OPINION: Bring NY voting into the 21st century

Kelly Weisenseel and Lili Chasen are students at West Babylon High School. This is condensed from a presentation they gave Oct. 28, 2010, at the Renew New York forum at Hofstra University.

Have you ever wondered why Election Day is held on a Tuesday in November? Does the concept even make sense?

In 1845 Congress decided that Tuesday would be the most convenient day to vote. The choices were limited because of the nation's rigorous agricultural schedule. November was the perfect choice - crops had been harvested.

Today we still operate by the same system in an America that is vastly different. But with one of the lowest voter-participation records in the world, America must work to correct its Election Day issues.

Some options to consider: Many New Yorkers support the notion of "election weekend," with voting on Saturday and Sunday. The election weekend provides a longer time span and a cure for working voters, but it breaks tradition, which seems to be a concern of many political figures.

Make Election Day a holiday. This would increase the opportunity for individuals to vote. However, is it feasible for the nation to add another holiday? One alternative suggested by some is to celebrate the Martin Luther King holiday on Election Day in honor of the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Change voter registration. While the process is simple, people still fail to register to vote. A few options to consider: On your 18th birthday, you could be mailed your registration form; enable registration online (cheaper and more eco-friendly), or shorten or eliminate the deadline for registration for Election Day.

Technological advances should create ease and accuracy in the voting world. With electronic voting, people hope that there is no fraud. Unfortunately, many of the new electronic machines have had computer failures, or come up with faulty final tallies.

With the uncertainty of technology, maybe Oregon's got it right! It uses "vote by mail." Voters are sent a ballot in the mail, which they can mail back by Election Day. This allows people to vote at their own leisure, with plenty of time to send in their ballot. However, there could be setbacks as well, such as ballots not arriving in time.

Some states also allow "early voting," where citizens can cast ballots weeks before the actual Election Day. Is it desirable to have multitudes given this opportunity for very early voting before candidates have concluded their campaigns? At least we may no longer have "October surprises" in our election campaigns.