Voting Rights Advocates Say America Is Unprepared For massive Turnout Nov. 4

[Hissyspit]

Source: Louisiana Weekly

Voting Rights advocates say America is unprepared for massive turnout Nov. 4

By Hazel Trice Edney, NNPA Editor-in-Chief
May 19, 2008

WASHINGTON (NNPA) - Record turnouts at polling places across the nation during the Barack Obama-Hillary Clinton battle for the Democratic nomination have revealed a continuation of serious flaws in America's electoral process that could cause a fiasco Nov. 4, according to a non-partisan report.

"The report demonstrates that most of the state and county and local election machinery was unprepared for a real heavy turnout," says Barbara Arnwine, executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law, a primary partner in the Election Protection Coalition that has manned voter protection hotlines since January. "It really demonstrates that our democracy has deep fault lines and is not being administered well...We are not prepared. We actively count on a low voter turn out and count on voter apathy."

The 15-page, "Election Protection 2008 Primary Report", jointly compiled and distributed by the Lawyers Committee and the National Campaign for Fair Elections, says lawyers and other volunteers who manned voter question and complaint hotlines over the past five months fielded more than 5,000 calls that include complaints and charges revealing everything from serious mechanical flaws to apparent intentional shenanigans and voter intimidation at the polls.

- snip -

Among the worse states was Pennsylvania, where more than 1,000 calls flooded the 1-866-Ourvote hotlines April 22. Among the complaints:

- In Pennsylvania's Delaware County, one voter was told the voting machines at her precinct were set for Republicans only. The voter was not able to cast a vote.
- Another Pennsylvania voter took her child with her, but a poll worker refused to allow the child into the voting area with her, claiming that her child "can read."
- Yet, another Pennsylvania caller said building materials were being thrown off the roof of the polling place to prevent voters from entering.
- Finally, in Pennsylvania, a caller reported a polling location with only three voting machines and no printers working. Voters were leaving without being offered emergency ballots.

Read more: http://www.louisianaweekly.com/weekly/news/articlegate.pl?20080519c

[sonias]

1. That scares me too

The republican controlled states are just going to make it more difficult for our voters. They did it in Ohio in 2004 and they'll do it again. It's the only way they know how to hold onto power.
:grr:

We need millions of people to watch the polls this November. And we need a massive voter rights education campaign.


Sonia

[Cosmocat]

13. Pa is not entirely republican controlled ...

a D governor, the Ds got the house two years ago ...

I can say PA is generally Fd up ...

Our county is in the T, but has a major univerisity so while there are more registered Rs, there is a strong progressive presence ... Our last board of commissioners got the touch screen machines, and took a beating over it, but their hands reallyw re tied because those machines can print a receipt, but the STATE has said if you put the receipts on those machines they will invalidate the entire election because of supposed concerns over confidentiality ... Nonsense, but there is NO traction in Harrisburg to do anything about it ...

Again, with a strong D governor ...

Some of it is R mischief, like Ohio it seems, but a lot of it is just general politics ...

[LeftyMom]

2. This is why election day needs to be a national holiday.

We need more people off work, so the delaying tactics don't mean they have to leave without voting. We need more people free to volunteer as polling place workers, with their party, or with independent organizations mobilizing voters and monitoring the election. We need to be able to involve our kids in the process, instead of having to duck in to the polling place without them, because we're in a hurry.

How many of these voter intimidation tactics don't get reported by people who are simply too rushed to look up who to call?

[Sam Ervin jret]

24. Right you are.

If we can make holidays for vets, memorial days, and a day for labor we can have a holiday for that which the people in these groups stand for or have died for.
Democracy
Freedom
The fight of the powerless over the powerful
A day off work and time to volunteer. But not a Monday holiday when people make it a three day week end. It stays at Tuesday so people stay in their cities or homes and vote,

And go out and help other do so as well.

What could be more important to our democracy than this? Remembering those past and celebrating our heroes is important but the now is the imperative.

[grannylib]

31. YES! I totally agree. The rePukes will never go for it; high turnout

is their enemy.

[Peace Patriot]

3. Gee, all those billions of dollars we gave to rightwing Bushite e-voting corps,

and we still can't run elections properly, efficiently and transparently. You'd think we'd learn not to give Bushites our money.

-----

One argument with this otherwise laudable warning. The lawyers' committee chair says, "We are not prepared (for big turnouts). We actively count on a low voter turn out and count on voter apathy."

