"If I had my way, and I think it is really important, every . People literally cannot get to the polling booth because it may close at 7 o'clock and they're working later. As a holiday, that means several millions of people would have the day off from work or school, making it way . Executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation & Research David Becker argues that increasing turnout is a nuanced problem that can't be fixed by declaring a holiday. It can fall on or between November 2 and November 8. Some countries, about 27 of them,make voting compulsory. It is the day when popular ballots are held to select public officials. It happens to be on the day the politicians themselves get elected. That's true, although the separate "National Day of Commemoration" occurs on the anniversary of the truce ending the Irish war of independence. This page was last edited on 1 February 2023, at 18:43. Essential reporting and analysis from correspondents around the world. [26] Caravanas are joyful, noisy parades of cars festooned with flags and other decorations that stream through Puerto Ricos streets ahead of an election and are credited with the islands over 80% voter turnout. Many other democracies make election day a holiday and they all have higher voter turnout than we do. [14][35] In Australia, where voting is mandatory, elections are celebrated with parties and barbeques nationwide, resulting in turnout rates around 90%. After reading the pros and cons on this topic, has your thinking changed? Election Day (United States) - Wikipedia And the empire has been pretty consistently breaking apart over the last half century Scotland is maybe next so it's not like there is a national unification to celebrate. All rights reserved. $4+ Billion Cost To Give Federal Employees A New Paid Holiday - Forbes Four more states only provide time off for biennial, even-year elections: Delaware, Louisiana, Michigan and New Hampshire. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) is a group that includes 36 countries. In previous elections, that percentage was even higher. While young people are generally less likely to vote, they are more motivated by the issue of freedom of speech than older generations. Sunday. One major reason: It comes down to tradition, Troy said. 1. 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. Twenty-seven of the 36 member countries, hold their elections on the weekend. 26K views, 1.2K likes, 65 loves, 454 comments, 23 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Citizen TV Kenya: #FridayNight So, focusing voting efforts to one day doesn't do enough to accommodate everyone, Becker argues. Indigenous Peoples Day is a local and state holiday in some parts of the country usually held on Columbus Day that celebrates the cultures of Native Americans. [18][19], Federal law doesnt require private employers to give employees paid federal holidays. 3. 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. Presidential elections are held every four years, in years divisible by four, while the elections to the . Mr. CHRISTENSEN: One of the biggest countries that uses compulsory voting is Australia. Vanita Gupta, CEO of the Leadership Conference on Human and Civil Rights, is working to increase voter participation and decrease voter disenfranchisement. Rose Marcario, CEO, stated, demonstrating your companys commitment to voting will reinforce how essential it is that every eligible voter shows up. The founding fathers at first only granted white, male property owners the right to vote, so the expansion of voting rights has taken some time. In an interview with President Barack Obama in 2016, Dan Corey, editor-in-chief of Rutgers University's official student newspaper, The Daily Targum, asked Obama about what could be done to reverse the US's low voter turnout: The Daily Targum: "You have pointed out many times that voter turnout in the United States is very low, especially compared to other developed nations. Virginia joined these states in April this year. Some businesses may close, but their hourly paid employees will either have to use a PTO day or not get paid.. Because Saturday and Sunday are Sabbath days for devout Jews and Christians, elections would probably have to be held over the two-day period creating a need for more poll workers and a process for securing ballots overnight, Victoria Shineman, a University of Pittsburgh political science professor, wrote in The Washington Post. A simple but effective change, however, could be made in election timing. We are the only advanced democracy that makes it deliberately difficult for people to vote. Before that point, states could hold their presidential elections on any day within a certain 34-day window. Rather than make it a national holiday where inevitably people will still have to work, change election day to election week. Countries like Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico also showed high voter turnout rates by having holidays. October 26, 2020 / 10:57 AM Should election day be made a national holiday? | Britannica This . Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. And some countries, like Australia, require people to vote by subjecting those who don't to a minor fine equivalent to a traffic ticket. In many countries, general elections are always held on a Saturday or Sunday, to enable as many voters as possible to participate; while in other countries elections are always held on a weekday. If so, how? procon@eb.com, 2022 Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. 