Election Day Should Be A National Holiday

In their book "Off Center," Jacob Hacker and Paul Pierson suggest a very simple way to increase voter participation: make Election Day a national holiday. A bank holiday.

If civic events were then organized around voting places, so that people off work could bring their kids and participate in games, concerts, lectures, conversations, or whatever the locals would be interested in, it would be a simple matter for them to spin off and vote.

Since the Republicans have limited the political activities groups like the League of Women Voters can engage in, here is a non-partisan project they could easily pull off with their devoted and skilled membership.

I really like this. If 1/1,000th of the celebration of days like Halloween were harnessed to democratic participation, Republicans (or anyone else) could no longer count on the non-involvement of the center.



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Re: Election Day Should Be A National Holiday (none / 0)

Veterans Day would work - it's already a federal holiday, and a holiday in most, if not all, states as well.


by Bear83 on Mon Oct 09, 2006 at 02:40:39 PM EST

Re: Election Day Should Be A National Holiday (none / 0)

how would one go about making it happen?  


by chiefscribe on Mon Oct 09, 2006 at 04:54:42 PM EST

Re: Election Day Should Be A National Holiday (none / 0)

I love this idea.  Especially if it has a celebratory feel.  Civic life should be joyful and lively. I live in Germany and they have days off all of the time.  It takes getting used to, because you can't go shopping, but it gives families time together.

I suppose it would be similar to getting Martin Luther King Day off.  So every two years we have an extra day off.  You are planning on only having national elections off?  What about off year elections?

This fits in with another idea that I'm developing for after the election.  I hope you'll be around to read it.


by prince myshkin on Tue Oct 10, 2006 at 07:49:57 AM EST


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