Low voter turnout and voter apathy are not naturally occurring conditions. They have to be fostered by a corrupt system. So it's not something that our election officials and other leaders have "counted on"--as if it just sort of happens, like the weather. It's something they deliberately helped to create, through policies of hostility toward the public, secrecy, lying, manipulation, and selling the American people down the river, to global corporate predators. If people feel their vote means something, they vote. If they feel their vote is crap, they don't. And they feel their vote is crap when, for instance, they are part of a majority that opposes an unjust war, they vote and nothing happens. The unjust war continues. Or, for instance, they know their vote is crap when they call or visit their local corporate-run elections office and are given a bunch of bullcrap by so-called public servants on why they can't watch the votes being counted, or why certain data is not easily available to the public, or why their name has been struck off the voting rolls. You get treated like crap, you start feeling like crap. That's how a lot of Americans have been feeling for some time--since Reagan, actually, but never moreso than under the Bush Junta. They feel that their government has gone entirely out of their control. Why vote--when your political leaders are all living well, and you are not, and they clearly don't give a crap what you think about it? Why vote when, no matter who is in charge--Democrats or Republicans--millions of jobs bleed out of the country to far off foreign lands? Why vote when, no matter who you vote for, the rich get richer and the poor get poorer? Why vote, when your concerns are never addressed in the war profiteering corporate news monopolies? Apathy is an induced illness in the body politic. It is not something that "just happens." It is the result ferociously evil design.

The reason that election officials are unprepared for big voter turnouts--despite all the taxpayers' money they have lavishly spent on supposedly more efficient computer voting systems--is that they don't want big turnouts, no matter what they say. Their actions speak louder than their words. They consider the public to be "the enemy." They have adopted this attitude from the corporate vendors. They cloud their activities in high tech voodoo and double-speak. They don't want the public to participate, to be there, watching them, or to require accountability from them. They treat voters like the prison system treats prisoners--as dangerous crowds to be herded. They've replaced the people who used to count the votes with machines, and have driven the people out of the system. The notion that the public OWNS the voting system, and that the people are the SOVEREIGN RULERS OF THIS LAND, has become foreign to them. It is not "our system." It is "their system." They don't want big turnouts because big turnouts mean a RETURN to democracy, and the overturning of Corporate Rule--and furthermore the people may flood the system with more votes than the "trade secret" code can fiddle, thus exposing this goddamned scam of SECRET corporate control over election results. The whole thing--from the big fat contracts to the "trade secret" code, from the million dollars it takes to even think of running for Congress, to the 30-second crapass political ads on TV--is a fraud. Too many people voting threatens to expose it for what it is. Large voter turnouts are TOO democratic!

I say, "Bring it on!" Double the vote. Triple the vote. Let's have 100% turnout, and let these corporate shills, who call themselves public servants, DEAL WITH IT, or get the frak out of our voting system, and their corporate paymasters with them.

Jeez.

[Benhurst]

4. Where have our "leaders," including Reid, Pelosi , Clinton

and Obama, been since we regained control of Congress?

But then surely the Republicans wouldn't dare steal the third presidential election in a row, or would they?

[Preening Fop]

5. I have voted "Absentee" since the age of 27..... and there is no valid reason to do otherwise.

Tis easy to conclude,
voting on a 'working day' is both inefficient and impractical.

So,
travel plans are always made for that particular day,
always subject to inexplicable change at the last minute, of course.

After all,
we are a rather cunning and extremely predatory specie.

[kaygore]

10. Many places don't even bother to count absentee ballots---Beware

[LiberalFighter]

22. There should be a required sub count of ballot results

Those areas that are suspect as to whether absentee ballots are counted should:

First - Check any media or other accounts of the number of people voting absentee.

Second - Investigate and find out how many are recorded as voting absentee, voted early, and voted on in your primary election. The totals should equal total number of ballots cast. (Not total number of votes all candidates for an office received.)

Third - Find out whether oversight is by a board consisting of a person from each party. Or if the oversight is by another method.

Fourth - Contact your Democratic Party Chair to find out if there is any concern about election practices. If there are any concerns about absentee ballots then don't vote absentee.

Fifth - If there is a legitimate concern about absentee ballots not being counted write a LTTE expressing doubt about the local election office doing their duty and failing to provide election result details. That the election office has a duty to serve the public with integrity. And providing a breakdown on the type of election method used by the voters is important.

[kaygore]

26. Great ideas--You should post this as a separate thread

[Window]

6. Well, GET PREPARED!

Get in the "less affluent" neighborhoods and do what needs to be done. What the hell!!

If the committee knows what the problems are, they have and have had plenty of time to fix the "problems."

This is outrageous.

