Voting Solo

Nick Arvin voted early, and by mail.

Voting by mail eliminates much of the drama of cycling people through voting booths on a single day, and it is not nothing to lose the opportunity to watch a few strangers go in and out of booths while wondering to yourself how they are voting. An election, after all, is civic and social, a process through which we make communal decisions.

Countering the drawbacks of mail-in voting is the convenience of the thing, which is profound. By filling out my ballot at the dining table one night, I ensured I wouldn’t have to take any time off work. And I appreciated my laptop and Internet connection when trying to remember which amendment — No. 48? 58? — was the one I really, really wanted to vote against.