Senator Angus King Wants To Dump Voting On Tuesdays, Move It To Weekends

If you've ever wondered why a random Tuesday in November is the chosen date for major American elections, the answer may honestly surprise you. A Tuesday was chosen, because back in 1845 when the Tuesday voting law was put into place, most everyone traveled by horse and buggy. People needed a day to get to the voting place, a day to actually place a vote and a day to return home. Yes, voting in major elections used to cost people three days of their lives!

As times have changed, and means of transportation has as well, the topic of voting on a Tuesday has been brought up. Americans are busier than ever, and Tuesday doesn't exactly jive for people with hefty work schedules. Maine's Senator Angus King wants to change that for everyone by moving elections all together.

According to the Bangor Daily News, King, in a bill co-sponsored by several other senators, would like to move Election Day from the first Tuesday in November to the first full weekend in November. It would allow Americans with Monday through Friday jobs to work as normal, and it may allow a whole group of new voters, ones who simply can't afford to take time off from work, the opportunity to vote in major American elections. One question hanging over the bill is: Would the voting day be relegated to just Saturday or Sunday? Or could people vote through the entire weekend?