The View From Wisconsin

I had a elatively easy time voting this morning; our polling place is the new Village hall, and even though they had a long queue through the main lobby, there were only about a dozen or so people ahead of me.

The hall where they had the balloting was actually (IIRC) the chapel of an old church that had been renovated a couple of times (first to be the library, then to be the village council chambers).

In and out, pretty simple; the longer queue in the main lobby was for new voters. Setup usually is they have a table outside the main voting area, where you register if you have not done so previously; if you're already registered, you go inside to the main table. Give your street address, then your name.

Unfortunately, the state of Wisconsin has not yet made it mandatory to provide ID before voting, but that's a minor thing (and it could very well be fixed by 2012, especially if we have more electioneering crap like we had in '04 - ciggies for votes among the homeless!).

Ballot is a scantron-style that you use a marker to cross off your vote, kinda like this:

>>-- -->> indicates unselected
>>------>> indicates selected

Had at least one lady ahead of me who put an X in the line, but realized her mistake right away.

You go to a semi-private alcove to make your marks in the various races, from the congressional to the various other ones (I saved the presidential choice for last). Afterwards, you take your completed ballot over to the scantron machine, slide it in, and beep, you're done. (That's why I said I was voter 132, but ballot number 129.)

My little "I voted" sticker, by the way, was good for a free cup of coffee at Starbucks. Wasn't the best cup in the world, but free is free.