Back in the day, when voting happened on Election Day, Democrats were allowed to switch out their candidate on the ballot for any reason, even into October. In New Jersey in 2002, for instance, they were allowed in October to replace corrupt Sen. Bob Torricelli on the ballot with former Sen. Frank Lautenberg just because Torricelli was polling badly and even though the state constitution prohibited it.

That’s no longer possible in many states (though in New Jersey, everything is possible) thanks to early voting by mail and in person. Jersey girls and boys can start voting tomorrow, which is 45 days before the election. Virginians can vote on Friday, 46 days before the election. Michigan and Minnesota also start voting this weekend.