Lists national days around the world by country or date. Saudi Arabia's marks the 1932 unification of the country. Maybe Making Election Day a National Holiday Wouldn't Really Work In some of these countries, voting is compulsory, and in most of them, Election Day is a holiday. 26K views, 1.2K likes, 65 loves, 454 comments, 23 shares, Facebook Watch Videos from Citizen TV Kenya: #FridayNight So far this year, hundreds of bills have been introduced that could have the effect of suppressing peoples right to vote. John M. Cunningham, "Why Are U.S. A National Day is a date for a country to celebrate its nationhood. Roughly 138 million Americans voted in the 2016 presidential election, just 61.4% of the 214,109,360 million who were registered to vote, according to The U.S. Election Assistance Commission. Georgia grassroots groups helped Biden win. Countries that have weekend or holiday elections do tend to have better turnout overall. 4) The outliers are few but tell you a lot about those . Nine states classify general elections as holidays: Florida, Hawaii, Maryland, Montana, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island and Virginia. Election Day is not a national holiday in 2022, but some states require employees get paid time off to vote. "Election Day really definitely does need to be a holiday," she said, adding, "We need to be able to have everybody feel like they have a great stake in it.". This year, Election . And some countries, like Australia, require people to vote by subjecting those who don't to a minor fine equivalent to a traffic ticket. Elections Project, which is close to the complete voter . It's amazing how much of the map is green, indicating countries that celebrate a national independence day every year. "And we actually have more options than ever before.". Below are the proper citations for this page according to four style manuals (in alphabetical order): the Modern Language Association Style Manual (MLA), the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA), and Kate Turabian's A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations (Turabian). 27 September (Wednesday): Day of the French-speaking Community - commemorates the victory of the patriots against the Dutch army in Brussels in 1830. Countries like France, Germany, and India all recognize Election Day as a national holiday or hold elections on the weekend in order to increase voter turnout. Some say a holiday would increase voter turnout by enabling more people to vote while celebrating democracy. Election officials in various states have predicted historic levels of turnout in 2020, with a chance to reach the highest ever. Presented by:Defense Language and National Security Education Office, 60% of the eligible voting population vast a vote, looked at a few different methods of voting. Instead, lawmakers could simply move nearby Veterans Day to Election Day, emphasizing that voting is both a service to the country and a celebration of the rights and freedoms for which our servicemembers fight. The Evolution of American Voting Rights in 242 Years Shows How Far Weve Come -- and How Far We Still Have to Go, businessinsider.com, Sep. 24, 2019, University of Houston Digital History, "Agriculture, digitalhistory.uh.edu (accessed Sep. 24, 2019), USDA, "Ag and Food Sectors and the Economy, ers.usda.gov, Sep. 20, 2019, Legal Information Institute, "5 U.S. Code 6103. Consider how you felt about the issue before reading this article. Proponents say the Electoral College ensures everyone selects the president. All 435 representatives were up for re-election, as well as a third ofsenators, and countless elections for governors, mayors, state legislators, and local government across the country. 11 July (Tuesday): Celebration of the Golden Spurs (Day of the Flemish Community) - celebrates the victory of the count of Flanders and the borough militia against the king of France outside Courtrai. Explain your answer. ", "National Electoral Code Article 53 and 148", Report of the 2014 National Lawyers Guild Bolivian Election Observation Delegation, Voting hours for elections in EU Member States, "The Parliamentary Electoral System in Denmark", Consultation Report on Review of Electoral Arrangements, "India Elects 2019: The World's Largest Election, Explained", "Six Nations match at the centre of row over election date - Independent.ie", "With full term possible, Netanyahu may outlast Ben-Gurion (and Obama)", Confessionalism and Electoral Reform in Lebanon, "Voters reminded not to reveal voting intention at Sunday's polling", "Malaysia's election on a Wednesday favors PM, opposition says", "Elections in Mexico and the US: Comparisons and contrasts", "Law on Election of Councillors and Members of Parliament", "Election Days General Elections 1853-2011", "The main features of the Norwegian electoral system", "Tribunal Electoral de Panam convoca a elecciones generales de 2024", "Peru Can Give U.S. For starters, the United States is rather unique in that it schedules its election day on a weekday, let alone a Tuesday. Election Day in the United States of America is the Tuesday following the first Monday in November. History of Election Day As for Denmark, it has a national liberation day and some people celebrate international worker's day, but neither is a public holiday. ], [Editors Note: The MLA citation style requires double spacing within entries. In an interview published Thursday, President Obama endorsed the idea of holding U.S. federal elections on weekends or national holidays. Tuesday was selected because