I don’t know if you’d call it announcing, but here the worker whose job it is to take the signed voter card states your name as it is passed to the worker on the computer (or the book). Honestly, I don’t know if that is official or anything, but everytime I’ve voted here, my name has been stated, not loudly but clearly.
[QUOTE=elucidator]
Well, that’s really something! Every single one, huh? They must read aloud literally hundreds of names every night! Do they take any special training in ethnic sensitivity in name pronunciation? Or do they just plow right into “Ramirez y Velascuez” or “Nguyen” or “Nahasapeemapetilo” any old way they can?
[QUOTE]
I’m also a Virginia voter, and Bricker is full of it. I’ve never had my name announced by the registrar.
I’m really trying to think and I don’t remember anything like this either. In Minnesota you go up to a table and say your name. They have a big ass book with a bunch of names and addresses in it. They find your name in the book and then hand you a ballot. It seems like there’s usually a couple of those election ladies sitting there and that maybe they confer while they’ve got their little blue heads together poring over the names. If one says my name to the other is that a “public announcement?”
From Bricker’s post, I had an image of somebody with a microphone doing a baseball announcer routine.
“Now casting his ballot…DIOGENES THE CYNIC!”
At which point the Bushtapo agents would pounce.
“Excuse us, Mr. Cynic, but have you ever posted treasonous propaganda on an internet message board? Could you please come with us? Do you know a Mr. Elucidator…”
If one lady quietly reading a name to another lady is a “public announcement,” does that mean the GOP operatives will have people hovering directly over the table ready to cockblock any “suspect” voters?
Will they identify themselves as partisan operatives or will they be hoping to be taken as election workers? Will they immediately start harranguing people directly for proper identification, passports, piss samples, whatever, or will they just voice some sort of objection to the election workers?
Do I have the right to demand their credentials? Can they single handedly deny me the right to vote? What does it take?
This stuff fascinates me.
You’ve figured it out Dio. You’ll be dragged off into a back room for therapy until you’ve ‘gotten your mind right’. After that, you can go vote and we’ll give you a nice elephant flag to go with your tinfoil hat.
Where I vote: there is a table with about 6 or 7 little old ladies sitting behind it. One or two at the end nearest the entrance keep track of a bunch of voter slips. You fill one out with name and signature, and take it to one of the next 4 or 5 little old ladies, each of whom has a book of names, A-E, F-J, K-Q, whatever. You hand the slip to the appropriate little old lady, she looks up your name in her book, marks your slip and strikes through your name in the book as “having voted.” You hand your slip to the last little old lady, who exchanges it for a ballot, with which you vote.
All of this can be accomplished without a single word, though the little old ladies know most of the regular voters and like to make small talk if you come in during a lull.
Even if they DID start reading the names aloud, exactly how is a monitor supposed to know a suspicious name when he/she hears one? (Aside from obvious stuff like Mr Jack Mehoff or Miss Dee Meanor.) Are they supposed to have the “legitimate voter” rolls for the precinct memorized? Or have they memorized the “don’t let these people vote” list? If they do neither, how do they make the judgement to challenge or not, then?
Previously cited:
I just have to wonder, how do we (the outside observers) know that the Republican party officials really did send out notices and got an “undeliverable address” response? I.e., do they actually have 35,000 notices with “Mail could not be delivered because address doesn’t exist” stamped on them by the post office, or are we supposed to just take their word for it?
Somebody help me out here. Who the hell are these recruits? And how can they challenge anything??? What am I missing?
If I were an asshole on election day, could I randomly point to some guy and say “I challenge your qualifications to vote!!!”? What gives?
I wish to have it noted, for the record, that I didn’t even touch this straight line.
Duly noted.
Yes. That’s what it’s all about. All they have to do is express doubt as to your status: and they can do this EVEN if you are still on the rolls. They fill out some paperwork, you fill out some paperwork, the poll worker fills out some paperwork, there’s all sorts of wasted time, and the net result is that you probably get to vote, but you’ve eaten up time that other people might have had to vote.
It’s a little used law that the Republicans realized they could use to en masse gum up the system this year, since they pretty much have no other hope in some states like Ohio.
I should also note that apparently your need to offer 100$ to get people to be Republican challengers. Democratic challengers, who are pledging not to challenge a single vote but to instead observe the conduct of the Republican challengers and inform voters of their legal rights, are all volunteers.
You don’t see the full genius of the game yet. First of all, it in some senses doesn’t matter WHO they challenge, just that they do it at all enough to slow things down but not seem overly disruptive. Second of all, yes, they can have alphabetized lists. And third of all, they are stationing these challengers in Democratic precincts where if you challenge someone, odds are pretty good it’s a Democrat. Of course, being black will help you face challenges too, as will being a union guy, etc.
That, and of course voting is now even MORE intimidation since instead of voter rolls, we have a mini-court set up to try you for daring to vote while being minority. You request your ballot, and suddenly some guy is there in your face screaming “VIOLATION!!!” Anything to make voting more confusing, more intimidating.
Exactly what I was thinking.
[QUOTE=gobear]
[QUOTE=elucidator]
Well, that’s really something! Every single one, huh? They must read aloud literally hundreds of names every night! Do they take any special training in ethnic sensitivity in name pronunciation? Or do they just plow right into “Ramirez y Velascuez” or “Nguyen” or “Nahasapeemapetilo” any old way they can?
Every time I’ve voted, I supply my name to Little Old Lady #1. She finds my name in the big printed book, crosses my name out, says it out loud to Little Old Lady #2, who hands me a blue card. I take the blue card and get in line for the booth, and hand the blue card to the Little Old Man who’s managing the traffic flow to the booth. He then directs me to the next open booth.
This has been both in Falls Church City and Fairfax County.
Oh – my surname is Hispanic, and yes, it’s been mangled considerably by the various Little Old Ladies over the years.
This thread is the first thing I came across where this would seem to fit, and save me from starting a new thread.
DemocraticUnderground.com is a HIGHLY partisan site, so anyone who’s likely to get a rash from name-calling Democrats should NOT click on this link. Others can see an interesting series of posts giving an on-the-ground look at what’s happening at some of the early voting sites. I make no claim for this person’s honesty or credibility. His scornful use of the term “repuke” might cause a lot of people problems, but it’s the first look we’ve had (well, I’ve had) at a polling place in action, so I thought it was interesting.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1176903
There’s something about that county…
Also, anyone who votes a “straight ticket” should keep in mind that in several states, a straight ticket only takes care of everyone ELSE on the ballot, but does not choose the President. You have to vote for them separately. North and South Carolina is definitely like that.
The BBC has sniffed out the rats in Florida. . Absolutely unbelievable. I hope and pray that the Kerry camp has enough lawyers to assist everyone that Jeb’s thugs try to keep from voting this year.
Let me update you on Republican strategy in OHIO and how well it’s going. :eek:
http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjournal/10044911.htm
I’ll summarize:
The Ohio Republican Party decided a few weeks ago, to glom onto the “returned mail” notices that were received by the various boards of election in Ohio. They had a few Republican stalwarts(=toadies) in each county sign a form saying that these people were not eligble to vote. No matter that they didn’t know any of these people whom they were challenging.
The hearing was held Thur. at the Summit County Board of Elections. The “challenged voters” had a chance to show up and defend themselves. The “accusers” had to show up too.
Result:
I hope they actually file charges against these toads. It would only be a fifth degree felony, but if it drives home the point that you don’t just “follow orders,” then it might be worth it.
So, the Ohio Republican Party fucked up.
You’ll have to read the whole article.
The Republican strategists are giving this election away. They must be running scared.