5 Reasons Election Day Should Be a National Holiday - Global One major reason: It comes down to tradition, Troy said. Say goodbye to making Election Day a federal holiday and other List two to three ways. Bernie Sanders attempted to pass an Election Day holiday under the "Democracy Day Act" in 2018. Terms of Use | Online Privacy Policy, many sweeping changes she would like to see, the conspiracy fueled calls for election reform, On WDETs Detroit Today with Stephen Henderson. ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. To have a democratic society, we need to restructure government and elections. Lets look at why Congress has never made Election Day a Below are the proper citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): the Modern Language Association Style Manual (MLA), the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), and Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Turabian). Explain your answers. The decision was made taking into account farmers, a large portion of the voting constituency at the time, who would not have been able to travel to polling places in winter months or during planting or harvest times. For purposes of any law relating to Federal employment, the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in 2020 and each Again, it is not clear that this is demonstrably true but it is a widespread perception. Postings about current events are fine, as long as there is a political science angle. This simple change would make it easier for Whether accurate or not, elected officials likely think that making it easier to vote would advantage one party at the expense of the other party.. "We do not have real political democracy, let alone economic democracy. Making election day a holiday would improve the ability of the government to conduct elections. After all, what do our veterans fight for, if not for democracy itself? would align the US with other countries [8], In the 2016 presidential election, 55.7% of the American voting-age population cast a ballot. This is a stressful, insecure time for many. Veterans deserve a day that stands on its own without the distractions that come with arriving at the polls and casting votes. Local View: Former Gov. Top Issues for Voters. All this despite the fact that these types of restrictions have typically been considered illegal under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires that elections be equally open to all people. However, a national primary day is a recipe for failure. John M. Cunningham, "Why Are U.S. That year, just over 36% of eligible voters showed up. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Election Day The United States is out of step with the rest of the world: elections are held on weekends in 27 of the 36 OECD countries. Poland, for example, holds elections on weekends. In addition to honoring the sacrifices veterans have made, it would remind Americans that voting is a national duty, an obligation both to one another and to the nation; and it would strengthen American democratic political culture, by way of new rituals and traditions, Jill Lepore a Harvard professor of American history wrote in an essay for Politico. But one idea that could get support and pushback from both sides of the aisle is making Election Day a state holiday. Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. ], ProCon.org, "Election Day National Holiday Top 3 Pros and Cons,", ProCon.org, "Election Day National Holiday Top 3 Pros and Cons. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. [1], Over time, voting rights expanded from only white, male landowners age 21 and older to include women and people of color, as well as citizens age 18 and up, resulting in a dramatic increase in the voting-eligible population and a shift in voter demographics. Lets assume there wont be an election holiday anytime soon not until Democrats control both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue. It would also blunt the impact of many of these baldly anti-democratic movesopening the doors to the house as Republicans attempt to shut the windows. Election Day Holiday., For purposes of any law relating to Federal employment, the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in 2020 and each even-numbered year thereafter shall be treated in the same manner as a legal public holiday described in section 6103 of title 5, United States Code., It is the sense of Congress that private employers in the United States should give their employees a day off on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in 2020 and each even-numbered year thereafter to enable the employees to cast votes in the elections held on that day., Leave it to a House bill-writer to use 98 words when eight will suffice: Were giving you the day off to vote.. For example, one may suggest, if we observe Election Day as a national holiday, then we will be unable to adequately staff and secure polling venues, or worse; it would negatively impact government spending. there are more pros than cons with regard to observing Election Day as a federal holiday. Many other democracies make election day a holiday and they all have higher voter turnout than we do. In addition, those who wish to cast their ballots have ample opportunity to do so. Scan this QR code to download the app now. In Australia, where voting is mandatory, elections are celebrated with parties and barbecues, resulting in turnout rates around 90 percent. Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard Making Election Day a national holiday will increase voter turnout by enabling more people to vote. It does not force voters to elect any one candidate and therefore, we believe, it survives constitutional muster. Instead of having the names spelled out, voters would pick between Oje Diben and Noladd Rumpt.. While these provisions represent major steps in the right direction, they are not enough. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson wants to make Election Day a state holiday, but some worry about unintended consequences. Others have suggested making Veterans Day (Nov. 11), which is already a paid national holiday, Election Day. Who wants more of the people who think professional wrestling is real or that 9/11 was an inside job to help pick the next president? It deals with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and laws. Virginia Gov. Think of things such as voter ID laws, lowering the voting age, and abolishing the Electoral College. It would only make it harder and more expensive for all candidates to have a fair shot at competing. Move Voting to Veterans Day - Politico We would put in place automatic voter registration, same-day registration, extended voting days, Election Day as a National Holiday, and other reforms, including mandatory voting (vote or pay a moderate fine) as practiced in Australia, Belgium, and much of Latin America, with a None of the Above option that would trigger a new election if it wins. WebElection Day could be made a federal holiday if a bill were passed by the House and Senate then signed into law by the president. While making Election Day a national holiday or moving it to the weekend would by no means be a cure-all, it could be used in conjunction with other strategies like our colleagues on the other side, on their campaigns.. On WDETs Detroit Today with Stephen Henderson, Benson emphasized that making Election Day a holiday would make it easier toattractmore election workers. Accessed April 27, 2023. https://www.procon.org/should-election-day-be-a-national-holiday/. Georgia had the 12th-highest turnout in the country in 2018, with 57% participation. At the top of his list: making Election Day a national holiday. While the Republican efforts are shrouded in their supposed desire to protect the integrity of elections, there is no evidence of significant voter fraud in recent elections, including presidential election in 2020. Before that point, states could hold their presidential elections on any day within a certain 34-day window. Should Election Day Be a Holiday? - Morningside Center . Twelve federal holidays are recognized each year: New Year's Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Washingtons Birthday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas. Its one of many sweeping changes she would like to see in stateelection law. Caravans are joyful, noisy parades of cars festooned with flags and other decorations that stream through the streets ahead of an election and are credited with the islands over 80 percent turnout. But other solutions would more reliably increase turnout. [17] Countries such as France, Mexico, and India also observe federal holidays for elections. One must 13 . I believe Election Day should be a holiday so we can get our maximum participation, says Jacobs. Last modified on October 1, 2020. ProCon.org is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity. Its a move that could de-politicize some of the election reform discussion, as some of the ideas could receivebipartisan support. Even some Democrats are saying that it could have unintended consequences. Federal law doesnt require private employers to give employees paid holidays. Tina Barton, a Republican Rochester Hills City Clerk has a lot of those questions, and more. Chicago, Illinois 60654 USA, Natalie Leppard Count me out. To Feed His Ravenous Flock, Ron DeSantis Ignores the Real Problem With the Fed, The Flat Tax Revolution In State Capitals Is Thriving, Amazon Tax Subsidies Are Inefficient Job Creators, New Immigration Initiatives Promise Improvements In U.S. Migration From Southern Countries, Latest Biden Regulation Will Cause Massive Trouble For New Homebuyers, retired matadors and mathematical savants. We want parents to vote, not get stuck. The U.S. ranks 26th out of 32 for voter among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development countries. Ralph Northam signed a bill on Sunday making Election Day a state holiday with the intention of making it easier for voters to cast their ballots in elections. We get about 20-25% of our absentee ballots come in on Election Day, says Barton. Virginia Gov. Voter suppression policies need to be reversed, starting with restoring the pre-clearance provisions of the Civil Rights Act. Managing Editor If 118 million people did it in 2018 without a holiday, why do we need to shut down the post office and close the banks to get them to do it again? National Election Day rolls around every four years and falls on the first Tuesday in November. While there are a lot of positives to creating a new national holiday, there are also some negatives. Should Election Day Be a National Holiday? - ProCon.org A number of bills like the Weekend Voting Act have been proposed in Congress over the years, often by Democrats. A part-time hourly worker is more likely to have multiple jobs, none of which are likely to offer time off. Effectiveness depends on the region. Furthermore, making this small shift would celebrate the purpose and sacrifice of our fighting forces. Her ideas include requiring a statewide risk-limiting audit of an elections results before the state certification,giving clerks more time ahead of Election Day to process ballots and banning open carry of firearms within 100 feet of polling locations. Should Every Election Day Be A Federal Holiday? - Forbes If you want to make Election Day a national holiday because you believe American workers should have more days off to hang out with their families or pound Pros and Cons of making election day a national holiday The ideal ballot would have the candidates in one alphabetical list on one side, and the offices they seek on the other. Should Election Day be a national holiday? 