Planning to Tweet or Instagram Your Ballot? You May Be Committing a Felony
Voting in a presidential election is pretty exciting. And, these days, when we do something exciting we want to tell the world about it through social network sites like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
But while there may be a temptation to take a photo of your completed ballot and post it on the internet with pride, it's not a very good idea. In fact in states like Wisconsin it's a felony to let anybody else see your ballot or a photo of your ballot.
In some jurisdictions both showing others your completed ballot and taking photos inside of a polling place are against the rules. So by tweeting a shot of your ballot you would be copping to a double whammy of illegality.
There are a few states -- including Delaware and Illinois -- where this exhibitionist electoral behavior is a-ok. (You can see a breakdown of relevant election laws here.)
But why risk it? While it's true a picture can be worth a thousand words, on this day a simple 'Barack Obama" or "Mitt Romney" speaks volumes.