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mcar

(43,647 posts)
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 03:48 PM Oct 29

My Florida poll watching experience - the MAGA mens' fear is real!

As many of you know, I live in a small rural, ruby red FL county that is predominantly, but not entirely, retirees. I'm one of the founders of our Democratic Women's Club chapter and am active in the local Democratic party.

This is my 3rd election cycle volunteering as a poll watcher for the Democratic Party.

Maybe because I've been reading so much about it and was more attuned to it. Maybe it's happened each time and I didn't notice, but on a busy afternoon of early voting, I saw several couples, where the man seemed to be really focused on the woman's vote.

Once a person gets their ballot and goes to a "booth," which is really a table with sides, their vote is their own. The booths are set very closely together, but you are not allowed to converse with the other voter, or check what they are doing. The precinct clerk and one other poll worker monitor, as they can, and will tell people, politely, that they can't talk.

Yesterday, in walks a couple in their 30s, I'd guess. The greeter directs them to station 4 and 5 to get checked in, right next to each other. The man seemed nonplussed that they weren't being processed together and kept looking, just a few inches to his right, like he had to be checking on his wife pulling out her ID. I noticed it right away.

The worker announced the wife as a first time voter. We all cheered (it's a sweet custom). The couple got their ballots and proceeded to 2 booths near where I was watching.

Husband, who is quite tall, immediately started looking over the top of the booths to watch his wife fill out her ballot, talking to her all the way. Clerk could not see this from where she was.

I got up, walked to the clerk (the only person I can talk to in the polling place) and told her that the couple was talking. She thanked me and went to tell them they couldn't do that.

Husband accused her of spying on his ballot! She assured him she was not, he grumbled, they cast their ballots and left.

Clerk thanked me again and told me what the guy said. I told her I thought the whole thing was creepy. She nodded in agreement.

I witnessed a few other instances of couples talking and the men being kind of watchful, but nothing as egregious as the first.

I do think MAGA men are spooked.

64 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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My Florida poll watching experience - the MAGA mens' fear is real! (Original Post) mcar Oct 29 OP
Spooked maybe but also very controlling of their wives. StarryNite Oct 29 #1
So creepy mcar Oct 29 #7
Thanks for the story! I choose to take heart from it. LAS14 Oct 29 #2
Good point mcar Oct 29 #8
Kind of like this (2016) Aviation Pro Oct 29 #3
Yep! mcar Oct 29 #9
You are misinterpreting this. He's copying her answers like he learned to do in school. Intractable Oct 29 #12
Booths need to be further apart or arranged differently. LiberalFighter Oct 29 #31
The Lincoln Project dropped an ad on this yesterday. carpetbagger Oct 29 #4
Boom!! Saw it yesterday. Freat ad. Love the older women's approving looks at the end. EarnestPutz Oct 29 #6
From an opposite perspective, I am 99.99% sure that my ex-wife is voting for Trump... Jack Valentino Oct 29 #44
Love It!!!!!! bdamomma Oct 29 #52
WOW. Voting truth to power. chia Oct 29 #56
We need to go back to curtains around the individual booths. Clouds Passing Oct 29 #5
The booths at this early vote location mcar Oct 29 #10
Our booths are touching 🥺 way too close Clouds Passing Oct 29 #11
should send obvious couples to booths far apart sdfernando Oct 29 #17
our booths touch too; they share a divider panel. and why they are called booths when they are anything but is beyond me Native Oct 30 #59
It is unnerving. Clouds Passing Oct 30 #63
Controlling assholes Sky Jewels Oct 29 #13
Thanks for keeping watch, mcar. brer cat Oct 29 #14
Happy to say it was mostly boring mcar Oct 29 #15
Is this like the villages? HagathaCrispy Oct 29 #16
We are Villages-adjacent. Citrus County mcar Oct 29 #24
I am sorry. HagathaCrispy Oct 29 #32
That's about the size of it mcar Oct 29 #34
Same here in Marion County adjacent Villages for the most part radical noodle Oct 30 #62
Yes. They seem to feel very comfortable in Florida. Mariana Oct 29 #36
This makes me feel funny. Linda ladeewolf Oct 29 #18
My husband and I did same mcar Oct 29 #25
I'm the research point person in our family. slightlv Oct 29 #27
My husband and I did this with our absentee ballots this year. NH Ethylene Oct 29 #30
My hubby is progressive... Whatthe_Firetruck Oct 29 #33
I usually do the research Linda ladeewolf Oct 29 #35
Controlling behavior which is abusive. Fuck 'em. Evolve Dammit Oct 29 #19
Wish every polling place automatically sent couples to booths well apart from each other MLAA Oct 29 #20
This is an argument against mail-in ballots. Demobrat Oct 29 #21
It is sad, and a form of control. erronis Oct 29 #22
Democratic turnout in Dade county is underperforming Aviation Pro Oct 29 #23
Yeah, WTF is going on there? mcar Oct 29 #38
Maga men also suck. Joinfortmill Oct 29 #26
If I tried to tell Herself how to vote, it would go badly for me. TomSlick Oct 29 #28
On election night, depending on how things go, we may need to check in with family and friends. Yavin4 Oct 29 #29
A family activity Metaphorical Oct 29 #37
They should separate husbands and wives so they are not next to each other in the voting booth. I like Jmb 4 Harris-Walz Oct 29 #39
I agree mcar Oct 29 #40
I have NEVER voted with my husband LeftInTX Oct 29 #41
The other odd thing I noted mcar Oct 29 #43
I'd never let a man or woman control my vote vercetti2021 Oct 29 #42
Even if not MAGAT, that kind of controlling behavior is unacceptable. iemanja Oct 29 #46
Imagine being married to that iemanja Oct 29 #45
It was setting off all kinds of alarms with me mcar Oct 29 #48
Yikes! In GA, we get a printout with our votes showing ecstatic Oct 29 #47
Yikes is right mcar Oct 29 #49
Yes, we feed it in too, but at the front area. If a line has formed ecstatic Oct 29 #50
Oh yes, ours is same. Voters are given a folder mcar Oct 29 #53
They should be.... paleotn Oct 29 #51
This is what I'm thinking mcar Oct 29 #54
SpookY!!! elleng Oct 29 #55
The fight continues! louslobbs Oct 29 #57
The men might've seen this video from the Lincoln Project SupportSanity Oct 29 #58
I noticed people on either side of me peeking, but I was prepared, many judges and such and was done in 2m. Brainfodder Oct 30 #60
scared witless poozwah Oct 30 #61
The little "walls" need to be a lot higher so it would not be possible... 3catwoman3 Oct 30 #64

