Where's the Outrage?

All loyal citizens value the vote very much. The right to take part in our great democracy is at the core of who we are as Americans.

I value my right to vote so much that I’ve often wished I could vote twice on Election Day.

Yet , in almost all cases, the law has not seen fit to allow me to do so.

The exception is how presidential primaries are conducted in Texas.

Here in Texas, we have precinct caucuses after the polls are closed.

You go where you voted during the day, and a caucus is held to award an additional pool of delegates to the candidates.

Here is an explanation of the system from the Houston Chronicle.

Who is allowed to vote twice?

In theory, any person who voted in the primary.

In practice, it’s somebody not working a night shift and somebody who does not have to worry about child care that evening. It’s somebody with a car unless you have a friend or family member willing to shuttle you back and forth to the polls a number of times on Primary Day.

At core, it’s somebody with the motivation to take part twice on Primary Day. With many exceptions I’m sure, we know this is likely to be a person with higher than average levels of income and formal education.

My other Election Day fantasies of being offered a patronage job in exchange for my vote, or, in good 19th century fashion, being offered a mug of hard cider in exchange for my vote will remain unmet.

Still, I get to vote twice on Tuesday.

It’s a small dream come true.

Tags: Election 2008 // 2 Comments »