Election Day isn't a national holiday in the US, but some people think it should be. Should Election Day Be a Holiday? - Homepage | Morningside Center for [31] Same-day registration boosts turnout by 5%, and universal implementation of it would have added as many as 4.8 million voters in the 2016 election, according to Danielle Root, JD, and Liz Kennedy, JD, from the Center for American Progress. Common reasons for a certain day are the date on which a state or country achieved its independence, or the date of the country's patron saint day. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. Election day should be a national holiday. Which type of claim is this According to the Pew Research Center, of the thirty-six nations in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the U.S. is one of nine that votes on a week day, and one of seven that doesn't designate election day a national holiday. In fact, in Estonia, the option tovoteonlineis becoming increasingly popular. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Runoffs take place on the last Sunday of the same October. But these days, Tuesdays are actually quite inconvenient for many Americans, particularly those who cant take time off work to cast their ballots a problem that disproportionately affects Black, Latino and lower-income voters. All federal elections take place the Tuesday after the first Monday in November. Proponents say the Electoral College ensures everyone selects the president. By comparison,. And she thinks corporate America has been leading the way, pointing out several businesses, including Walmart and Coca-Cola, that have announced paid time off and other accommodations to make voting easier for employees on November 3. High turnout means that people are successfully exercising their rights-a good in itselfbut it also ensures the continuing health of majority rule. It would take an act of Congress to make Election Day a national holiday, and there is currently a bill proposing to designate "Democracy Day" as a national election holiday before a special committee. NOW WATCH: Arianna Huffingtons advice to Hillary Clinton, the majority of US states have voter leave laws, You can take time off from work to vote in 30 states here's the full list, voted during the 2016 presidential election, experts say such a scheme is unlikely to fly in the US, The evolution of American voting rights in 242 years shows how far we've come and how far we still have to go, In an interview with President Barack Obama in 2016. 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. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is a group that includes 36 countries. However, for the most part, most countries vote in person at the voting booth, and while countries may alter the length of election periods andthe equipment used in voting from election to election, it still tends to have many of the same features. It's a reminder of turmoil of the last century a very short span in historical terms and how deeply its events influence the world today. The case for making Election Day an official holiday He thinks the increased options afforded by early and mail-in voting could be undermined by making Election Day a holiday, creating "a solution in search of a problem.". Incidentally, Australia routinely reaches more than 90. Election Day - Tuesday, Nov. 8 - is a special day, with voters casting ballots across the country. Thats not to say no one has tried. Russia's national holiday only goes back to 1992, when the Russian Federation was founded. 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. Its hard to say. 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. An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation.Many countries commemorate their independence from a colonial empire.. Not all countries mark independence as a national holiday. Disclaimer: Dates and Events correct at time of printing but may change without our knowledge. I think, to the best of my knowledge, it's something like $20. Like Perez, Becker thinks giving voters more time and opportunity to vote is the best approach. 3. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Saturday, but can be any day of the week, such as when a Saturday conflicts with a holiday. I am from Malta - a tiny EU island nation and today we celebrate the shipwreck of St. Paul on our island. But it is not a federal holiday. However, making National Election Day a holiday will disadvantage low-income and blue . Hailey said the country needs a "cultural shift" to prioritize voting. "While this would not be a cure-all, it would indicate a national commitment to create a more vibrant democracy.". ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. Because of the pandemic, more U.S. voters are exploring alternatives to voting on Election Day, such as early voting and mail-in voting. Britain, after all, developed its political institutions pretty gradually, so there was no real "Bastille Day" moment that defines the modern nation. Consider, for example, the national days of France and Germany: the former marks the French revolution, in 1789, and the latter marks the German reunification in 1990. The number of early votes cast before Election Day 2020, as of Nov. 1, neared the 100 million mark according to data aggregated by the U.S. Change often comes slowly, subtly. WASHINGTON, June 24 (Reuters) - Election Day should be a holiday for workers in the United States, President Joe Biden said on Thursday. Younger generations are also more likely to participate in political discussions online, which shows that a move towards digitizing the political and voting processes may not be too far off. The US isn't the only developed country that faces this criticism, however. Regional Belgian public holidays during 2023. 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. Some say a holiday would increase voter turnout by enabling more people to vote while celebrating democracy. https://www.britannica.com/question/Should-election-day-be-made-a-national-holiday. Election Day is already a holiday for state employees in more than a dozen states including Kentucky, Michigan, and New York. And that election saw the second highest voter turnout in 20 years. Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. We are the only advanced democracy that makes it deliberately difficult for people to vote. The COVID-19 pandemic convinced. Have you experienced an election day in another country, or do you know how voting works in a place we haven't mentioned here? The outliers are a tiny minority, and only two countries have no formal national day at all. Sign up to receive a weekly email update on forthcoming public holidays around the world in your inbox every Sunday. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Washington's Birthday Memorial Day Flag Day Independence Day Constitution Day Election Day Veterans Day Bill of Rights Day Martin Luther King Jr. Day Martin Luther King, Jr. Day takes place on third Monday of January each year, near the time of Dr. King's birthday on January 15th. On U.S. Election Day, A Look At How Others Vote : NPR Election Day is a US State Holiday observed on several states on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November every even-numbered year. 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. Operated 24:7 through the week. Rather, federal elections are held on the third Monday of October, every four years . A lot of people go to work, or they're in school during the weekday. Managing Editor Twenty-seven of the 36 member countries, hold their elections on the weekend. Ralph Northam signed into law a measure that, among other things, makes Election Day a state holiday in the commonwealth. All rights reserved. ", Obama: "Absolutely. We also know that countries that have marked their election days as federal events see higher voting turnouts than the United States. According to the country's website detailing their "digital society," online voting has soared from 1.9% in 2005 to 30.5% in 2015. Obama Expresses Support For Making Election Day A National Holiday Why Isn't Election Day A National Holiday In The United States? - HuffPost 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. Where is Election Day a holiday? - The Fulcrum 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. Countries like Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico also showed high voter turnout rates by having holidays. With Juneteenth now a national holiday, could Election Day and Unlike Singapore, South Korea and Israel, Canada has not declared election days as public holidays. 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). Should the Voting Age Be Lowered to 16? Election Day is observed on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November, taking place on November 7 this year. History of Election Day [25], According to the AFL-CIO, 30 states require employers to allow employees time off for voting. The Evolution of American Voting Rights in 242 Years Shows How Far Weve Come -- and How Far We Still Have to Go, businessinsider.com, Sep. 24, 2019, University of Houston Digital History, "Agriculture, digitalhistory.uh.edu (accessed Sep. 24, 2019), USDA, "Ag and Food Sectors and the Economy, ers.usda.gov, Sep. 20, 2019, Legal Information Institute, "5 U.S. Code 6103. South Korea and Israel hold theirs during the week, but have made the day a federal holiday. 3. 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. National Days around the world | Office Holidays 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. Election Day in the United States of America is the Tuesday following the first Monday in November. In Australia, all citizens of age to vote are required, and if they fail to do so, they face fines. As you can see, the world is mostly divided between countries that celebrate a national independence day and countries that celebrate a national unification or revolution day. Why Election Day Isn't a National Holiday in the US - Business Insider Canada's turnout is about the same as the United States', with an average of 68%, and though one canton in Switzerland has a compulsory voting law, for the country as a whole turnout is around 49%, one of the lowest rates in OECD countries. ", Others, however, are skeptical that creating a national holiday would increase voter turnout. Tuesday was selected because it was the most convenient. 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. So the question of how you label Ireland goes back to which holiday you consider its national day. Why Election Day is Held on a Tuesday in November in the U.S. A Boatload of Ballots: Midterm Voter Turnout Hit 50-Year High, Estonia's i-voting: more secure, more popular, Macedonia referendum: Low voter turnout puts country's name change at risk, What Voting and Elections Look Like Around the World, X Marks the Choice: Voting Methods around the World, Defense Language and National Security Education Office. But some election analysts told CBS News that making Election Day a holiday is not a way to make voting easier. But while experts say such a scheme is unlikely to fly in the US, making it easier for people to vote would appear to be a step in the right direction. Here is the relevant passage from Acts 28: Election Day in the United States is the annual day for general elections of federal public officials.It is statutorily set by the U.S. government as "the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November", i.e. For other uses, see. [14], Pew Research Center found that 71% of Democrats and 59% of Republicans support making Election Day a federal holiday. According to Pew Research data, US voter turnout trails most developed countries. "[Early and at-home voting] helps prevent bottlenecks for election administrators because it 'flattens the curve' for when ballots are cast by large numbers of voters," Perez said. Establishing Election Day as a holiday, taken together with the pending federal voting rights reforms, would go a long way towards stabilizing democracy and ensuring basic democratic rights. It is very, very hard to change core American traditions.. Would turnout go up if we didn't have to vote on a workday? Image 2. There are some exceptions; as Wednesday was not covered by the available dates, the Netherlands holds elections on Thursday, while Denmark holds elections on Sunday. Early voting for the midterms varies by state. Presented by:Defense Language and National Security Education Office, 60% of the eligible voting population vast a vote, looked at a few different methods of voting. But experts say improving voter turnout is a complicated issue that no single silver bullet strategy can solve. a list of voting rights provisions he would support. So when faced with choices like having to take unpaid time off work to vote, waking at the wee hours of the morning to vote so that they're not late to work, standing in hours-long lines with everyone else who waited until after the workday to cast their ballot, or simply not voting at all, many choose the latter. The U.S. is one of only nine member nations that have weekday voting. - Vincent Hutchings, a University of Michigan political science professor, - Gil Troy, American presidential historian, 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, Joaquin Corbalan / EyeEm via Getty Images, as travel and communication improved in the 19th century, being too busy or having a conflicting schedule, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, substantially increase the cost of running elections, move that would make it easier for Americans to vote, The types of workers least likely to reap the benefits. 