1. There was a Reddit comment saying that the only reason Republicans oppose Election Day being a national holiday is because it'll result in a higher turnout, which would almost completely ensure the Democrats will win for the foresable future. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. Making Election Day a national holiday will increase voter turnout by enabling more people to vote. Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? Automatic Voter Registration 25, 2016, Chris Talgo, "Make Election Day a National Holiday? ProCon.org. Arizona, for example, allows employees who do not have three consecutive hours before or after work when the polls are open to take paid time off to vote at the start or end of their work days. The entire voter suppression conspiracy being advanced by progressives is nonsense on its face. Whether the voter has to go to office or has an important meeting, they may not be able to find any excuse to miss the voting procedure if election day is declared as a national holiday. Overall, White adults are less likely to favor making Election Day a national holiday and automatically registering all eligible citizens to vote than are Black, Hispanic Because Saturday and Sunday are Sabbath days for devout Jews and Christians, elections would probably have to be held over the two-day period creating a need for more poll workers and a process for securing ballots overnight, Victoria Shineman, a University of Pittsburgh political science professor, wrote in The Washington Post. Creating laws in all states that let people vote before or after work would be more effective than a holiday. Republicans and Democrats Move Further Apart in Views of [25], According to the AFL-CIO, 30 states require employers to allow employees time off for voting. Keep in mind that in the mid-1800s, the U.S. was largely an agricultural society. [2] Sundays were for rest and worship, and on Wednesdays farmers typically sold their crops at the market, making Tuesdays the best day of the week. For more information, please see our Pro/Con: Don't make Election Day a holiday; we don't need more By registering through a routine and necessary transaction such as those at the DMV, voters wont have to worry about registration deadlines or application submissions. Winds light and variable.. Not useful if people have strong opinions. Useful for voters who are still indecisive. WebProCon.org - Pros and Cons of Controversial Issues Kneeling during National Anthem US Presidents on Money PROS AND CONS OF CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES PROCON.ORG HEADLINES - Our Issues in the News Are DACA and the DREAM Act Good for America? For more information on how to vote, head over to our TurboVote module. [33], Henry Farber, PhD, Hughes-Rogers Professor of Economics at Princeton University, conducted an analysis of states that made Election Day a holiday for state employees. [24] Holidays usually mean more work hours for retail workers, because stores run promotions and sales. Nations like Israel and South Korea make election day a national holiday and have voter turnout rates of 72.3% and 77.2% respectively, which is significantly higher than that of the US. Mallory McMorrow (@MalloryMcMorrow) February 3, 2021. And so, this would actually make it even easier and validate businesses to give their employees the day off so that they can work the elections and serve as election workers.. Election Day While making Election Day a national holiday or moving it to the weekend would by no means be a cure-all, it could be used in conjunction with other strategies like automatic voter registration (nearly 87% of registered voters participated in the 2016 election), restoring voting rights for formerly incarcerated people and removing other barriers such as voter ID requirements and voter roll purges that often disenfranchise people of color. The result is voter turnout rates of 72.3% and 77.2% respectively, which is 26-32% higher than the United States. Winds light and variable. Change often comes slowly, subtly. According to the AFL-CIO, 30 states require employers to allow employees time off for voting. American election laws have been reformed before with minimal impact on voter turnout which remains low compared to other democracies around the world. Over time, voting rights expanded from only white, male landowners age 21 and older to includewomenandpeople of color, as well as citizensage 18 and up, resulting in a dramatic increase in the voting-eligible population and a shift in voter demographics. Democratic rights are much easier to end than they are to restore, so the federal government must respond to the wave of voter suppression overtaking the states with decisive, expansive action. [4][5], The United States currently has 10 national holidays, including Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Christmas Day. Issues also arise when a persons polling place is far from their workplace or when there are long lines to vote during peak times like in the morning before work or in the evening after work. Low 38F. Heres what the Senate Majority Leader had to say about the notion earlier this week: Just what America needs, another paid holiday and a bunch of government workers being paid to go out and work for I assume . 