And lately, mine starts here:

而最近，我從這裡開始。

with an obsessive daily check of the status of my absentee ballot

執著地每天檢查我的缺席選票的狀態。

Okay, so it looks like the county board of elections received my ballot on October 27,

好吧，看來縣選舉委員會在10月27日收到了我的選票。

but it says they still need to process my voter ID envelope and verify the signature..

但它說他們仍然需要處理我的選民身份證信封並驗證簽名... ...

Even before the coronavirus struck, more Americans each election were either voting early or

即使在冠狀病毒襲擊之前，更多的美國人每次選舉不是提前投票就是

voting by mail. 

通過郵件投票。

But in 2020, these numbers are expected to skyrocket.

但在2020年，這些數字預計將大幅上升。

The way Americans choose their President is complicatedー even in a relatively normal

美國人選擇他們的總統的方式是複雜的ー即使在一個相對正常的。

election year. 

選舉年。

In 2020, voters are facing a pandemic,

在2020年，選民們面臨著一場流行病。

an underfunded postal service

郵資不足

and the closure of polling locations in battleground states like Georgia, Ohio,

以及關閉喬治亞州、俄亥俄州等戰場州的投票站。

Arizona, and Texas.

亞利桑那州和德克薩斯州。

It's enough to make you want to just tune out until it's over.

這足以讓你想直接調到結束為止。

But once you know how votes are counted, you can understand why yours counts.

但只要你知道了投票是怎麼算的，你就能明白為什麼你的票數會被計算在內。

In most states, there are four ways Americans can vote: 

在大多數州，美國人有四種投票方式。

in person before election day, on election day, mailing an absentee ballot, or placing

在選舉日之前親自前往、在選舉日郵寄缺席選票，或在選舉日郵寄缺席選票。

it in a secure dropbox.

它在一個安全的dropbox。

Each of the more than 3,000 counties in the US has its own rules, 

在美國3000多個縣中，每個縣都有自己的規則。

but voting in person generally looks something like this:

但親自投票一般是這樣的。

When they show up to vote, election officials check each voter's name and address

當他們去投票時，選舉官員會檢查每個選民的姓名和地址。

to make sure they're registered, and voting in the right place. 

以確保他們註冊，並在正確的地方投票。

These employees always work in teams of two, 

這些員工總是以兩人一組的方式工作。

and both workers can't be from the same political party.

而且兩個工人不能來自同一個政黨。

Voters cast their ballots in private, 

選民們私下投票。

either by filling out a paper ballot 

或填寫紙質選票

or using an electronic voting machine.

或使用電子投票機。

Election officials collect the completed paper ballot. 

選舉官員收集填寫好的紙質選票。

They check the voter's name off the list, and place the ballot in a secure box.

他們從名單上核對選民的名字，然後把選票放進安全箱。

At polling sites with electronic voting machines, 

在設有電子投票機的投票站。

a computer records two separate pieces of information: 

一臺計算機記錄了兩個獨立的資訊。

the voter's name and the date they voted, and their vote choices.

選民的姓名和投票日期，以及他們的投票選擇。

Separating names and vote choices ensures that voters preferences stay secret.

將姓名和選票分開，可以確保選民的喜好保密。

The machine also prints out a receipt with just that first piece of information. 

機器打印出來的收據也只有這第一條資訊。

Election officials check the voter's name off the list, and place the receipt in a secure

選舉官員從名單上核對選民的名字，並將收據放在一個安全的地方。

box.

盒。

Step one of the process looks pretty much the same, 

流程的第一步看起來差不多。

whether you're voting early or on Election Day.

無論你是提前投票還是在選舉日投票。

For those voting absentee, it looks a little different.

對於那些缺席投票的人來說，它看起來有點不同。

In some states, every single registered voter gets an absentee ballot in the mail.

在某些州，每個登記的選民都會收到一張郵寄的缺席選票。

  In most states, voters have to fill out a

在大多數州，選民都要填寫一份 "選民手冊"。

request form like this one to get a ballot mailed to them.

像這樣的申請表格，讓選票郵寄給他們。

Once they fill out their ballot, voters can either mail it to their county board of elections,

選民填好選票後，可以將選票郵寄給縣選舉委員會。

drop it off in person, or place it in an official ballot drop box.

親自投遞，或放入正式的投票箱。

Before they can be counted, absentee ballots have to go through an extra step: verification.

在計票之前，缺席選票必須經過一個額外的步驟：驗證。

Election officialsー always working in those bi-partisan teamsーscan the sealed envelopes

選舉官員ー總是在這些兩黨團隊工作ー掃描密封的信封。

into a computer system.