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. But this arrangement began to raise concerns as travel and communication improved in the 19th century: Results from states that voted earlier could sway the outcome in states that voted later. A National Day is a date for a country to celebrate its nationhood. American election laws have been reformed before with minimal impact on voter turnout which remains low compared to other democracies around the world. And there is no better way to secure democracy than to ensure that everyone has not only the right to vote, but also the meaningful opportunity to cast their ballots. 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. During the 2016 presidential election, less than 56% of the estimated voting-age population in the US voted. Presidential and semipresidential systems, Constituencies: districting and apportionment. While young people are generally less likely to vote, they are more motivated by the issue of freedom of speech than older generations. Office Holidays provides calendars with dates and information on public holidays and bank holidays in key countries around the world. So, since this effort does not receive bipartisan support, it is difficult to enact.. He concluded that having an election holiday, by itself, is not an effective strategy to increase voter turnout. [34], Automatic voter registration, by contrast, could register an additional 22 million people and create 7.9 million new voters nationwide within a year. as well as other partner offers and accept our. I'll look into this some more and may change it on the map. 25, 2016, Chris Talgo, "Make Election Day a National Holiday? Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. A number of bills like the Weekend Voting Act have been proposed in Congress over the years, often by Democrats. Is Election Day a national holiday? These people think it should be 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.. To make Election Day a national holiday, it would take an act of Congress, and so far, no bills proposing such action have passed. Litigation pending before the Supreme Court this term in Brnovich v. DNC, however, threatens to undermine this rule. 26K views, 1.2K likes, 65 loves, 454 comments, 23 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Citizen TV Kenya: #FridayNight the Tuesday that occurs within November 2 to November 8. If you make election day a federal holiday, youll have all the people who work in these types of jobs still having to work, being inundated with customers who have the day off and they wont have child care because the schools will be closed, Suzanne Lucas, who previously worked in human resources, wrote in a piece for Inc.com. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. [1], An election day usually culminates in an election night when the results of the election are tallied and winners are announced.[2]. In many other democracies around the world, national elections are held on the weekend or are a federal holiday. Last Tuesday was election day in the United States, and this year we voted in the midterm elections. While countries like Belgium, Sweden, and Turkey saw more than 80% of their estimated voting-age population cast votes in recent elections, less than 56% of the estimated voting-age population in the US voted during the 2016 presidential election. Consider the potential benefits and difficulties of changing election day. Newsweek subscription offers > "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. Elections are federal holidays in Singapore, which, when combined with mandatory voting, resulted in a voter turnout of 93.6% for the 2015 election of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. 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. As Congress continues to grapple with voting rights legislation this week, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has used his considerable influence as the Senates key swing vote to set the terms of the debate. Elections Held on Tuesdays?, britannica.com (accessed Sep. 30, 2019), Evan Andrews, "Election 1010: Why Do We Vote on a Tuesday in November?, history.com, Aug. 31, 2018, Grace Panetta and Olivia Reaney, "Today Is National Voter Registration Day. Should election day in the United States be made a national holiday Should Election Day be a national holiday? Before that point, states could hold their presidential elections on any day within a certain 34-day window. Even people youd expect to know, like politicians, have been stumped by this very question. Sweden came second with 82.6%. This is why election day is not a holiday in Canada - blogTO Should People Who Have Completed Felony Sentences Be Allowed to Vote? [16]. Veterans Day typically is about one week after Election Day so this would involve little disruption in terms of job schedules and monthly routines. Four more states only provide time off for biennial, even-year elections: Delaware, Louisiana, Michigan and New Hampshire. [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. What if Election Day were a holiday? - USA TODAY The US ranks 26th out of 32 for voter turnout among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. 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, . "Voting is a fundamental right,. Countries that hold the ballot before Sunday are not permitted to announce results until all other countries have finished voting. Where Is Election Day a Holiday? - Ms. Magazine (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.). John M. Cunningham, "Why Are U.S. 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. First published on October 26, 2020 / 10:57 AM. Countries which permit absentee ballots, early ballots or postal votes to be cast by mail before the election avoid the problem altogether by enabling voters to vote on a day that is more convenient to them.
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