3 Countries Where It's Easier To Vote Than the United States Presidential and semipresidential systems, Constituencies: districting and apportionment. And that election saw the second highest voter turnout in 20 years. 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. 2. Monday in early September. A Pew Research Center analysis finds that 27 of the 36 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development hold their national elections on the weekend, . We're familiar with how voting works in the U.S.when we vote, how we vote, who we vote forbut do you know what voting is like in other countries around the world? Vote.org has called on Amazon, Disney, McDonald's and others to offer paid time off for employees to vote and or work the polls. This year, Election . Stay up to date with what you want to know. [36]. Traditionally elections are held over two days, starting on a Friday afternoon and ending the following Saturday afternoon. 3. Managing Editor Runoffs take place on the last Sunday of the same October. Consider this: Even if Election Day were moved to a weekend or turned into a national holiday, retail and service industry employees would still need to work. ], ProCon.org, "Election Day National Holiday Top 3 Pros and Cons,", ProCon.org, "Election Day National Holiday Top 3 Pros and Cons. In Sweden, for example, 83% of registered voters participated in the 2014 national . History of Election Day Without this simple step toward turning out as many Americans as possible to vote, any reform will be incomplete. These changes would send a strong rebuke to those who are attempting to scale back voting rights and make it more difficult for African-Americans and Latinos to vote. Until 2009, elections were held over several consecutive Sundays. Election Day is a state holiday in Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and New York. Of the nonvoters surveyed by the US Census Bureau about the 2008 presidential election, the 2012 presidential election, and numerous other elections, the most commonly cited reason for not voting was being too busy or having conflicting work schedules. A surprising map of the world's national holidays (only two countries 12, 2019, Ceylan Pumphrey, "Do Businesses Have to Give Federal Holidays Like Presidents Day Off?, blogs.findlaw.com, Feb. 14, 2018, Department of Labor, "Holiday Pay, dol.gov (accessed Sep. 23, 2019), Peggy Emch, "Is Holiday Pay Required by Law?, timesheets.com, 2013, Fast Casual, "Study: Why Hourly Workers Forced to Work Multiple Jobs, fastcasual.com, Apr. A National Day is a date for a country to celebrate its nationhood. - Zkon o podmienkach vkonu volebnh", "The Effectiveness of Early Voting A Case Study of the Republic of Korea", "Ley Orgnica 5/1985, de 19 de junio, del Rgimen Electoral General", "Elections in Venezuela and Pennsylvania: Lessons in Democracy? In a number of states, polling places have been closed in minority neighborhoods, which has created long lines and tremendous inconvenience for affected votersinconvenience with a cost, especially for those paid hourly wages. Over 60 court cases reviewed the evidence and judgesappointed by both Republican and Democratic presidents alikereached the same conclusion: there was no compelling evidence of fraud. 1, which adds a new paid holiday for federal employees every other year. Election Day as a holiday is something that exists in other countries, but not in most places in the U.S. It's an issue that comes up a lot, but never really gets much serious public debate. Read more: You can take time off from work to vote in 30 states here's the full list. "Election Day should be a national holiday so that everyone has the time and opportunity to vote," Sanders' website reads. But Gupta said that there's been a "lack of political will" to give the initiative some momentum. Other countries may only require it of certain people, and otherwise make it voluntary for others. Portugal celebrates the 1580 death of celebrated national poet Luis de Camoes, Spain celebrates Columbus Day (yes, the holiday is a little controversial there as well, although not as much as in the U.S.), the Netherlands celebrates the queen's birthday but it still use her mother's birthday for the date and, in Greenland, the celebrate the longest day of the year. Sunday. A National Day is a date for a country to celebrate its nationhood. [14][35] In Australia, where voting is mandatory, elections are celebrated with parties and barbeques nationwide, resulting in turnout rates around 90%. Most recently, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont proposed a bill to designate "Democracy Day" as a national election holiday, which sits before a special committee. For more on the debate about making election day a national holiday, visit ProCon.org. Would making Election Day a federal holiday increase voter turnout and celebrate democracy? Japan formally celebrates the anniversary of an ancient mythical emperor, although the holiday is mostly ignored today, due in part to its connections with Japan's ugly imperial history. Granderson: Why aren't Democrats making election day a state holiday Not only would making Election Day a federal holiday increase voter turnout among Americans, which is something that politicians and citizens in general complain about often, but it . Why Election Day is on a Tuesday in November in the U.S. | Pew Research procon@eb.com, 2022 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. A number of bills like the Weekend Voting Act have been proposed in Congress over the years, often by Democrats. Election day should be a national holiday. Which type of claim is this After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? 11 July (Tuesday): Celebration of the Golden Spurs (Day of the Flemish Community) - celebrates the victory of the count of Flanders and the borough militia against the king of France outside Courtrai. Election Practices in Other Countries That America Could Learn From He says it's more important to spread voting out over a period of days and methods. In 2018, the general election was held on Wednesday. But some election analysts told CBS News that making Election Day a holiday is not a way to make voting easier. There is a simple and straightforward solution: make Election Day a national holiday so that people have the time and freedom to vote without taking time off from work. Election day should be a national holidayCommentary - CNBC In 2005, the American Bar Association looked at a few different methods of voting: in 1989 in Namibia, voters marked an X on ballots using ink on their fingers; in Bulgaria, rather than marking a ballot, voters pick from any number of sheets of paper representing specific political parties and puts it in a ballot box; and in Ireland, "they designate their top three candidates by numbering them 1, 2, and 3." Most National Days are fixed, exceptions to this are shown below. We also know that countries that have marked their election days as federal events see higher voting turnouts than the United States. Today in my country it is a national holiday as we celebrate the day when St. Paul converted our whole country to Catholicism in AD 60. Sign up for notifications from Insider! 