University students hike to polling place that was moved 4.5 miles away

[JPZenger]

http://readingeagle.com/news/article/kutztown-university-students-walk-more-than-4-miles-to-maxatawny-township-building-to-vote

Excerpt:

Kutztown University "students walked about 4.5 miles from campus to the Maxatawny Township municipal building to vote. Part of their trek was along a busy section of Route 222, east of the Kutztown Bypass, where they walked only a few feet from tractor-trailers headed toward Allentown.

..."It was a dangerous undertaking," Professor Harmer said. "But voting is one of the most important freedoms we have, and I don't understand why the county is making it so difficult for students to vote."

Citing low turnout among students and inadequate parking for township residents, Berks County Election Services closed a campus polling place in Keystone Hall last year and moved it to the township building.

Joseph Scoboria, student government president, was unsuccessful in an effort to have the Berks County commissioners reopen a polling place on campus. Scoboria was riled by a comment attributed to a county official, who allegedly said: "If you can walk to the liquor store, you can walk to the polls."

By the way, this is a public university with almost 10,000 students. A similar situation happened a few years ago at the predominately African-American Cheney University west of Philadelphia. They had their polling place moved from an on-campus building to an inconvenient site a few miles away.

[randys1]

1. Cake walk compared to what the terrorists have in store for 2016

You will find voting to be as difficult as getting a building permit to add a room to your house....

Plan on it being almost impossible to vote if you fall into any minority category.

[malthaussen]

2. If the good professor doesn't understand...

... then he should turn in his degree.

-- Mal

[justhanginon]

3. I totally agree. I think he understands but just

will not come out and say it. It is straight up voter suppression and disgusting that the republican scum can get away with it time after time. I was under the evidently mistaken impression that democracy was all about being able to vote and not trying to hinder it at every opportunity.

[ReRe]

4. When election boards do that...

... they need to organize transportation for voters that their decision disenfranchises.

[PADemD]

5. Time for Early Voting and Vote by Mail

Petition Governor Wolf.

[Divernan]

6. Wolf can't make those changes: constitutional amendments are required.

I researched and posted this a few weeks ago. Here's the deal:

When it comes to modifying Pennsylvania's election procedures, Article VII, section 2 of the state constitution would have to be amended as to length of time/number of days allowed for voting:
, because state constitution currently limits elections to a single day.

Section 2
General Election Day

The general election shall be held biennially on the Tuesday next following the first Monday of November in each even- numbered year, but the General Assembly may be law fix a different day, two-thirds of all the members of each House consenting thereto: Provided, that such election shall always be held in an even-numbered year.

As to voting by mail, i.e., absentee voting, the legislature could make some changes ("provide a manner&quot by general law to absentee ballot requirements, but really the state constitution needs to be amended so that anyone can vote absentee without meeting the current pre-requirements, and that voters can request to be provided absentee ballots for all elections without having to apply at every election.

Article VII, Section 14
Absentee Voting

The Legislature shall, by general law, provide a manner in which, and the time and place at which, qualified electors who may, on the occurrence of any election, be absent from the State or county of their residence, because their duties, occupation or business require them to be elsewhere or who, on the occurrence of any election, are unable to attend at their proper polling places because of illness or physical disability or who will not attend a polling place because of the observance of a religious holiday or who cannot vote because of Election Day duties, in the case of a county employee, may vote, and for the return and canvass of their votes in the election district in which they respectively reside.

[PADemD]

7. Gov. Wolf will have the bully pulpit, in spite of the Republican legislature.

PA needs to make it easier to register and vote.