LAS14

(14,816 posts)
2. Thanks for the story! I choose to take heart from it.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 03:52 PM
Oct 29

Not because the husband wants to control her, but because he suspected he needed to.

Intractable

(631 posts)
12. You are misinterpreting this. He's copying her answers like he learned to do in school.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 04:27 PM
Oct 29

When you don't know what you are doing, it's easy to think your neighbor knows more.

LiberalFighter

(53,528 posts)
31. Booths need to be further apart or arranged differently.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:48 PM
Oct 29

Arranged differently probably most effective.

Instead of all facing the same way in a row. First one facing North. Next one South and repeat. And they can be nearly side by side. That way even if they were looking at the one next to them it would be difficult to know they voted.

Jack Valentino

(1,516 posts)
44. From an opposite perspective, I am 99.99% sure that my ex-wife is voting for Trump...
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:58 PM
Oct 29

Makes me feel dirty. I regret that we ever shared a bed.


Some years ago I found her Facebook page--- where she had reposted racist bumperstickers
about President Obama....

(She acted as a good Democrat when she was with me--- even worked for Bill Clinton's primary campaign in '92---
but her father was over-fond of the N-word...)

mcar

(43,647 posts)
10. The booths at this early vote location
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 04:16 PM
Oct 29

need to be farther apart, at the very least. But they needed all the booths they could squeeze in.

sdfernando

(5,450 posts)
17. should send obvious couples to booths far apart
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 05:44 PM
Oct 29

not booth 4 & 5, but booth 4 & 7...that should be enough distance to stop the creepy overlook.

Native

(6,681 posts)
59. our booths touch too; they share a divider panel. and why they are called booths when they are anything but is beyond me
Wed Oct 30, 2024, 05:48 AM
Oct 30

if you step back from the writing surface just a few inches, you can easily see the other person's ballot. the woman next to me looked at mine. you would have to lean in and over your ballot to block it. the side panels are a joke.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
15. Happy to say it was mostly boring
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 04:54 PM
Oct 29

Our SOE does a great job. She's a Republican but sane.

