While President Obama has made a suggestion, for mandatory voting as a way to improve voting in the United States, this goes against many viewpoints of the American public, in terms of not having the right of free choice.
This petition is put forward in the idea of voting by giving Americans a further incentive to vote, rather than imposed mandatory voting.
Voting stations and time: It allows for decreased crowding at given periods in the day during voting, with people not having to schedule around jobs and home.
School and business wise: While it is true that time and money is lost, schools and businesses in the country can utilize this as a further incentive, toward the idea of learning and a celebratory feeling for the country, in terms of enjoying the day with families and friends