My Voting Experience 2022

ELECTION DAY IN U.S.A. 

I was raised to honor that privilege, and I've voted in every election since I reached the age to vote.

Texas offers early voting so Darling Hubby and I voted a couple of weeks ago. Our ballot for our county was 19 pages long because of county, school board, and bond propositions.

Early voting had a huge turnout. We stood in line for almost an hour. The voting process was a little different this year, and there were significant problems already evidenced.

When my 2-page ballot finished printing, I approached the 2—that's right, only 2—scanning machines that were to scan the ballots and deposit them in the locked container attached to each machine.

Only 1 scanning machine was working. The machine that worked took my first page without problem. It wouldn't take my second page. 

After trying everything but standing on my head and inserting the page into the scannign machine, the election monitor was forced to call a constable over to watch her break the seal on the depository container beneath the machine, open what looked like a mail slot, and insert my second page. Then the machine had to be serviced and resealed before being used again.

Fortunately, the other machine being repaired was working by then. At the time, I shook my head, and told my husband, "This is going to be a nightmare on election day if every polling station is like this."

I was correct. Already the news outlets are reporting polling stations shut down because of problems with the voting machines.

MY VOTING ADVICE

Don't let anything deter you. Go early to the poll. Take along a device with ebooks so you can read a good book while you wait in line.

Also take a bottle of water because it's going to be unseasonably warm on election day—at least here in Texas. 

TAKEAWAY TRUTH

To make democracy work, we must be a nation of participants, not simply observers. One who does not vote has no right to complain. —Louis L'Amour