進入計算機系統。

Next, they check the signature on the ballot envelope against the signature in the state's

接下來，他們會將選票信封上的簽名與州政府的簽名進行核對。

voter registration database.

選民登記數據庫；

In Missouri, voters also need to get their ballot envelope stamped and signed by a notary

在密蘇里州，選民還需要在選票信封上蓋章，並由公證人簽名。

public. 

公開：

Other states require a witness's signature.

其他州則要求證人簽字。

   If an envelope is missing one of these requirements,

如果一個信封缺少其中一項要求。

the whole ballot is invalid.

整張選票是無效的。

Most states start this whole verifying process weeks before Election Day.

大多數州在選舉日之前的幾周就開始了整個核實過程。

But Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, two crucial battleground states, 

但威斯康星州和賓夕法尼亞州這兩個關鍵的戰場州。

don't start verifying mail-in ballots until Election Day. 

在選舉日之前，不要開始核實郵寄選票。

Anotherー Michiganー doesn't start until the day before.

另ー個密歇根州ー直到前一天才開始。

Once the envelopes are verified, election officials unseal them and store the ballots

一旦信封被核實，選舉官員就會拆封並儲存選票。

in a secure box until it's time to start counting.

在一個安全的盒子裡，直到它的時間開始計數。

All paper ballots — from both absentee and in-person voting — are tabulated using a

所有紙質選票--包括缺席投票和親自投票--都是用以下方法進行統計的。

machine. 

機。

The data is stored on a memory card, and the counted ballots go back in their secure box. 

數據存儲在存儲卡上，清點後的選票會回到安全箱中。

Election officials combine the counts from the paper ballots and the electronic voting

選舉官員將紙質選票和電子投票的計票結果合併在一起。

machines,

機。

and the individual polling places report those numbers to the county board of electionsー 

和個別投票站報告這些數字到縣選舉委員會ー。

which reports them to the state board of elections.

它向州選舉委員會報告。

At both the county and state level, members of one political party can't have a majority.

在縣和州一級，一個政黨的成員不能佔多數。

On election day, polling places and county boards are 

在選舉日，投票站和縣委會是

continuously counting and reporting new numbers every hour.

每小時不斷計算和報告新的數字。

State boards of elections typically post the counts online after the polls close, 

州選舉委員會通常在投票結束後在網上公佈計票結果。

and keep updating them as more numbers come in. 

並在更多的數字到來時繼續更新它們。

It takes a while for all these votes to be counted — sometimes hours, sometimes days. 

所有這些選票都需要一段時間來計算--有時是幾個小時，有時是幾天。

When you hear this on TV on election night — "And look at all these wins. we're projecting for Hillary Clinton" —

當你在電視上聽到這句話時，在大選之夜--"看看這些勝利，我們為希拉里-克林頓預測的"--。

That doesn't mean all the votes in that state have been counted. 

這並不意味著該州所有的選票都被計算在內。

News networks make projections based on a certain percentage of votesー and they don't

新聞網絡做出預測的基礎上，一定比例的選票ー，他們沒有

always get it right:

總能得到它的權利。

A big call to make CNN announces that we call Florida in the Al Gore column

有線電視新聞網宣佈，我們在阿爾-戈爾欄目中稱佛羅里達州為 "大電話"。

...standby, standby...CNN is moving our earlier declaration of Florida back to the “too

......待命，待命......CNN將我們之前對佛羅里達州的聲明移回 "太

close to call” column.

靠近來電 "欄目。

News networks make a lot of money marketing “election night” like it's the Super Bowl,

新聞網把 "大選之夜 "當成超級碗來營銷，賺了不少錢。

but there's something to be said for adjusting our expectations a little — especially during

但也有一些東西可以說是調整我們的期望值--特別是在這期間

a pandemic.

大流行病；

After all, the law in most states give state boards of election weeks to make sure their

畢竟，大多數州的法律給州選舉委員會幾周的時間來確保他們的

vote counts are complete and accurate before certifying them as “official.”

在證明其為 "官方 "之前，投票計數是完整和準確的。

I'm going to keep checking up on my ballot every morning.

我每天早上都會繼續檢查我的選票。

And reminding my friends to do the same.

並提醒我的朋友們也要這樣做。

But on election night, I'd rather leave the projections to the pundits and rest up.

但在選舉之夜，我寧願把預測留給專家們，休息起來。

Democracy is a marathon, not a sprint.

民主是一場馬拉松，不是短跑。