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Brits and Americans vote on different days of the week, but their reasoning is the same
With the US election now just weeks away, everyone will soon be visiting their nearest polling place to cast their vote, but have you ever noticed voting is always on the same day of the week?
American elections are held on a Tuesday, and England similarly has a select day of the week for voting – but it’s not the same. The UK votes on Thursdays instead, although their reasoning is identical.
Why Americans vote on a Tuesday
Federal elections in the United States have been held on the same Tuesday in November for centuries, since 1845 to be exact. On January 23 of that year, the US Congress passed an act to establish a uniform time for holding elections.
The “Tuesday after the first Monday in November” was selected, which originally only applied to presidential elections, but was later extended to include congressional ones too. The act increased the speed of elections and voting has been on this Tuesday ever since.
So, why was this specific Tuesday chosen? Well, as Britannica explains, farmers made up most of society in the 1800s, so voting had to be at a time that suited them. By early November, the harvest was over, so voting wouldn’t affect their crops.
Now onto the day of the week. Wednesdays were market days when farmers would go and sell their crops in the nearest town, so it couldn’t be on a Wednesday. Most Americans were Christians, so Sunday was a day of rest and worship.
Back in those days, there were far less polling places than there are today, and it might have taken people several hours, if not a whole day, to get there. There were obviously no cars, so their only method of transport was horses.
So, they also needed ample travel time too and ultimately, Tuesday was seen as the most convenient. The rule about it being the Tuesday after the first Monday in November was made so that election day would never fall on November 1, which Christians celebrate as All Saints’ Day.
Brits vote on a Thursday instead
In Britain, there was never an act or law passed to determine the day, date or even month that elections must be held. A general election can happen at any time, but voting has almost always taken place on a Thursday since 1965.
There have been a few exceptions to the rule, such as in 1978 when a town in Scotland called Hamilton held a by-election on a Wednesday so that it didn’t interfere with the World Cup in Argentina the next day.
However, citizens usually go out to vote on a Thursday, which again simply comes down to social and cultural factors, the BBC reveals.
The UK is also a Christian country, so Sundays were out of the question. Plus, weekend voting would never be an option as politicians aren’t at work. People are also usually paid on a Friday in England, so that could cause a distraction from voting.
Thus, sometime in the 19th century, Thursday was chosen as the most appropriate day to vote across the country.
Their reasoning is exactly the same
America and England have different voting days but their reasoning is exactly the same – ease.
It’s all about choosing a day that is suitable and convenient for not only the citizens voting but also the leader and politicians.
Midweek is widely considered the most fitting as it’s not too close to the weekend and doesn’t interfere with any other activities.
In both countries, there have been calls to allow public voting over multiple days to make it more convenient for everyone, but as it stands, there are no plans to do this.
In the coming weeks, don’t make this mistake when talking about the election with friends, and don’t forget to ask your therapist who they are voting for.