26K views, 1.2K likes, 65 loves, 454 comments, 23 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Citizen TV Kenya: #FridayNight Updated: 7:01 AM EST November 2, 2020 ATLANTA For many Americans, voting on Election Day is a tradition, and some wonder why it's not a national holiday. But they never go far and die in committee without a vote. Like Perez, Becker thinks giving voters more time and opportunity to vote is the best approach. This map, inspired by a Reddit thread with a similar map, shows the national days of the world's countries. The answer dates back to 1845, when Congress passed a law declaring that federal elections would be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Could that ever happen in the U.S.? What if Election Day were a holiday? - USA TODAY According to the country's website detailing their "digital society," online voting has soared from 1.9% in 2005 to 30.5% in 2015. Omissions? Or is it an optimistic idea that would exclude already disadvantaged voters while failing to increase turnout? Others say a holiday would disadvantage low-income and blue collar workers and corporations should have better policies for voting time off. Election Day should be a 'day off,' U.S. President Joe Biden says Hailey said the country needs a "cultural shift" to prioritize voting. This page was last edited on 1 February 2023, at 18:43. A surprising map of the worlds national holidays (only two countries have no national day), Belarus sentences Nobel Peace laureate Ales Bialiatski to 10 years in jail, This is Bidens chance to press Scholz on Germanys rearmament, Why Russia and Ukraine are fighting over Bakhmut. Image 2. 1. "Voting is a fundamental right,. February 26, 2023, 5:06 AM. But in many other countries, the government automatically registers voters and holds elections on days that are weekend days or national holidays. Why not make Election Day a national holiday? - CBS News Even people youd expect to know, like politicians, have been stumped by this very question. First Sunday of October. For starters, the United States is rather unique in that it schedules its election day on a weekday, let alone a Tuesday. In Thailand, one of the very few countries outside of Europe that was never formally colonized, the king's birthday is celebrated (don't insult him or you might go to jail, per the lese majeste laws). 14, 2019, BBC, "Singapore Election: Governing Party Secure Decisive Win, bbc.com, Sep. 12, 2015, Holly Jackson, "It's Time to Make Election Day a Holiday in Law and Spirit," washingtonpost.com, Oct. 22, 2018, BCP Associates, "India Elections 2019 - Declaration of Paid Holiday on Polling Day, bcpassociates.com, Apr. What we're proposing isn't that every Election Day becomes a national holiday, just the presidential election, which only takes place once every four years. [31][32] Trying one of these alternatives would avoid the negative economic impact of closing businesses for Election Day. Others say a holiday would disadvantage low-income and blue collar workers and corporations should have better policies for voting time off. Compared to other developed countries, America's voter turnout rate is pretty sad. Additionally, many of these individuals rely on school days as childcare for their children. Georgias voter suppression bill is an assault on our democracy, Republicans in 48 states have introduced 389 bills, Tracking regulatory changes in the Biden era. Why Election Day Should Be A National Holiday In America As a holiday, that means several millions of people would have the day off from work or school, making it way . / CBS News. Making Election Day a holiday would not necessarily involve adding a new holiday, which employers might resistparticularly following the addition of Juneteenth as a national holiday last week. Topics Explainers Politics US Evergreen US Explainers YOU MIGHT LIKE of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents and 59% of Republicans and GOP leaners said they would support making Election Day a national holiday. Let us make it as easy as we can," Sanders told CBS News. And even a number of the blue countries, such as Australia and Canada, are actually the product of colonialism. Elections to the European Parliament take place over a period of four days (i.e., Thursday through to Sunday), according to the election days of the EU members states (as listed above). Yet, few of us, especially those who have worked on Capitol Hill, harbor . Should Election Day be a national holiday? House Democrats introduced their first piece of legislation in the new Congress this week, an anti-corruption bill that proposes making Election Day a federal holiday and encourages . Make Election Day a National Holiday | YIP Institute 2020, Virginia. This article is about the general term "election day" worldwide. the Tuesday that occurs within November 2 to November 8. Election Day - Tuesday, Nov. 8 - is a special day, with voters casting ballots across the country. Proponents say the Electoral College ensures everyone selects the president. "Election Day National Holiday Top 3 Pros and Cons." Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Such a change would mostly benefit white-collar workers instead of the lower-income workers its designed to help. Reformers will be far more successful adding a few days or options or opportunities than trying to undo Election Day.. ProCon/Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. John M. Cunningham, "Why Are U.S. It commemorates the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a reverend and civil . The earliest possible date that Election Day can fall on is November 2nd, and the latest possible date is November 8th. [28][29], Patagonia, an outdoor clothing retailer, paused operation on Nov. 6, 2018 so that all employees could vote. In fact, these voters may be more likely to have to work as a result of a federal election holiday, where they may have had time off previously on a random Tuesday in November.