{"id":161225,"date":"2023-11-16T09:52:18","date_gmt":"2023-11-16T08:52:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=161225"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:27:03","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:27:03","slug":"turn-voting-into-an-outing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2023\/11\/16\/turn-voting-into-an-outing\/","title":{"rendered":"Turn voting into an outing"},"content":{"rendered":"

On election day, there are queues outside churches and you can peek inside the local primary school without feeling like a creep. But why would you vote at the nearest polling station? There are more than enough unique locations for you to turn voting into an outing.<\/p>\n

\"\"

\n\t\n\n<\/svg>\n<\/span>\n\tImage by:<\/span>\n\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tikRotterdam<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>

When you vote, you don\u2019t necessarily have to go to the nearest polling station. You can go to any polling station in your municipality. You can also cast your vote in a different municipality if you want to, but remember to apply well in advance. Why not use election day to become better acquainted with the municipality? Here are six unique locations to make celebrating democracy more fun.<\/p>\n

City Hall<\/h2>

Ah, a classic. Voting in City Hall, the heart of democracy in Rotterdam. Construction of what is now a national heritage building began in 1914. Not many buildings in the city centre were still standing after the bombardment of 14 May 1940, but the City Hall is one that was. It\u2019s a beautiful building and it\u2019s nice to take a look inside. There is a slight downside: it\u2019s always a popular place to vote, so there\u2019s a very real chance of long queues. Alternatively, you could book a tour<\/a> for another time, or take a virtual tour online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

A football-themed outing <\/h2>

In the Netherlands, Rotterdam is football heaven. On 22 November, you can vote at all three Rotterdam clubs that are sitting above Ajax in the table. Have you always wanted to take a look inside Het Kasteel, Van Donge & De Roo or De Kuip stadiums? You can\u2019t vote inside De Kuip itself, but you can vote right next door, in Rotterdam Topsportcentrum arena. Get together with your friends and visit all three. If you start with Sparta Stadium (known as \u2018Het Kasteel\u2019 \u2013 the Castle), then head south to Feyenoord\u2019s home turf, you can cross the Van Brienenoord Bridge to Excelsior\u2019s stadium. If you have a lecture on the Woudestein campus afterwards, you\u2019ll be nice and close. This cycling route is 15.4 kilometres.<\/p>\n

\u2018De Majesteit\u2019 paddle steamer<\/h2>

If you often cycle along Maasboulevard, no doubt you\u2019ve seen the sign: \u2018De Majesteit\u2019 paddle steamer. This 1926 cruise ship is usually tied up alongside Blue City 010. It can still sail, but it\u2019s now a party venue. And on 22 November, from half past eight in the morning till nine at night, it will be a polling station. A paddle steamer is a boat propelled by a paddle wheel. As this wheel rotates, it drives De Majesteit\u2019s engine. It\u2019s the only remaining steam-powered ship in the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

RSC\/RVSV student association \u2013 Soci\u00ebteit Walhalla<\/h2>

If you\u2019re not a member, you won\u2019t have spent a lot of time inside a student association. This is your chance to visit RSC\/RVSV\u2019s Soci\u00ebteit Walhalla, the only student association serving as a polling station. The location was built in the late 1960s for the Rotterdam Student Corps. The previous location on Heemraadssingel was too small, and the university had relocated from Pieter de Hoochweg to Kralingen. The student association followed. Prince Bernhard officially opened the building in 1968.<\/p>\n

Take a water taxi to Heijplaat<\/h2>

Have you ever travelled by boat to vote? There\u2019s a polling station in Heijplaat, in De Huiskamer 2.0, which is a community hub for local residents. Have a coffee, read a book, play table tennis or pool \u2013 and on Wednesday, of course, vote. This corner of Rotterdam started life as a housing estate for the workers of Rotterdam Drydock Company (RDM), who built and maintained ships there. The coolest way to travel to Heijplaat is by water taxi<\/a>, but you can also get there by metro.<\/p>\n

Gallery Untitled<\/h2>

Looking at art while standing in a queue to vote \u2013 who wouldn\u2019t want to do that? The Liskwartier neighbourhood has a rather special polling station: Gallery Untitled. It is currently showing a solo exhibition by a pair of collaborating artists, Driessens & van den Baar. Their artworks revolve around nature and landscapes, both threatened and protected. The subjects include fleeing people, forest fires and more. More art is on display in the other rooms. The gallery is not normally open on Wednesdays (only on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays), but an exception will be made for the election.<\/p>\n

If you don\u2019t have time to go out on Wednesday, there are also polling stations at Erasmus University College, Erasmus MC and on the Woudestein campus. Just remember to take your voting card and your passport to your lectures. You can find all polling stations here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\t

\n\t\t\n\t\t
\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Read more<\/h2>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t