3. Is there any veracity to what this dude is claiming? With the exception of employers, who doesnt want another paid day off? It needs better voters, people who have some vague notion of what theyre voting for or against, not just people practicing identity politics or voting with their political tribe. Here are five reasons why Election Day should be a national holiday. If your thoughts have not changed, list two to three ways your better understanding of the other side of the issue now helps you better argue your position. Politicians, most recently House Democrats in 2019, have also floated the idea of turning a weekday Election Day into a federal holiday, but to no avail. A 2018 Pew survey found that the majority of Americans (65%) would be in favor of turning Election Day into a national holiday that includes 71% of Democratic-leaning voters and 59% of Republican-leaning voters. "Should Election Day Be a National Holiday?" The US ranks 26th out of 32 for voter turnout for Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. For example, Australia typically has a turnout in the 90 percent or more range, and other nations such as Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico achieve very high turnout via universal voting and time off for voting. 4. If that level of participation gnaws at you, then consider: turnout for UKs Brexit vote was a shade over 77%; while 67.9% of the French electorate turned out for 2017s presidential election. [1] The decision was made taking into account farmers, a large portion of the voting constituency at the time, who would not have been able to travel to polling places in winter months or during planting or harvest times. (And in case youre curious, November was chosen as the month for similar reasons: It was after fall harvest was over but before the cold winter weather set in.). Approximately two million people who work for the federal government would be given a paid day off, and private companies might follow suit. Whether accurate or not, elected officials likely think that making it easier to vote would advantage one party traditionally it is believed to help the Democrats at the expense of the other party, the GOP, said Vincent Hutchings, a University of Michigan political science professor. [28][29], Patagonia, an outdoor clothing retailer, paused operation on Nov. 6, 2018 so that all employees could vote. If Election Day were a national holiday, how would you ensure hourly and low-income workers would get a chance to vote? make Election Day One example: if its a holiday, kids are home from schoolmaking it much harder for parents to have time to get to the polls. Holidays, law.cornell.edu (accessed Sep. 30, 2019), Matthew Haag, "Mitch McConnell Calls Push to Make Election Day a Holiday a Democratic Power Grab," nytimes.com, Jan. 31, 2019, Drew DeSilver, "U.S. Trails Most Developed Countries in Voter Turnout, pewresearch.org, May 21, 2018, Gustavo Lpez and Antonio Flores, "Dislike of Candidates or Campaign Issues Was Most Common Reason for Not Voting in 2016, pewresearch.org, June 1, 2017, Beau C. Tremitiere, "Election Day Should Be a National Holiday, cnbc.com, July 5, 2016, York Dispatch Editorial Board, "Editorial: On Voting, GOP Takes a Holiday from its Senses, yorkdispatch.com, Feb. 1, 2019, Tacey Rychter, "How Compulsory Voting Works: Australians Explain," nytimes.com, Nov. 5, 2018, Archon Fung and Jane Mansbridge, "Lets Vote, Party and Celebrate American Democracy on a New Holiday Called Citizen Day, usatoday.com, Oct. 26, 2018, Thomas MacMillan, "This Might Be the Best Idea for Turning out More Voters in U.S. Elections, nymag.com, July 8, 2017, Drew Desilver, "Weekday Elections Set the U.S. apart from Many Other Advanced Democracies, pewresearch.org, Nov. 6, 2018, Kathy Frankovic, "St. Patricks Day Not So Popular - Americans Would Rather Election Day a Holiday, today.yougov.com, Mar. Archived post. Way too many Americans are voting already. 20, 2018, Annie McDonald, "Ensuring Access to Election Day for All, bppj.berkely.edu, Nov. 6, 2018, Suzanne Lucas, "No, Election Day Should Not Be a Federal Holiday, inc.com, Oct. 24, 2016, Kenneth Quinnell, "Know Your Rights: State Laws on Employee Time off to Vote, aflicio.org, Nov. 5, 2016, Osita Nwanevu, "Maybe Making Election Day a National Holiday Wouldnt Really Work, slate.com, Nov. 3, 2016, Abigail Hess, "A Record 44% of US Employers Will Give Their Workers Paid Time off to Vote This Year, cnbc.com, Oct. 31, 2018, Make Time to Vote, homepage, maketimetovote.org (accessed Sep. 24, 2019), Rose Marcario, "Time to Vote, patagonia.com, Sep. 24, 2018, Danielle Root and Liz Kennedy, "Increasing Voter Participation in America, americanprogress.org, July 11, 2018, Kelly Born, "Increasing Voter Turnout: What, If Anything, Can Be Done?, ssir.org, Apr.
tonyrefail community school staff
pros and cons of making election day a national holiday