I've voted in person a few times. But I absolutely prefer mail in. I can calmly, quietly, and thoroughly look through the options on the ballot. In person I feel rushed and judged.
Exactly! I do it in front of my computer where I can research candidates and issues. If I went to a polling station, I wouldn't have the time to do that research. I tend to spend 30 min or more on my ballot, even though I'm pretty sure I can accurately predict the results of the election before even looking at the ballot (in my area, the R will win; if it's not a partisan office, the incumbent will win; if it's a yes/no, it'll be yes, unless it's something I actually want, in which case no).
(in my area, the R will win; if it’s not a partisan office, the incumbent will win; if it’s a yes/no, it’ll be yes, unless it’s something I actually want, in which case no).
That's really weird. In my state, the only signature that matters is the voter's, and the voter can track their ballot though every stage of the vote counting process. I forget what it looks like exactly, but I think there's an option for someone to sign if they're helping the person fill it out.
I personally drop mine off at the ballot box because I feel like it's safer (and I don't want to pay for a stamp).
Requiring a notary to sign would probably be considered illegal voter suppression and potentially considered a "poll tax" (because you'd essentially need a bank account to get access to a notary).
Then the counter is that some people can't reasonably get to a polling station, either due to work schedules, disability, etc, except at significant cost.
Less than 20 minutes on average for me. That is, 20 minutes from leaving home, walking to the nearest voting place, voting, and walking back. Added about 5 minutes or so when part of my work commute.