Ryan Singel
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Veterans Day Should Be Voting Day

It’s Veterans Day so no better time to highlight an idea from commenter Deena Larsen, who had this to say about the long lines in Denver’s polling places: Many lower income people in Denver could not afford the time off for voting. Most nations have a national voting holiday. We can do the same thing […]

voting signing

It's Veterans Day so no better time to highlight an idea from commenter Deena Larsen, who had this to say about the long lines in Denver's polling places:

Many lower income people in Denver could not afford the time off for voting. Most nations have a national voting holiday. We can do the same thing by simply moving Veterans Day to the second Tuesday in November. This would show that what the vets fought for is a reality--free and open elections where people can take the day off and actually afford to vote.

I also called for a national holiday for voting day, but hadn't thought of this logical combination. Really, if you think voting is important, it's a no brainer.

I actually think the holiday should be two days in California. Here, in San Francisco, we had 11 local propositions to vote on, along with reps for the community college board, the school board, the assessor, supervisors, the BART board, some 10 judges, another 13 state propositions, state legislature races and statewide races. Think of the two days off as exam week for adults.