 

HagathaCrispy

(154 posts)
16. Is this like the villages?
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 05:44 PM
Oct 29

All I could think about is what place on Earth could be this horrible? It has to be North Florida or The Villages

mcar

(43,647 posts)
24. We are Villages-adjacent. Citrus County
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:20 PM
Oct 29

When we moved here in 1992, it was all Democratic. Over time, it got redder and redder.

Still, we have strong Democratic groups here - as does The Villages.

 

HagathaCrispy

(154 posts)
32. I am sorry.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:50 PM
Oct 29

Must be all the racist old Yankees polluting Florida now that weren't there 30 years ago

mcar

(43,647 posts)
34. That's about the size of it
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 07:34 PM
Oct 29

And yet, my T*ump loving neighbors would give me the shirts off their backs - and I'd do the same for them.

I will never understand.

radical noodle

(8,849 posts)
62. Same here in Marion County adjacent Villages for the most part
Wed Oct 30, 2024, 08:44 AM
Oct 30

I think some of them are clueless racists by being "bring back the good old days" trump voters. They think of trump as some sort of benevolent boss man.

I'm seeing a lot less trump signs this time and actually seeing Harris/Walz t-shirts, signs, and bumper stickers which gives me a little hope.

Linda ladeewolf

(501 posts)
18. This makes me feel funny.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 05:48 PM
Oct 29

My husband and I planned our votes together. We discussed the Missouri Supreme Court judges, the amendments and wrote down two copy’s of the way we were voting. So we could remember. We sat side by side to cast our votes and occasionally would ask each other what we thought. The way the amendments are written is sometimes confusing. So we discuss it quietly. We always have done this. I didn’t know you could get in trouble for it. We are both very liberal democrats.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
25. My husband and I did same
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:22 PM
Oct 29

but voted by mail.

If you talked it over ahead of time, you shouldn't have to talk while you're casting your vote.

Look, I get it. A lot of people come in to vote and have no idea about judges, amendments, etc on the ballot. But if you did your homework and had a sample ballot to work from, you are doing it right.

Maybe it's different in MO, but in FL, you can't talk to each other while you are voting.

slightlv

(4,504 posts)
27. I'm the research point person in our family.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:34 PM
Oct 29

Straight democratic ticket and then research on what (should be) non-partisan offices and any amendments, etc. I download a sample ballot from our county and then proceed to fill it out as I do my research. After doing that, DH, grandson, and I talk it over to see if there are any disagreements. After all that's hashed out, I make copies for each of them and we take them into our polling booth with each of us. On some of these judgeships, etc., it's a lot of work to suss out whether and how much of their ideology they bring into the office with them, whether they're a D or an R, etc. This is where talking it over among ourselves prior to voting really helps all of us. By the time we vote, we feel good about the ballot we're casting.

Have never consciously thought about it before now, but DH and I have always sat a distance away from each other when we voted. It's not that we're going to try to control one or the other, it just seemed the "proper" thing to do. Don't ask me why... we've just never considered any other way! (LOL)

NH Ethylene

(31,010 posts)
30. My husband and I did this with our absentee ballots this year.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:43 PM
Oct 29

It was fun, but only because we are in complete agreement, and it wouldn't be a big deal if we differed (on the small things anyway; I wouldn't even be married to someone who would vote for Trump}.

Whatthe_Firetruck

(605 posts)
33. My hubby is progressive...
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 07:09 PM
Oct 29

...but has no tolerance for the research. Since we agree on the issues. I look everything and everyone up and fill out my ballot. Then he marks his the same.

This time, there was a race with two republicans, I thought about not voting for the race, but we decided to split it. Each of us voted for a different one to cancel them out.

Linda ladeewolf

(501 posts)
35. I usually do the research
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 07:42 PM
Oct 29

But since my eyes need an operation, my DH has started doing some of it. I can write it down, but have to write big.

MLAA

(18,691 posts)
20. Wish every polling place automatically sent couples to booths well apart from each other
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:11 PM
Oct 29

Demobrat

(9,966 posts)
21. This is an argument against mail-in ballots.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:12 PM
Oct 29

I wonder how many of these creeps insist on filling out the little woman’s ballot for her.

erronis

(17,275 posts)
22. It is sad, and a form of control.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:16 PM
Oct 29

If you can't trust your wife (or husband or partner) to do the right thing, then your relationship is already rotting.

