Long queues outside early voting stations should not happen and are a form of voter suppression

Organisers have known for months that this election will be held during a global pandemic, and they ought to have made early voting more accessible. Long lines have formed outside early polling stations around the country, and whilst some suggest this due to increased voter enthusiasm, issues of staff shortages, limited numbers of polling stations and technical problems are also significant contributors. In some places voters have had to queue for up to 11 hours - this cannot be put down to voter enthusiasm alone.^[1] Long lines also disproportionately affect particular groups - an MIT survey found that in the 2016 election black voters on average had to queue for six minutes longer than their white counterparts.^[2] Long queues also disproportionately impact working class Americans, who cannot always get time off work to vote and queue, and Native Americans, who may live hundreds of miles away from their nearest polling station. Fewer open polling stations also disproportionately affect those living in urban areas. In Ohio, for example, one rural county has approximately 97 times more early voting stations per voter than a more densely populated urban county.^[3] Combined, the national picture is one where early voting is more challenging, particularly for those in densely populated or very rural areas. Voter groups at risk of voter suppression in the past are at even greater risk in this election.