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. An additional day off school would prove to be problematic for individuals who may not have other readily accessible forms of childcare. [24], People who have already suffered significant disenfranchisement, such as women and people of color, are more likely to be working those low-income jobs that wouldnt get the time off to vote even on a national holiday. After all, what do our veterans fight for, if not for democracy itself? He says it's more important to spread voting out over a period of days and methods. Because of the pandemic, more U.S. voters are exploring alternatives to voting on Election Day, such as early voting and mail-in voting. Right now, federal elections are always held on Tuesdays, because farmers in the 1840s needed multiple days to get to the . You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. COLUMN: Point Counterpoint: There are pros and cons to making Election Why isn't Election Day a national holiday yet? - CNN Opponents say kids arent mature enough to vote. Most National Days are fixed, exceptions to this are shown below. 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. And even a number of the blue countries, such as Australia and Canada, are actually the product of colonialism. On Sunday, Virginia Democratic Gov. In some of these countries, voting is compulsory, and in most of them, Election Day is a holiday. But some election analysts told CBS News that making Election Day a holiday is not a way to make voting easier. Russia's national holiday only goes back to 1992, when the Russian Federation was founded. Opponents say it allows only a few states to select the president. "While this would not be a cure-all, it would indicate a national commitment to create a more vibrant democracy.". Here are five reasons why Election Day should be a national holiday. Congress would shore up the peoples right to vote while guaranteeing the time to engage in this fundamental right. 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. For starters, the United States is rather unique in that it schedules its election day on a weekday, let alone a Tuesday. Runoffs take place on the last Sunday of the same October. Is Election Day a federal holiday? While some states have made Election Day a civic holiday (though it primarily applies to public workers) and most have laws that require companies to give employees some time off to vote, none of the legislative efforts to enact these changes on a national level have been successful. 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. Keep in mind that in the mid-1800s, the U.S. was largely an agricultural society. Holidays, law.cornell.edu (accessed Sep. 30, 2019), Matthew Haag, "Mitch McConnell Calls Push to Make Election Day a Holiday a Democratic Power Grab," nytimes.com, Jan. 31, 2019, Drew DeSilver, "U.S. Trails Most Developed Countries in Voter Turnout, pewresearch.org, May 21, 2018, Gustavo Lpez and Antonio Flores, "Dislike of Candidates or Campaign Issues Was Most Common Reason for Not Voting in 2016, pewresearch.org, June 1, 2017, Beau C. Tremitiere, "Election Day Should Be a National Holiday, cnbc.com, July 5, 2016, York Dispatch Editorial Board, "Editorial: On Voting, GOP Takes a Holiday from its Senses, yorkdispatch.com, Feb. 1, 2019, Tacey Rychter, "How Compulsory Voting Works: Australians Explain," nytimes.com, Nov. 5, 2018, Archon Fung and Jane Mansbridge, "Lets Vote, Party and Celebrate American Democracy on a New Holiday Called Citizen Day, usatoday.com, Oct. 26, 2018, Thomas MacMillan, "This Might Be the Best Idea for Turning out More Voters in U.S. Elections, nymag.com, July 8, 2017, Drew Desilver, "Weekday Elections Set the U.S. apart from Many Other Advanced Democracies, pewresearch.org, Nov. 6, 2018, Kathy Frankovic, "St. Patricks Day Not So Popular - Americans Would Rather Election Day a Holiday, today.yougov.com, Mar. They stated, Citizen Day would do more than give our democracy the honor that it deserves; it would help our democracy work better. The US ranks 26th out of 32 for voter turnout among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. [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. Rupak De Chowdhuri/Reuters. Why Election Day Isn't a National Holiday in the US - Business Insider While the majority of US states have voter leave laws that guarantee certain employees a modicum of time off to vote, no federal law currently mandates that employees get time off to cast their ballots. 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." Where Is Election Day a Holiday? - Ms. Magazine Would making Election Day a federal holiday increase voter turnout and celebrate democracy? https://www.britannica.com/question/Should-election-day-be-made-a-national-holiday. Managing Editor Voting Around the World - Home | CultureReady Until 2009, elections were held over several consecutive Sundays. Is Election Day a Federal Holiday? - Newsweek 4. Election day or polling day is the day on which general elections are held. 1. the Tuesday that occurs within November 2 to November 8. (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.).

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