Why is it that I have to go to a church to vote?

[madokie]

I have been voting for years and at many different locations and the only common denominator is it is always at a church, :wtf: over :+

[DemocratSinceBirth]

1. Think About It...

The next logical place would be schools and they are usually occupied at that time.

[madokie]

4. Why couldn't it be a voting booth built by our tax dollars?

a separate entity if you will.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

7. Because You Need Large Rooms Not Booths.

I have voted in VFW Halls and fires stations.

[madokie]

9. either of those would be appropriate to me anyway

[hlthe2b]

12. Build separate facilities to use once or twice a year?

Schools and churches have long been used... They are part of the community and it is considered a "community service."

I believe in separation of church and state. In this function, unless the church is proselytizing or holding concurrent church services (which I have NEVER heard of in decades)this is a perfectly acceptable community service which does not violate the separation.

BTW, schools and churches are also designated in times of public health emergencies by many communities--either for emergency drug and food distribution, triage, shelter.

Look, organized religion has its faults, but there is a tendency among some progressives to be so distrustful of religion that we are starting to become obnoxious about it... A perfect example has been some extremely hateful threads about the Amish right after their being so horrendously victimized. I do not believe the OP is meaning to do so here; I am sure they are just posing an innocent question. Nonetheless, I feel the need to remind some...

[Clark2008]

18. Who would want to pay for that?

It gets used twice every two years. It sounds like an awful waste of space and taxpayer money.

Sometimes a church is the only place in a community big enough to house the many coming into vote. It's a damn sight better than everyone having to congregate at the courthouse downtown like they used to!

Just ignore that it's a church. On voting day, it's just another public building.

[SammyWinstonJack]

27. We vote at a public library and at an athletic center. Only once

did we vote at a church and I didn't like that, at all.

[Rabrrrrrr]

2. Probably because the church has ample parking and handicap

accessibility; and lots of municipalities are trying to get away from using schools for both security issues and parking/accessibility issues.

My church is also a voting place for precisely those reasons.

[Warpy]

3. Cheer up

Some day you may walk through the door and the roof will fall in.

Voting requires a large room. Churches have adequate facilities.

I've voted in schools, churches, and H&R Block offices (really!).

[madokie]

5. h & r, thats a new wrinkle for me

[demwing]

8. The places I've voted have included

Churches, schools, libraries, unused office spaces, an empty groceery store, and the county fairgrounds.

It's kind of cool. I think!

[madokie]

10. Strange then its always been churches for me

:shrug:

[Clark2008]

19. Have you always lived in Oklahoma?

Because, I would say, much like my Tennessee, that there are probably more churches, per capita, than any other "public" building around. That ups your odds that you'll vote in a church.

I used to vote in a church, but now I vote in my son's school gymnasium.

[madokie]

too quick on the trigger finger

[madokie]

24. sure have and trust me I know I have missed a lot

what what I have here I wouldn't want to miss for anything: :+

[Clark2008]

32. Oh - I wasn't saying that you've missed anything - I was

merely pointing out that, like my Tennessee, we have more than our fair share of churches: one, sometimes two or three at every corner. :7

It just means that we've got more of those to use for voting. ;)

P.S. And, as a Clark fan, I have to say that I think Oklahomians are the SMARTEST people; afterall, you guys had the where-with-all to vote for Wes in the primaries. He won your fair state. :hi:

[madokie]

34. I know

I just wanted to throw that in there.
:-)

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

14. City housing for low-income seniors

That's my polling place. They have wheelchair access and an activity room on the ground floor.

[Warpy]

15. Oooh, forgot about the country fairground

That's where I voted a year ago for local issues.

[FloridaPat]

6. I've voted in mobile home park club houses. Where I live

we vote at meeting place for some group. Just depends on what's available.

[FlaGranny]

11. I have to vote at a

clubhouse in a gated community mobile home park. Now I always felt THAT was not right. You need to get permission from the gatekeeper to get in to vote. I always wondered if they would or could deny entrance to someone if they didn't like their "looks."

[gollygee]

13. What difference does it make?

They need big rooms and ample parking. Churches have both. I'd hate to spend a bunch of tax money building a bunch of buildings that aren't used very often when there are churches all over the place not being used on Tuesdays.

I'm not religious and this is no big deal to me.

[madokie]

16. its no big deal for me either I was just wondering why it is and I ask

to see what others think. thats all. I was raised in a Baptist home but now I only believe in only doing what is right, no Armageddon or anything like that.

