The Rachel Maddow Show
Long lines a new poll tax?

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Rachel Maddow

I know I know I know... I'm the last skeptic standing about Tuesday's election. I can read! I can hear!

But bear with me because I am so not convinced by the thing that was supposed to convince me about the process and disenfranchisement this time -- EARLY VOTING! It was supposed to make things better this time, right?

Well look at the lines.

In Georgia, people waited eight hours to cast a ballot today. There are reports of five hour waits in Indiana. In, North Carolina, the state board of elections ruled voting sites can stay open an extra four hours tomorrow to accommodate large crowds. And in Oklahoma the first voter at the Oklahoma County Election Board reportedly showed up at 4:30 a.m. even though the polls didn't open until 8 a.m.

Here's the thing: A day-long wait might as well be a poll tax. What does it cost you to wait eight hours? Is this the way our democracy works now? We're a country where only people who can afford to give up 20 percent of a week's pay are allowed to vote?