It’s a Frustrating Time to Be a Nevada Voter: How the 2020 Election is More Stressful than 2016
Second time voter and Nevada native Saralynn Lindsay shares her experiences with voting during presidential elections in Nevada. Nevada is one of the last states to finish tallying votes as frustration mounts for final results. Nevadans that voted blue are more frustrated than anyone.
The Excruciatingly Slow Counting of Votes In Nevada
In the current presidential election Democrat candidate, Joe Biden, is up in electoral votes, possibly needing only six more to win over the presidency from Donald Trump to reach the decisive 270 count.
It just so happens that Nevada, one of the last states to finish recording votes, has six electoral votes. America is on the edge of their seats, sounding off their frustration on Twitter and Tik Tok. As a Nevadan it’s even more frustrating.
Nevada has historically been a swing state, which means we change our mind depending on the candidate. In the 2016 election Nevada voted blue, barely. Hillary Clinton won over the state by the smallest of margins. The reason why, and why Nevada is typically a swing state, is Nevada only has two counties with a large population, Clark (Las Vegas) and Washoe (Reno and Sparks). Larger cities are more likely to vote blue and smaller towns are more likely to vote red. The cities tend to have an upper hand but it’s always a close call.
As of early morning Thursday, Nevada was blue, but only by 8,000 votes. Before the election President Trump started regulating and trying to essentially stop mail-in voting in Nevada. He publicly attacked the USPS and tried suing Nevada for allowing mail-in voting. The state didn’t stand for it, however, and is still accepting and counting votes that come in. Voters needed to have their ballots postmarked Election Day at the latest. The rest of America might want results now, but we aren’t going to rush perfection.
Frustration and Annoyance as a Nevada Voter
This is my second time voting in a presidential election, both being in the state of Nevada. I did not vote for Donald Trump in either election. The reason is different for both. The first time I didn’t like either candidate, but I wasn’t very strongly opposed to either. The outcome for the country and for Nevada didn’t matter to me. This election, however, I have much stronger opinions and care much more how my state votes.
When looking at a national map, a shocking amount were red. After the events of this summer, protests, riots, tear gas and rubber bullets, trying to take away LGBTQIA+ rights, I expected the map to light up blue. When clicking on a state that is blue, very few of the counties are actually blue, making city voters extremely important. Nevada is no exception. Being from a small town, Dayton, population about 9,000, where hunting, economy, and freedom are valued most, it’s not surprising seeing the state light up red. It is saddening though because small town values are changing at a different rate than those in the cities and in a different direction.
Family With Opposing Views
It’s a very common thing to have family members with opposing views, especially when it comes to maternal and paternal sides of the family. My family was no exception. I was one of the only ones in the middle, not identifying as blue or red. When I was with my dad and grandpa, I was expected to see red. If I said anything opposing them, especially in 2015 -2016, they would say “Oma is rolling over in her box,” and I’d go apologize to her ashes on the mantle.
The opposite was seen with the other side of my family, they were a mixed bag. Hunters that love their guns but also are pro choice. They were easier to navigate for the most part, some of them would ignore anything you said whether you agree or not, making sure their opinion is superior.
This election has seen very strong, opposing sides, not many being a neutral voter. One of the most difficult things as a Nevada voter is the split family aspect. If my state turns a color I didn’t vote for, that’s okay, that’s politics. With families however, it’s harder to move past an election. This year is harder to navigate than 2016 because of the strong opinions for and of President Trump. No matter what the outcome is, being a Nevada voter is frustrating but right now we have some of the most important votes in the nation.
