How Many Federal Elections have you voted in?

Ron Swanson

Illuminator
Ron Swanson
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Today is Federal Election day in Canada ... I was watching on a YouTube Live feed (which is live on several Platforms not just YouTube) ... They at that time, had over 40,000 people watching from the US!

I think that's interesting and very positive! We should all be at least aware of other countries important events! :)

So how many Federal Elections have you voted in?
I just voted tonight, and this is my 15th time, voting in a federal election. :)
 
My voting record:

5 General elections (didn't vote immediately after turning 18)
0 Presidential elections (they're cosmetic)
5 EU parliament elections
3 Locals (all ballots spoiled, frankly Ireland has too many councils for the responsibilities they have)
13 Referenda (out of 15 I was eligible for, I missed two for being away)
 
I've voted in most general and midterm elections since 1982. I missed a few due to being deployed at sea. So about 20 elections. Only my first election was in person.
 
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All the Presidential and Mid-Term elections since 1974. I've voted in maybe half of the county and city elections and bond measures, since I was out of touch on local issues much of the time. Never voted in person. I turned 18 while in service, so voted Military Absentee while I was in, then, by the time I retired, Oregon had gone to vote-by-mail.
 
Every single one since I turned eighteen. I’ve skipped a very few local primaries, but not much else. Last fall was the only time I’ve voted absentee, because I was in the hospital.
 
All of them since I was eligible, even weird local judges and primary candidates.

Where I live, it's usually just a given that your vote won't really matter - very, very blue.

But still, you gotta do what you can.
 
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PitPat said:
All of them since I was eligible...Where I live, it's usually just a given that your vote won't really matter - very, very blue...
Click to expand...

Same with me. First time i voted was for Jimmy Carter in 1976.
 
None whatsoever. Don't think I've ever seen a ballot, in fact. Just throw the envelope in the trash unopened.

I do make sure to get my hands on an "I voted!" sticker, though.
 
Two.
1976 Carter vs Ford
2020 Biden vs Trump

I generally abide by the UK policy barring overseas residents from voting after residing too long abroad. Only came out of the woods like an Ent when Democracy Forest started getting clear cut. Then Biden started clear-cutting humans. Last election for me.
 
Hlafordlaes said:
Two.
1976 Carter vs Ford
2020 Biden vs Trump

I generally abide by the UK policy barring overseas residents from voting after residing too long abroad. Only came out of the woods like an Ent when Democracy Forest started getting clear cut. Then Biden started clear-cutting humans. Last election for me.
Click to expand...
That rule is gone in the UK.
 
Really? Still think it's not a bad idea. What if the place of residence comes into direct conflict of interest with the home nation? Anyway, not planning on voting anymore.
 
TragicMonkey said:
Sigh. It's going to turn out to be "states run elections, not the feds", isn't it?
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Unless there's stolen ballot machines shipped off to Venezuela's Dominion HQ built in the wall of a big cliff.

I don't know exactly why, but my very blue state has consistently elected Republican candidates for Secretary of State way more times than you would probably believe in recent history. They've been good, one of the frontrunners for all mail-in voting and it's always pulled off without a hitch from my experience.
 
Norman Alexander said:
To the OP: All federal and state elections since 1983 when I turned 18 and was first enrolled.
Click to expand...
1988 for me - 14 Federal elections and a number of state/territory ones. My first couple of elections I didn't really understand the stakes and thought that it would be better to vote informally than vote in ignorance and help to elect a bad government. I acknowledge now that I should have done my homework better at that time, but I was young and stupid and the internet didn't yet exist.
 
arthwollipot said:
1988 for me - 14 Federal elections and a number of state/territory ones. My first couple of elections I didn't really understand the stakes and thought that it would be better to vote informally than vote in ignorance and help to elect a bad government. I acknowledge now that I should have done my homework better at that time, but I was young and stupid and the internet didn't yet exist.
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Pretty much ditto, except I voted like mum and dad did the first time.
 
I find the members here to generally speaking to be f above average intelligence ... and people like us (if I may include myself) usually vote every chance they get ....

I say BRAVO to all (of us) who vote constantly ... it's our voice in the system -- our input!!! :)
 
We are always told that, "Every Vote Counts' and here in Canada we have just had an example of where this may actually be true . . . or not.

The final vote tally in a riding was close (about 70 votes) so there was a Judicial Recount (qv). This lead to the result being reversed by one vote. And then someone who had tried to vote by mail reported her ballot had been return by Canada Post because it had the wrong postal code preprinted on it. And she had voted for the other guy!

The final result is that the Judicial Recount is final because there is no mechanism documented as to what should be done i the case of an error like this. Needless to say the loser disagrees so off to the courts we go.

globalnews.ca

Bloc Québécois to challenge Terrebonne election result in court | Globalnews.ca

Speaking in Ottawa Thursday morning, Bloc Leader Yves-François Blanchet said his party intends to contest the result.
globalnews.ca globalnews.ca

:popcorn6
 
First election was 1974, first presidential election was 1976. Voted against Jake Garn for senator in 74 (and every six years thereafter) and later against Orrin Hatch every six years. Voted for Carter for president in 76 and democrats thereafter. Neither of those things did any good here in Utah.

I think I may have missed a time or two when I was out of town for business until we got vote-by-mail for everyone here a while back (10 years or so?).
 
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First Presidential Election for me was 1984. Couldn't wait to vote. Never miss the federal elections, and rarely miss the state election. It's cathartic. I have my say in the way things go. In 10 elections my presidential candidate has won 5 times.
 
I remember that year. We moved to London and voted in ; Australian Federal and local council elections, UK general and council elections a little later and then on the Aus republic referendum.

“I” lost every single one! But it horrified our UK colleagues that we were allowed to vote in their general election.
Not that any of them voted, but practically all did at the next one to water down all this “foreign criminal element” voting in their elections.
 
I travelled in the opposite direction :-).
At the time of the election I was in New Zealand, moved on to Australia later on......
 
theprestige said:
Did @Ron Swanson ever learn anything interesting from this exercise?
Click to expand...
Although I find the vast majority here can reasonably discuss politics .. I thought it would be something political that had no real bias to take side in :)

Interesting trivia I got to vole in TWO (Canadian) Federal election at 18 ... Yes!! ... BEFORE I was 19 years of age

I quickly viewed past Canadian election dates .. and it seems this has happened more than once before :) .. When Federal elections were called in consecutive years.
 
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