Our calendars are full of wasted holidays. Just last month, I came across Credit Union. daymashed potatoes day Raw milk cheese appreciation party day. Although these observances are not relevant at the national level, there is one day each year that has long been not designated as a federal “holiday.” It’s Election Day.
Unlike casual observances like Earth Day, where daily life goes on as usual, Election Day should be an official federal holiday like President’s Day or Thanksgiving, and should include all non-essential workers in their civic duty. should receive paid leave to carry out their duties. Establishing this annual event as a federal holiday would increase voter turnout, restore confidence in elections, and, most importantly, boost morale through a common public display. (Related: 5 Key Ushers to Watch on Election Day)
Designating Election Day as a national holiday and giving workers the day off would greatly reduce the need for accommodations such as mail-in voting and early voting, allowing policymakers to require in-person voting except in special circumstances. becomes possible. This would also allow for a mass return to paper ballots, eliminating the need for voting machines that have been riddled with scandal since 2020.
Some people say. Mail-in voting is ripe for manipulation. others They argue that voting machines are prone to hacking and glitches. It’s difficult to quantify how much voting machines and absentee ballots increase the risk of election fraud, but even if they do, it’s clear that a significant number of Americans have lost confidence in elections. is. Our media, our government, and our friends and neighbors.
In a world where most Americans take time off work and vote in person using paper ballots, many common questions about the election system become moot. Of course, exceptions apply for essential workers and citizens temporarily residing in another state, but the vast majority of Americans must physically go to a polling place on Election Day to cast their vote. Volunteers would then count paper ballots on-site, greatly reducing doubts about the integrity of voting machines or ballots getting lost in the mail.
Famous right-wingers look like this Vivek Ramaswamy In fact, it has been pushing for this plan throughout the 2024 election period, citing concerns about election integrity. But making Election Day a federal holiday would do far more than heal the wounds of the rejection of the election, it would create a new sense of patriotism with common traditions.
Civic virtue is a good thing, and public reminders of it are even better. To value our democracy and do our best to preserve it, we need to remind our people that tyranny, not democracy, has been the norm throughout human history. The United States is exceptional because it establishes its power through consensus, not force.
As humans, we need physical reminders to keep such abstract truths in mind. That’s why we build churches, write great works of literature, and get tattoos. When the principles we hold dear are not expressed in anything, we lose them.
The large numbers of Americans traveling to the polls each year will be a powerful symbol of the resilience of our democracy and a shining example to the world that our grand experiment has worked. Additionally, a full day of voting could encourage people to participate in state and local elections. These elections have an even greater impact on people’s daily lives than national elections.
People will be looking forward to voting. It would become a ritual celebrated in public life that otherwise lacked shared tradition. You can also imagine a pre-vote brunch or a post-vote barbecue. Families can go to vote in the morning and spend the rest of the day together enjoying freedom and leisure. Just as we look forward to Christmas, Thanksgiving, and the first day of summer vacation, children will grow up looking forward to participating in citizenship.
Recently, Americans Independence Day is a day worth celebrating (Spoiler alert, yes). However, a nation cannot survive without a shared culture. It is time to begin rebuilding our shared culture as we commemorate this National Day of Living Our Extraordinary Founding Ideals.
this republished With permission from RealClearWire.
Ethan Watson is a Young Voices contributor who is pursuing a master’s degree in accounting at the University of Kansas. He has dual bachelor’s degrees in accounting and political science and is aiming to attend law school in the near future. X: Follow him at @erwatson13.
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