Voters head to the polls in South Carolina on Saturday for that state’s presidential primary. Yet, a Saturday election is an outlier in the U.S.
Most American elections — like the 16 state primaries next week — are held on a Tuesday.
Back in the day — aka the 18th and early 19th centuries — when it came time to elect a president, Americans didn’t so much do it on election day. They did it during election days.
"You had an entire window," said David King, senior lecturer in public policy at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. "So, people could hold their elections anytime from November first to December fourth."
Federal elections were held on different days, county-by-county, across the various states. And they were a little different than they are today. For starters, they were less private.
"They were very public," said King. "In fact, you would often have to show your ballot and who you were voting for."
And they were also a bit more raucous.
"They were boisterous and drunken affairs," said King. "Election cakes filled with rum were a big part of what was happening."
If that all sounds precarious, it was. That became clear in 1844 during a hotly contested and extremely close election between James K. Polk and Henry Clay. Turnout was high — nearly 80% — but so were apparent instances of fraud.
"If you were holding your election in early November, your county could report the results and that had an impact on the other states," explained King. "Well, some of those reports were fraudulent. And it became very clear that they needed a uniform day — across the country — when everyone would vote."
So, Congress went to work. At the time, the U.S. was a largely agrarian society and many of the all-white, male voting population were farmers.
"Elections were usually held in the county seat," said King. "And you have to remember that county seats were designed to be one day's ride away by horseback."
Americans were also generally a God-fearing Christian people and would not travel on Sundays, so Mondays were out.
"Agricultural fairs and market days were on Wednesdays," said King.
A Tuesday election day meant farmers could travel on Mondays, vote Tuesday morning, then head back home in time for market on Wednesday.
In January 1845, Congress passed a law establishing the date for federal elections as the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November. While municipalities and states can hold elections or primaries on any day they want, Federal elections — which happen every other year — must take place on that Tuesday in November.
"So, we end up, out of convenience, holding many of our other elections on Tuesdays because of this big stick that Congress holds over our heads," said King.
In 2020, the U.S. is no longer an agrarian society. The electorate is no longer exclusively male and white. And turnout for elections is not what it used to be. Some think Tuesday voting is part of the reason why.
"If we had, say, a Super Saturday instead of a Super Tuesday, we would very likely get an enhanced turnout," said Norman Ornstein OF the American Enterprise Institute AND co-founder of the group, Why Tuesday? — an organization committed to increasing voter registration and turnout.
According to 2018 analysis from the Pew Research Center, weekend voting is the norm among democracies across the globe, including several countries that generally see higher voter turnout than the United States.
"There’s evidence that if you make it easier for people to vote — and a lot of countries they’ve decide that the weekend is a time to do it — it can make a difference," said Ornstein.
Ornstein said if he could wave a magic wand, he’d make Election Day a full day: 24-hours, from 12 p.m. on a Saturday to 12 p.m. on a Sunday.
"If a Wal-Mart can stay open 24/7/365, why can’t we stay open 24/1, once every two years?" he said.
Ornstein said he realizes that’s ambitious — both logistically and economically.
Some have argued for making Election Day a federal holiday, and some states — including Rhode Island — have made it a state holiday. But Ornstein favors a different first step.
"The best alternative for us, right now, would be to make Veterans Day our voting day," he said.
That Monday is already a federal holiday, meaning more Americans will have a day off from work. And it lands, conveniently, in early November.
"The beauty of this is not just that we can do it without any cost by adding a new holiday, but we can do it in a way that puts the spotlight on our veterans who shed blood for the right to vote," said Ornstein.
All it would take to move Election Day is an act of Congress. And while that might seem like a herculean feat these says, Ornstein is optimistic and can envision a world where as early as 2024, Americans are voting on a Monday.
