In this day and age everyone wants to update their status on every moment of lives, but voting might be one of those things you leave off the social media list. I’m sure everyones timelines are filled to the brim with updates about voting, Obama, and Romney. Did you pictures are prohibited in voting booths. In some states if caught taking picture while voting its considered a misdemeanor, with the possibly of jail time of up to a year or a fine.
As pointed out by Pro Publica, the investigative journalism group in New York City, it is illegal to take a photo or a recording in polling centers in many states. State laws in Florida, Texas, Kentucky, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina and Georgia, for instance, directly prohibit recording inside a polling place.
“No photography is permitted in the polling room or early-voting area,” Section 102.031(5) of the Florida statute says.
In addition to recording or taking photos in polling places, in many states, including Alaska, New York, New Jersey and Utah, taking a photo of one’s marked ballot and sharing it is also prohibited. The Digital Media Law Project provides a breakdown by state for where it is prohibited or allowed to take photos or recordings in polling places.
“In Maryland and in many states, Instagraming the ballot or utilizing other recording devices while voting in a public place is prohibited,” Bradley Shear, a social media lawyer in Maryland, told ABC News. “People should feel free to exercise their constitutional right to vote without fear that their votes may be captured and posted online for the entire world to see.
[Abc]