[moose65]

7. Early voting can help, too

I don't know what it's like in all states, but here in NC you can vote early, with "no excuse" for about two weeks before the elections (and the primaries, too)! It works out well for people because you can vote when you want to and when you have time, and some places are open on Saturdays, too. But people are resistant, I think... we have that "election day" mentality programmed into us and we just have to wait till the last possible moment to vote.

[CRK7376]

18. I voted early

in 2000 due to time off from work before traveling...haven't had a chance to be home on voting day in years, but always get an Absentee Ballot sent wherever Uncle Sam has me stationed...Afghanistan, Korea, Ft. Jackson, SC, Ft Bragg, NC.....

[mod mom]

8. Time for Hand Counted Paper Ballots!

Count them at the precinct level with full public witness!

[shadowknows69]

9. Because we haven't had 8 years to prepare for this or anything

Fucking lazy ass, good for little party leaders. As long as they deem their seats are safe, we don't need new voters.

[happygoluckytoyou]

11. PREPARE TO VOTE BY MAIL....

IT BYPASSES THE LINES

IT BYPASSES THE HITLER-YOUTH PROTESTS

IT AVOIDS THE TRAFFIC

IT AVOIDS THE IDENTIFICATION CARD BULLSHIT

----- IT COSTS A POSTAGE STAMP
----- YOU GET TO VOTE EARLY
----- CHECK ONLINE FOR YOUR STATE REQUIREMENTS

----------------IF YOU KNOW ANYONE WHO MIGHT NOT HAVE AN ID..... HELP THEM DO THIS

[ChazII]

33. Voting by mail is also the green thing to do. n/t

[EFerrari]

34. And you have no idea if that ballot is counted. n/t

[Dead Elephant]

12. Wow what shock...

We need a massive turnout, more then ever


http://DeadElephantClothing.etsy.com

[eagertolearn]

14. Oregon has the best system with mail in ballots....

I can't figure out why more states don't do this. It is stress free as you study the ballot and fill it in at your own home and then just drop it in the mail. Some hang on to it until the last day so they can take it in (they miss going in on the day). The only fraud they seem to have is someone occassionally will send in their dead spouses ballot!

[LiberalFighter]

25. Time to study the ballot is a very important reason!!

Here in Indiana the time limits are:

Primary election - 3 minutes
General/Municipal/Special election - 2 minutes

In Wisconsin the time cannot exceed 5 minutes when voters are in line. But the inspectors can determine a lesser time.

[eagertolearn]

29. I've always been a slow reader so that would drive me crazy! n/t

[Ferd Berfle]

15. ....AND.... Every anti-democracy scheme to subvert the election

is STILL IN PLACE.

Machines with 'special' software
Caging lists
no paper trail
Not enough machines in 'certain' precincts
etc
etc
etc

The Democrats have done NOTHING TO PREVENT THE DISASTER COMING IN NOVEMBER

It's almost like the Dems don't want to take control

[BayjanDem]

16. This is not good.

We know that when ever the waters are muddied, whenever there is rampant voter suppression and screw ups, the building always collapses on Democrats. They've got 5 months to fix this. Lets see what happens.

[natrat]

17. what about the 10 trillion $ help america vote act? sarcasm

[L0oniX]

19. VOTE ABSENTEE BALLOT ...it's the only way to insure your vote will be counted.

Screw the long lines ...screw the fucked up cheat machines ...screw the weather.

[jgraz]

32. Sorry, but no. In many states it makes it more likely that your vote will be trashed

In Rethug-controlled states, they will trash a Democratic ballot for any stray mark, including printing errors. I believe Greg Pallast had an article on the a few weeks ago.

[Doctor_J]

20. This would be sad if it weren't deliberate

instead it's criminal, and Obama should make it a daily campaign theme.

[bdamomma]

21. If we want to get off this cliff that we are all going to fall off of

we better get there and vote in record numbers, and push these SOB's out of power.

[Imagevision]

23. Like in Ohio last time- not enough voting machines for blacks but whites have no problem voting

[primavera]

27. You beat me to it

I'm quite sure that conservative districts will have all of the infrastructural resources needed to vote easily and conveniently, while predominantly Democratic and minority districts will be lucky if they have one antiquated, rusted-out old voting machine for their use (assuming they ever get past the cordons of police on voter intimidation duty, that is).

[robinlynne]

28. The republicans are prepared. They need the chaos to obscure their tracks.

(for the very few hours it takes to convince America that the Republican is president.)

[tom_paine]

30. Yeah..."unprepared"

Allow me to paraphrase:

If a Bushie's paycheck relies on them making a "mistake", you can bet your ass they'll make that same "mistake" every day.