it was the most convenient. While the majority of US states have voter leave laws that guarantee certain employees a modicum of time off to vote, no federal law currently mandates that employees get time off to cast their ballots. Voting Around the World - Home | CultureReady Change often comes slowly, subtly. Interestingly, 27 of the 36 countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (made up largely of advanced democracies) conduct their national elections on the weekend. Understanding what happened in the Chicago mayoral race. Opponents say kids arent mature enough to vote. Would making Election Day a federal holiday increase voter turnout and celebrate democracy? Consider this: Even if Election Day were moved to a weekend or turned into a national holiday, retail and service industry employees would still need to work. Executive director and founder of the Center for Election Innovation & Research David Becker argues that increasing turnout is a nuanced problem that can't be fixed by declaring a holiday. "[Early and at-home voting] helps prevent bottlenecks for election administrators because it 'flattens the curve' for when ballots are cast by large numbers of voters," Perez said. On Sunday, Virginia Democratic Gov. Should election day in the United States be made a national holiday And so while it's very understandable that people are trying to find ways to make it more convenient for people to vote, it's very likely that Election Day as a national holiday would actually hurt the voters who most need more options," Becker said. And that election saw the second highest voter turnout in 20 years. The correct answer is B. Advertisement Advertisement marberman marberman Why isn't Election Day a national holiday yet? - CNN Passing voting rights reform will be a crucial component of this response, as would making Election Day a national holiday. They stated, Citizen Day would do more than give our democracy the honor that it deserves; it would help our democracy work better. All this despite the fact that these types of restrictions have typically been considered illegal under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires that elections be equally open to all people. [15] A survey showed that US adults would rather have a federal holiday on Election Day than on Christmas Eve, the Friday after Thanksgiving, or St. Patricks day. COLUMN: Point Counterpoint: There are pros and cons to making Election Some countries, about 27 of them,make voting compulsory. [26] Caravanas are joyful, noisy parades of cars festooned with flags and other decorations that stream through Puerto Ricos streets ahead of an election and are credited with the islands over 80% voter turnout. Some businesses may close, but their hourly paid employees will either have to use a PTO day or not get paid.. The case for making Election Day an official holiday - Vincent Hutchings, a University of Michigan political science professor, - Gil Troy, American presidential historian, Whether accurate or not, elected officials likely think that making it easier to vote would advantage one party traditionally it is believed to help the Democrats at the, Joaquin Corbalan / EyeEm via Getty Images, as travel and communication improved in the 19th century, being too busy or having a conflicting schedule, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, substantially increase the cost of running elections, move that would make it easier for Americans to vote, The types of workers least likely to reap the benefits. By Monday morning, nearly 60 million had already voted early across the country, closing in on half of 2016's total voter turnout. It is very, very hard to change core American traditions which Americans see not only as propping up their democracy but perpetuating its legitimacy, he said. America is walking the knifes edge between maintaining and losing democracy. Right now, federal elections are always held on Tuesdays, because farmers in the 1840s needed multiple days to get to the . In some states where they don't have mail-in ballots, voting can take a lot of time out of the day. Is Election Day a national holiday? Why you don't get the day off This is the day we cast ballots to select public officials from local to the national government. Because the impact of a federal holiday is far-reaching, many states and workplaces would likely follow suit. In previous elections, that percentage was even higher. In an interview with President Barack Obama in 2016, Dan Corey, editor-in-chief of Rutgers University's official student newspaper, The Daily Targum, asked Obama about what could be done to reverse the US's low voter turnout: The Daily Targum: "You have pointed out many times that voter turnout in the United States is very low, especially compared to other developed nations. Consider the pandemic, which has not given essential workers more time off. While some states have made Election Day a civic holiday (though it primarily applies to public workers) and most have laws that require companies to give employees some time off to vote, none of the legislative efforts to enact these changes on a national level have been successful. [8][15] A holiday for elections sidesteps the issue of a weekend election, which could conflict with religious obligations. Vote.org has called on Amazon, Disney, McDonald's and others to offer paid time off for employees to vote and or work the polls. Younger generations are also more likely to participate in political discussions online, which shows that a move towards digitizing the political and voting processes may not be too far off. Pew also found that certain issues motivate voters more than others: "health care, poverty and education are the top motivators for political engagement." Pro/Con Arguments | Discussion Questions | Take Action | Sources | More Debates, Election Day in the United States has occurred on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November ever since President John Tyler signed an 1845 law establishing a specific voting day for the entire country. Election Day - Tuesday, Nov. 8 - is a special day, with voters casting ballots across the country. These efforts challenge fundamental values of American democracy and constitute a serious threat to the one person, one vote principle. 