I wonder if voting a straight Dem ticket vs. selecting Dems

[babylonsister]

individually makes a difference?
If we're going to get screwed by the machines, I would think it would be more difficult to mess with my vote if I input each selection individually vs. just making one selection.
Also, I realize no one really knows, but does anyone have any guesses about how much more legitimate an absentee vote might be vs. going to the polls?

[Botany]

1. Do not vote a straight ticket

In many cases a straight party ticket in 04 resulted in a flip @ the top of the ticket.
In Indiana in 7 counties a straight party ticket gave the vote for President to a 3rd
party candidate.

find a judge or something and vote @ least one R.

But we need exit polling nationwide.

[babylonsister]

2. I'm thinking you're right, Botany.

My husband voted straight Dem in '04 and I was really uncomfortable with that; seems his vote would have been infinitely easier to hack if he only voted once. But what's with the voting "R" once? THat's the first I've heard of that.

[Botany]

3. many cases of straight party tickets (dem only)

Nationwide of having the vote flipped.

But what I learned in Ohio 04 was we ready for a Florida 2000 and "they" had
moved on to different scams. Although removal of blacks from voting rolls in
Ohio prior to the election (308,000) is much like Florida 2000.

[Dogmudgeon]

4. No difference, in general

But it depends on the machine.

There really has to be a major inspection of the voting machines. I assume that this is going to be done; we should find out how our own precincts' and districts' machines fared, and vote appropriately.

I live in a district where we still use the old-school mechanical voting machines. I still flip each of the individual levers, anyway.

--p!

[Bill Bored]

5. We do know! Straight party voting can switch votes if

the ballot definition settings are incorrect or hacked.

DO NOT vote straight party. Always pick individual candidates. Always review summary screens and avoid voting on ANY referrenda you don't understand. By selecting YES or NO, you may inadvertantly cause vote switching in other races on another screen, or cause other votes previously cast to disappear.

It's all in the ballot definition settings which are invisible to the voters. Summary screens may or may NOT detect this, and with op scan ballots, it may not be detected by the voters at all.

Happens all the time. See: <http://www.cumberlink.com/articles/2005/11/11/news/news02.txt>

[babylonsister]

6. Thanks for the confirmation! nt

[Wilms]

7. Thanks for asking.

I'll bet a lot of elections that were messed up, or stolen, had this issue involved. We've documented a few already.

[melissinha]

8. I suspected that too

I made sure to vote individually when voting a "straight ticket" but had a republican to vote for in last election (judge who my bro in law liked)

thanks for the info!