[John1956PA]

29. There may be a slight coercion factor in having the poll in a church.

In 2004 and 2005, I was a Democratic poll watcher in a rural precinct with a 2-1 Republican registration advantage over the Democrats. Many of the voters were members of the church's Baptist congregation. I suspect that many Protestant ministers get sermon talking points which filter down from Rove's propaganda ministry. Pulpit rhetoric such as "When you enter the basement of this house of God next Tuesday and get ready to cast your ballot . . ." comes to my mind.

The bigger gripe I had regarding the precinct where I was an observer is that a non-uniformed constable has appointed himself as "greeter" to the voters entering the poll. To those with whom he was acquainted he tried to give a brief empowerment talk - laden with Republican code words - for the purpose of getting the voter to cast a Republican ballot. I feel that it is important to have Democrat poll watchers in such Republican-dominated precincts in order to curtail such cajoling of the voters.

[madokie]

30. breaking the rules is what the pukes are the best at I guess

:wtf: is with that?

[bperci108]

35. I would disagree.

Personally, I know that God hates those fundamentalist Pharisees... So He tells me to vote Democratic. ;)

But seriously...

I would venture that there are many "conservative christian" women that will vote against their husband's and church or cult's demands in the privacy of the voting booth should reproductive freedom get on the ballot.

I think that when the voter is behind the curtain, he/she will do whatever he/she came to do, regardless of greeters, preachers or other such shitheads.



BTW, welcome to DU. :hi:

[John1956PA]

36. Thank you for the greeting, as well as the insightful and humorous reply!

[TAPat]

17. Voting is pretty much the only

time I step foot inside a church. I find it sort of interesting.

[madokie]

21. to vote and funerals for me

[undeterred]

20. God is a poll watcher in your precinct?

:shrug:

[maseman]

25. With two small kids in school

I would rather have strangers walking into an empty church then a school full of kids. Too many weirdos out there.

[City Lights]

22. I go to church to vote also.

Lately, the only time I go to church is to vote.

I've also voted at a nursing home, a community center, a few different schools, and other churches.

[madokie]

28. Well I have a better understanding of the whys now.

no disrespect intended in asking

[Longhorn]

23. We once voted in someone's garage! n/t

[mdmc]

26. perhaps there are not enough municipal buildings to use?

Yet another perk of big liberal governments, you don't have to vote in someone's church.

[Bill McBlueState]

31. apparently this is pretty common, but it makes sense to be concerned

I could imagine that the churches of 50 years ago would never consider using their status as a polling place to try to influence an election. But ever since the Reagan administration, we've seen churches employ increasingly sneaky tactics to manipulate voters. Thanks to that, these days it makes sense to be on the lookout for violations of election law when you have to vote in a church.

[madokie]

33. that is a concern of mine too but so far it has never happened

that anyone has tried to influence my vote but today the church and the re:puke:ican party is synonymous, or seems to be to me

[mcscajun]

37. I've always voted in a school building...a public school building.

But then, I've always lived in the NYC/NJ area.

[stopbush]

38. Our polling place is at the Boy Scout hall. Do they let gays vote there?

Don't know.

I've been voting absentee for the past two years.

[porphyrian]

39. They don't pay property tax, they might as well do something...

...selfless for the community.

[Vidar]

40. Elementary school usually, armory one.

[kestrel91316]

41. I usually have to vote inside private businesses. If I were a

communist would I have some sort of complaint????

Not likely.

I believe in separation of church and state with a bloody passion but even I can't get worked up about voting on church property. If they required you to enter the actual sanctuary you would have a valid complaint, IMHO.

[Blue_In_AK]

42. I vote at the Unitarian Church down the street

doesn't bother me in the least.

[TahitiNut]

43. Is it at a "Second Day Adventists" church?

:rofl:

If not, it's most likely due to having a facility, with adequate parking and access for handicapped, that's not heavily used on a Tuesday. (I personally regard it as the least they can do for not paying property taxes.)

[stray cat]

44. Don't worry you don't have to convert when you walk through the door

Its a public service. I want my tax dollars spent on something besides big voting buildings used once a year.

[theHandpuppet]

45. Well, to be honest...

Oftentimes churches and schools are the only places that offer the facilities for voting. Places of business don't offer up their space for all-day voting, or even polling volunteer classes. That leaves only churches and schools. No community is going to invest money in constructing a "voter/voter/training" facility that is only used a few days out of the year.

[shadowknows69]

46. They switched my polling place to a church

I refused to vote there in 2004 and my wife and I did absentee ballot that year. They changed our polling place to city hall for the next election at our request. I was amazed the election workers didn't look at me like I had 3 heads when we complained.

[B Calm]

47. I vote in a small country church...

[williesgirl]

48. In Fairfax Cnty, VA, they use the schools. I'm in Warren Cnty, VA

now and I vote at the local fire station's large meeting room. I've lived in OH, CA, NY and VA and have NEVER voted at a church.