25, 2016, Chris Talgo, "Make Election Day a National Holiday? Interestingly, 27 of the 36 countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (made up largely of advanced democracies) conduct their national elections on the weekend. Election dates are determined by the General Elections Commission (Indonesian: Typically on a Friday, but precise date set by, Municipal, provincial, and regional elections take place on a Sunday, as do elections for the. Exact date set by the. By comparison,. In 1845, when Congress established a national election day, it had to be a Tuesday because farmers went to church on Sunday, went to market on Wednesday, and may have needed a day, Monday, to get to their polling place, Gil Troy an American presidential historian and McGill University professor told HuffPost. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Sign up to receive a weekly email update on forthcoming public holidays around the world in your inbox every Sunday. In the US, Election Day is not a national holiday. Compulsory voting does not necessarily guarantee 100% turnout rates, however, though they still see higher rates than countries which do not require it. Is Election Day a national holiday? Why you don't get the day off Today in my country it is a national holiday as we celebrate the day Democratic rights are much easier to end than they are to restore, so the federal government must respond to the wave of voter suppression overtaking the states with decisive, expansive action. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Office Holidays provides calendars with dates and information on public holidays and bank holidays in key countries around the world. So, workers having a day off to vote wouldn't be a disruption to the economy, or anything a citizen of our country could deny would be worthwhile and smart thing to do. Start the discussion over on our Facebook page, and let us know about civic engagement in your town, state, or country! ELECTION DAY - November 7, 2023 - National Today CBS News reporter covering climate change and energy. Is Election Day a Federal Holiday? - NBC Chicago Furthermore, making this small shift would celebrate the purpose and sacrifice of our fighting forces. Countries like Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico also showed high voter turnout rates by having holidays. Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Rhode Island and New York have also made Election Day into a state holiday. The U.S. is one of only nine member nations that have weekday voting. We are the only advanced democracy that makes it deliberately difficult for people to vote. Update: Some readers think that Ireland should also be considered an outlier, as St. Patrick's Day is often considered its primary "national day" and is not really an independence or revolution day. This page was last edited on 1 February 2023, at 18:43. 5 Reasons Election Day Should Be a National Holiday - Global Citizen The bill has no cosponsors, but the concept was supported by every 2020 Democratic candidate for president, excluding Mike Bloomberg and now-nominee Joe Biden. Accessed February 21, 2023. https://www.procon.org/headlines/election-day-national-holiday-top-3-pros-and-cons/, potential benefits and difficulties of changing election day, election day should not be a national holiday. Election Day is already a holiday for state employees in more than a dozen states including Kentucky, Michigan, and New York. Countries outpacing the U.S. include the U.K, Mexico and Canada. In fact, these voters may be more likely to have to work as a result of a federal election holiday, where they may have had time off previously on a random Tuesday in November. Last modified on October 1, 2020. Holidays, law.cornell.edu (accessed Sep. 30, 2019), Matthew Haag, "Mitch McConnell Calls Push to Make Election Day a Holiday a Democratic Power Grab," nytimes.com, Jan. 31, 2019, Drew DeSilver, "U.S. Trails Most Developed Countries in Voter Turnout, pewresearch.org, May 21, 2018, Gustavo Lpez and Antonio Flores, "Dislike of Candidates or Campaign Issues Was Most Common Reason for Not Voting in 2016, pewresearch.org, June 1, 2017, Beau C. Tremitiere, "Election Day Should Be a National Holiday, cnbc.com, July 5, 2016, York Dispatch Editorial Board, "Editorial: On Voting, GOP Takes a Holiday from its Senses, yorkdispatch.com, Feb. 1, 2019, Tacey Rychter, "How Compulsory Voting Works: Australians Explain," nytimes.com, Nov. 5, 2018, Archon Fung and Jane Mansbridge, "Lets Vote, Party and Celebrate American Democracy on a New Holiday Called Citizen Day, usatoday.com, Oct. 26, 2018, Thomas MacMillan, "This Might Be the Best Idea for Turning out More Voters in U.S. Elections, nymag.com, July 8, 2017, Drew Desilver, "Weekday Elections Set the U.S. apart from Many Other Advanced