TomSlick

(11,973 posts)
28. If I tried to tell Herself how to vote, it would go badly for me.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:35 PM
Oct 29

She will ask me my opinion about judicial races only because I know the candidates and she does not. Otherwise, my opinions are neither sought nor welcome. Fortunately, her politics are dependably liberal Democratic.

Yavin4

(36,694 posts)
29. On election night, depending on how things go, we may need to check in with family and friends.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 06:38 PM
Oct 29

Just to make sure that everything is okay.

Metaphorical

(2,351 posts)
37. A family activity
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:04 PM
Oct 29

We usually vote by mail, with my wife acting as our research coach. We do not look at one another's ballots, but do discuss the pros and cons of various candidates and positions, and usually (but not always) tend to vote in sync with one another. The cat(s) officiate, typically by sitting on the voter's guide when we most need it.

Jmb 4 Harris-Walz

(1,049 posts)
39. They should separate husbands and wives so they are not next to each other in the voting booth. I like
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:28 PM
Oct 29

the ones that have curtains, I think they are higher too.

LeftInTX

(30,943 posts)
41. I have NEVER voted with my husband
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:38 PM
Oct 29

I've been married 39 years. And his work used to check that we (husband and wife) voted in bond elections etc.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
43. The other odd thing I noted
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:50 PM
Oct 29

was how many couples came in to vote and one or the other, usually the woman, would say "we're together" when the greeter directed them to a separate check in sites.

SO and I have been married nearly 40 years. I was describing this to him when I got home and he started laughing. Like we have to be attached at the hip for everything? How did these people function at different jobs before they retired?

vercetti2021

(10,407 posts)
42. I'd never let a man or woman control my vote
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 08:44 PM
Oct 29

Then again I never plan on getting married nor would I have a relationship with a MAGAt. I wish these women would divorce these losers.

iemanja

(54,984 posts)
46. Even if not MAGAT, that kind of controlling behavior is unacceptable.
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:00 PM
Oct 29

and I'd never let someone like that near my life.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
48. It was setting off all kinds of alarms with me
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:23 PM
Oct 29

Prior to that, it'd been a standard poll watch. The workers are so good - friendly, helpful, well trained.

In a few cases, voters' registrations had lapsed - which I thought was a "no, you can't vote" situation here. But the workers did their magic and made it possible for those folks to vote.

Whatever we say about FL Legislature and their suppression tactics, I saw none of them in my early voting spot yesterday.

ecstatic

(34,548 posts)
47. Yikes! In GA, we get a printout with our votes showing
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:04 PM
Oct 29

That's great for transparency but not great if you have a hovering, controlling partner.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
49. Yikes is right
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:24 PM
Oct 29

Here, the voter feeds their completed ballot into the scanner. The scanner shows that the ballot has been counted.

ecstatic

(34,548 posts)
50. Yes, we feed it in too, but at the front area. If a line has formed
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:31 PM
Oct 29

or you're not sure what to do with it, there's time and opportunity for others to see what's on the paper.

mcar

(43,647 posts)
53. Oh yes, ours is same. Voters are given a folder
Tue Oct 29, 2024, 09:39 PM
Oct 29

with their ballot in it. Most of them put it in the folder as they are in line to cast their vote.

But the folder is 8.5" x 11". The ballot is longer. So votes can be seen if one is looking.

Brainfodder

(7,181 posts)
60. I noticed people on either side of me peeking, but I was prepared, many judges and such and was done in 2m.
Wed Oct 30, 2024, 06:01 AM
Oct 30

Found our mail in ballots later and shredded them, zero fraud here.

poozwah

(278 posts)
61. scared witless
Wed Oct 30, 2024, 08:04 AM
Oct 30

in as little as 18 years, the white race will become the minority as the brown races will overtake them. white males, the despots in that demographic, are becoming more and more frightened as white privilege becomes more and more slight privilege until it disappears completely. the irony is that white greed will be the instrument of their descendancy as they have invited more and more brown skinned people into this nation in an effort to keep labor costs low. karma is bitch slapping these alpha assholes and that is a good thing.

3catwoman3

(25,771 posts)
64. The little "walls" need to be a lot higher so it would not be possible...
Wed Oct 30, 2024, 09:41 AM
Oct 30

...for anyone to spy on anyone else.

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