thing we want done.

That statistic would correlate pretty strongly with how people in that precinct voted.

[guido]

just as a reminder, wearing campaign clothing can be considered campaigning and depending on the state there can be pretty strict rules on doing that inside a polling place.

My point exactly!

[zachateseverything]

They'd be able to figure it out by counting the votes in each precinct. Which we all, I hope, can agree is a thing we want done.

That statistic would correlate pretty strongly with how people in that precinct voted.

Right, but to do a really thorough job of gerrymandering they might want to split and recombine precincts.

[Corso]

We put a man on the moon almost 50 years ago, and we can't nail down an ironclad voting system?

I mean the actual mechanics; the paper system, fill in the dot (hard for some seniors), mail in system, etc. Something universal across the nation needs to be developed.

Whenever I see a recount room from a news report showing people with piles of paper on card tables and rubber stamps, I wonder about the accuracy.

Our cell phones, banking, internet, etc have progressed at light speed, but what our country is all about- is simply worming along.

Maybe we should ask Elon Musk or MIT to get on it.

[bcm119]

The problem is that any modern electronic system is hackable. The old fashioned decentralized paper ballot system is archaic, but not really hackable on a large scale from a remote location. That's why foreign powers have resorted to hacking our brains so we vote against democracy.

[jclay]

America's descent into total oligarchy has been stopped. For now | Heather Cox Richardson | Opinion | The Guardian

[BBB]

Pushing out the AG you don't like and appointing someone other than the Deputy AG (who happens to be in charge of that pesky investigation you don't like) and banning a journalist who asked a question you didn't want to answer and banning him on spuriuous grounds, including doctoring the video evidence, is not really stopping the descent.

[vertical_doug]

I think Amendment 4 passing in Florida restoring the rights of ex-Felons to vote will have a much larger impact on 2020 than people believe. 1 in 10 Floridians have a felony record, so approximately 1.4mm people.

[Dallas Tex]

I think Amendment 4 passing in Florida restoring the rights of ex-Felons to vote will have a much larger impact on 2020 than people believe. 1 in 10 Floridians have a felony record, so approximately 1.4mm people.

I guess it’s assumed that most ex-con felons are Democrats? I’m shocked to see that many states allow felons to vote! Anyone have any statistics on the crimes these fine new Floridan voters committed? How many convicted meth pushers will now help Floridans choose the people that make the laws that could put them back in jail ? How many child abusers?

[ChristianWong]

I guess it’s assumed that most ex-con felons are Democrats? I’m shocked to see that many states allow felons to vote! Anyone have any statistics on the crimes these fine new Floridan voters committed? How many convicted meth pushers will now help Floridans choose the people that make the laws that could put them back in jail ? How many child abusers?

Forgive my ignorance for a moment as I am not well-versed on the topic.

Are these new voters currently in jail or have they served their time and been released according to the justice system?

If they have been released back into society, why shouldn't they be allowed to vote? My view of a prison system is to rehabilitate those who have committed crimes, not label them a criminal with fewer rights for the rest of their lives.

[Matthew Strongin]

I guess it’s assumed that most ex-con felons are Democrats? I’m shocked to see that many states allow felons to vote! Anyone have any statistics on the crimes these fine new Floridan voters committed? How many convicted meth pushers will now help Floridans choose the people that make the laws that could put them back in jail ? How many child abusers?

Google is your friend...

Florida Amendment 4 results: ex-felon voting rights restored via ballot initiative - Vox

Child abusers are sex offenders and are excluded from regaining voting rights. As are murderers.

[Matthew Strongin]

Forgive my ignorance for a moment as I am not well-versed on the topic.

Are these new voters currently in jail or have they served their time and been released according to the justice system?

If they have been released back into society, why shouldn't they be allowed to vote? My view of a prison system is to rehabilitate those who have committed crimes, not label them a criminal with fewer rights for the rest of their lives.

Upon release. And, as posted above, no murderers or sex offenders.

[Saab2000]

Is it possible that many of these felons had felony chargers in their cases pursued with the hope of removing a voter from the voter list for life? Other folks with better resources for legal representation would have had those felony charges negotiated down with better representation?

I don't know, but hundreds of thousands are enough to make a substantial difference in elections and given the cases of extreme gerrymandering to disenfranchise certain voter groups it wouldn't shock me if there were a larger motivation in play.

[Dallas Tex]

Google is your friend...

Florida Amendment 4 results: ex-felon voting rights restored via ballot initiative - Vox

Child abusers are sex offenders and are excluded from regaining voting rights. As are murderers.

Reading could be your friend. Read my post. Read your link. My post questions the upside of returning the vote to ‘meth pushers’ and ‘child abusers’ . Your link clearly states that ‘murderers’ and ‘sex offenders’ are excluded. But no where that I found does it mention ‘child abuse’ or ‘meth dealers’.

Maybe I missed it, please point it out if I did miss it.