Democracies, pewresearch.org, Nov. 6, 2018, Kathy Frankovic, "St. Patricks Day Not So Popular - Americans Would Rather Election Day a Holiday, today.yougov.com, Mar. Make election day a national holiday : r/WhitePeopleTwitter - reddit [3] In 1800, 83% of the American labor force was agrarian, but today only 11% of total US employment is agriculture-related. a list of voting rights provisions he would support. / CBS News. Not only would making Election Day a federal holiday increase voter turnout among Americans, which is something that politicians and citizens in general complain about often, but it . (And in case youre curious, November was chosen as the month for similar reasons: It was after fall harvest was over but before the cold winter weather set in.). List two to three ways. Presidential elections are held every four years, in years divisible by four, while the elections to the . First Sunday of October. The US ranks 26th out of 32 for voter turnout among Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries. OK, so why Tuesday? 20, 2018, Annie McDonald, "Ensuring Access to Election Day for All, bppj.berkely.edu, Nov. 6, 2018, Suzanne Lucas, "No, Election Day Should Not Be a Federal Holiday, inc.com, Oct. 24, 2016, Kenneth Quinnell, "Know Your Rights: State Laws on Employee Time off to Vote, aflicio.org, Nov. 5, 2016, Osita Nwanevu, "Maybe Making Election Day a National Holiday Wouldnt Really Work, slate.com, Nov. 3, 2016, Abigail Hess, "A Record 44% of US Employers Will Give Their Workers Paid Time off to Vote This Year, cnbc.com, Oct. 31, 2018, Make Time to Vote, homepage, maketimetovote.org (accessed Sep. 24, 2019), Rose Marcario, "Time to Vote, patagonia.com, Sep. 24, 2018, Danielle Root and Liz Kennedy, "Increasing Voter Participation in America, americanprogress.org, July 11, 2018, Kelly Born, "Increasing Voter Turnout: What, If Anything, Can Be Done?, ssir.org, Apr. Could that ever happen in the U.S.? But Gupta said that there's been a "lack of political will" to give the initiative some momentum. [14], Pew Research Center found that 71% of Democrats and 59% of Republicans support making Election Day a federal holiday. All rights reserved. Is Election Day a federal holiday? | The US Sun The United States is out of step with the rest of the world: elections are held on weekends in 27 of the 36 OECD countries. A surprising map of the worlds national holidays (only two countries have no national day), Belarus sentences Nobel Peace laureate Ales Bialiatski to 10 years in jail, This is Bidens chance to press Scholz on Germanys rearmament, Why Russia and Ukraine are fighting over Bakhmut. Some countries, about 27 of them, make voting compulsory. An ordinary act of Congress could move Election Day to a Saturday or make it a holiday, thereby giving more people more . NOW WATCH: Arianna Huffingtons advice to Hillary Clinton, the majority of US states have voter leave laws, You can take time off from work to vote in 30 states here's the full list, voted during the 2016 presidential election, experts say such a scheme is unlikely to fly in the US, The evolution of American voting rights in 242 years shows how far we've come and how far we still have to go, In an interview with President Barack Obama in 2016. For more on the debate about making election day a national holiday, visit ProCon.org. Elections to the European Parliament take place over a period of four days (i.e., Thursday through to Sunday), according to the election days of the EU members states (as listed above). Russia's national holiday only goes back to 1992, when the Russian Federation was founded. By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider It is set by statute as "the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month of November.". Like Perez, Becker thinks giving voters more time and opportunity to vote is the best approach. And I think on Election Day we should have a national holiday which says, 'you don't have to rush to vote.' If so, how? The name change required at least 50% voter participation, and opponents to the name change advocated not voting at all rather than voting against the measure. With those options early in-person voting and more voter awareness on how to vote by mail voter turnout appears to be trending upward. A National Day is a date for a country to celebrate its nationhood. And she thinks corporate America has been leading the way, pointing out several businesses, including Walmart and Coca-Cola, that have announced paid time off and other accommodations to make voting easier for employees on November 3. "Election day should be a national holiday" is a claim of policy because we are discussing a policy which searches a solution for the presented argument. Incidentally, Australia routinely reaches more than 90. Georgias voter suppression bill is an assault on our democracy, Republicans in 48 states have introduced 389 bills, Tracking regulatory changes in the Biden era. [25], According to the AFL-CIO, 30 states require employers to allow employees time off for voting. A large Democratic voting rights bill that would have made Election Day a national holiday collapsed in the Senate this year when two senators refused to join their own party in changing. Should the United States Use the Electoral College in Presidential Elections? 3. When turnout is high, it becomes increasingly fruitless for politicians to play to their base in ways that allow a vocal minority to rule, which is how many American leaders currently operate.
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