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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 3, 2026, 4:54 PM

    My sister, who is in Massachusetts, is also working the polls but she has a specific job (a "warden") because they don't have a JP system like Vermont. Everyone there bakes snacks for poll working like it's a competitive sport. I am hoping for sun chips, seltzer and pizza at seven.

    When we were kids, my mom was a SAHM and did a lot of civic stuff. We'd get dragged to town meeting, bloodmobiles, grange fairs, you name it. I didn't love it at the time, now I look forward to it like a holiday.

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Replies

  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 3, 2026, 10:55 PM

    [home for an hour before counting at 7]

    Busy but not bonkers-busy today. A lot of new voters which you love to see. One thing I put to use from my community management days: people who are new to voting don't know how to vote. How would they? Here they have to check in, vote, check out and then put their ballot in the tabulator and then wait for the beep that says "Yeah you filled in the ovals correctly." The more you can help someone do that w/o making them feel dumb, the better.

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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 3, 2026, 11:05 PM

    Since the US is (nominally) a democracy, many people not that into civics often think that voting is one kind of thing in the US whereas it's actually fifty weird fiefdoms of rules and regs.

    In Vermont it's actually HARD to get off the voting rolls, even if you want to. We don't require ID, we don't make you vote all the items on the ballot, we mail you a ballot for the general, we don't make you declare a party, we have tabulators. not touchscreen machines. It's no wonder it's confusing.

    An accessible voting booth with an uncomfortable looking chair.
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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 4, 2026, 3:53 AM

    Polls closed at 7. We got prelim results at 7:15. The results I cared about were my two reps got in (not surprising), the woman I wanted for state senate was ahead in my town (but would represent many towns, so too early to call but hopeful) and Janoo, the Dem who ran against our Republican governor, lost locally but only just. I stayed to empty the tabulator which, thanks to a small malfunction, mixed the write-in and no-write-in ballots so we had to eyeball each ballot (n=2400) for write-ins.

    Two legs from the knees down in purple pants with feet in black crocs, rest on top of a LARGE pile of ballots on the floor.
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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 4, 2026, 4:04 AM

    It's fun to get to text your friends and tell them they've won. I stuck around until 8:45 ate pizza, sorted ballots and then headed home. Talked to my best guy. Checked statewide results and it's too soon to tell for my state senator but looking good. Working the polls is fiddly work that can seem really bullshitty from time to time but it's human scale and when you have humans who care about doing it right, it matters.

    Oh and penguin beat walrus but clown and magician were a surprising tie.

    Four different people spread out in an empty polling place sorting ballots into piles.
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  • windigowindigo@mastodon.sdf.org
    Nov 3, 2026, 5:41 PM

    @jessamyn I used to be a web developer at a upstate NY county, and had to be in the Board of Elections to post the results on election night.

    The spreads were IMPRESSIVE. I knew I had been truly accepted when they offered me some of the New Skete cheesecake ( newskete.org/ ). :)

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  • Pauxlll Kruczynskipaulkruczynski@mastodon.social
    Nov 3, 2026, 8:15 PM

    @jessamyn the baking is so true. My polling place in Somerville was in a senior activity center. There were several grandparent-aged women who had a huge selection of baked goods available to buy next to the line to vote. Of course I bought some, and of course it was all amazing

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  • Wyatt H KnottWyatt_H_Knott@mastodon.sdf.org
    Nov 3, 2026, 11:04 PM

    @jessamyn An anarchist decides for herself what is right and wrong, regardless of the law. You have clearly done that. I'm sure your town will miss you.

    I've been out all day in the rain placing door hangers to remind folks the polls are open until 7pm. As an anarchist, I feel like it was the right thing to do.

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  • Tmateitudor@kolektiva.social
    Nov 3, 2026, 11:19 PM

    @jessamyn your “democracy” is built on past and ongoing genocides and slavery

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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 3, 2026, 11:26 PM

    @mateitudor Right, I'm very aware. Is it better to stay and fight to make it better or should I just move to... where?

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  • instantiatethisinstantiatethis@keyboards.social
    Nov 4, 2026, 12:22 AM

    @jessamyn was just looking up and explaining the wild variety of absentee ballot deadlines. Washington lets you just mail it by election day and arrive whenever. My current state of PA requires arrival by poll close election day. Some states have rules too long for me to put here like Texas and West Virginia. The range is astounding

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  • Wyatt H KnottWyatt_H_Knott@mastodon.sdf.org
    Nov 4, 2026, 3:58 AM

    @jessamyn We won both state congressional seats up here in Franklin county. Janoo did better than I expected but not as well as I'd hoped. She definitely put Scott on notice though. And it looks like we won both Sec State and LtGov as well.

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  • Jessamynjessamyn@glammr.us
    Nov 4, 2026, 4:06 AM

    @Wyatt_H_Knott Yeah I thought Janoo was so clearly the best candidate. I really hope Scott is worried, very worried. Still crossing fingers for Monique Priestly who clearly ran a better campaign but is running against the guy the gov appointed who is a beloved local firefighter/selectman in the next town. Orange County is mostly small towns so may not see results for sure in this race until tomorrow.

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  • Seth Galitzersgsax@mastodon.social
    Nov 4, 2026, 2:03 AM

    @jessamyn Election volunteers in my county walk every single person through the process of using the machines. And somebody is by the door to tell people how to feed the printed ballot into the scanner. They are always friendly, helpful, and patient. I always appreciate them being there. Even if I don't need help, somebody else does.

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