# Whose business is it whether I voted or not? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 1, 2012, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817 "2012-06-01T22:14:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![flatlined](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb9ed0/32.png) [@flatlined](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flatlined)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2012, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/21 "2012-06-02T22:59:08Z")
I would be livid if I got a mailing like that. I understand that its public information. If I wanted to, I could find out if my neighbor’s voted, but it just seems like such an invasion of privacy for an entity to send that info out without anyone requesting it. As to the books, they are going away in my state. There is a new gizmo that allows a poll worker to swipe a voter’s driver’s license and be able to tell if they are registered to vote and if they are at the right poll. The voter signs the screen before getting the ballot. As a Records Manager, this distresses me. Those records are supposed to be kept forever, but technology changes so fast and data is always lost during the migrations. Oops, sorry for the highjack. tl;dr version. I share the outrage. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/22 "2012-06-03T00:58:43Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > It definitely shouldn’t be pubic, though. I’ll be in my voting booth. ---
**Author:** ![Makeitstop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/bb73d2/32.png) [@Makeitstop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Makeitstop)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/23 "2012-06-03T03:51:32Z")
> [@digs](#): > > Wisconsin native here: proud of it until just last week when I finally snapped. > How many hours left until the incessant Robo-calls and the misleading mailers and the inflammatory TV commercials end? > > And why don’t I just stop answering the landline and watching TV until Tuesday’s over? Yes! Come hang out at the dope, where there’ll be no mention of…nvm. Fellow Wisconsinite here. I feel your pain. It’ll be over soon. For a little while, at least. ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Jocko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncle_jocko/32/2932_2.png) [@Uncle\_Jocko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Jocko)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/24 "2012-06-03T14:59:37Z")
I’m not getting the outrage here. This isn’t information about HOW you voted, just whether or not you voted at all. Big whoop … why would that information bother anyone? If we’re going to be all, “OMG, voter fraud, show your ID, prove you are a legal voter, SAVE DEMOCRACY!” then this is just the reasonable next step, right? Now, as for your name being on a flyer available to the neighborhood crack dealer or whatever, I kind of understand … but if the name’s not matched with an address, I still don’t quite get the anger. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/25 "2012-06-03T15:19:57Z")
The name IS matched with an address. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/26 "2012-06-03T15:26:58Z")
So wait. There’s a list I can check against for when people complain about their political leaders? “BLAH BLAH BLAH OBLAMER BLAH BLAH BLAH” Well hey, I see you didn’t bother to vote in 2008, so SHUT THE FUCK UP. You had your chance then and you couldn’t be bothered to participate, so as far as I’m concerned you got fuck all to say now… There could actually be some value in this. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/27 "2012-06-03T15:40:36Z")
> [@rachelellogram](#): > > So if you never registered to vote, your name isn’t on any lists right? Just curious. Right. So they know you didn’t vote. > [@Absolute](#): > > Wow, I did not know that records of _whether a person voted_ in a given election were public. That definitely seems like a violation of privacy. In Wisconsin, at least, anyone can request a voter list, and the list has a check mark next to each election each party participated in for the last 10 elections. Those lists are used to find people who don’t vote regularly and could be strongarmed to come to the polls. I think, but I’m not sure, that the voter’s party affiliation, if any, is also public record. You can see how this could be quite useful for party workers looking for a specific vote. ---
**Author:** ![Una\_Persson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/una_persson/32/346_2.png) [@Una\_Persson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Una_Persson)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/28 "2012-06-03T16:05:58Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Absent death squads hunting down people making the wrong votes, I never understood why people got so anal and secretive about their voting. [The death squads are already here… (Video link with sound, NSFW).](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pMGu4pbivkY&feature=related) ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/29 "2012-06-03T16:45:21Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > I think, but I’m not sure, that the voter’s party affiliation, if any, is also public record. You can see how this could be quite useful for party workers looking for a specific vote. if the state has an open primary then you never have to disclose your party affiliation at the polls. states with a closed primary you would have your party affiliation recorded. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/30 "2012-06-03T16:52:14Z")
If you don’t like the laws about disclosure of voter names, then vote for a representative who will change them. ---
**Author:** ![mister\_nyx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@mister\_nyx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mister_nyx)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/31 "2012-06-03T20:54:59Z")
This could just be my partisanship and general paranoia talking, but I sort of wonder if this might actually be a smear attempt trying to make it look like a Democratic-affiliated organization is doing something obnoxious. It could be real – left-leaning groups are way more likely to try to push non-voters and occasional voters to the polls than right-leaning groups. But it’s hard for me to imagine how anyone working in politics could possibly think this would do anything besides make the group sending it out look bad. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/32 "2012-06-03T21:21:30Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > I think, but I’m not sure, that the voter’s party affiliation, if any, is also public record. You can see how this could be quite useful for party workers looking for a specific vote. Yup, that’s how a county GOP group in Illinois found out my husband and I chose Democratic ballots in a primary, as noted above (and as **johnpost** noted, we have open primaries). ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/33 "2012-06-03T21:21:42Z")
> [@mister\_nyx](#): > > This could just be my partisanship and general paranoia talking, but I sort of wonder if this might actually be a smear attempt trying to make it look like a Democratic-affiliated organization is doing something obnoxious. > > It could be real – left-leaning groups are way more likely to try to push non-voters and occasional voters to the polls than right-leaning groups. But it’s hard for me to imagine how anyone working in politics could possibly think this would do anything besides make the group sending it out look bad. I kind of wondered about that, but the people behind the Greater Wisconsin Committee referenced in Boyo Jim’s post are mostly trial lawyers, and hence there’s a good chance they are actual Democrats/left-leaners. > [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > I little research is making me very leery of the Greater Wisconsin Political Fund. > > [Their website has](http://www.greaterwisfund.com/index.html) no “contact us” link, no names, no it solicits money but not volunteers, and the contact info they have is the same as the [Greater Wisconsin Committee](http://www.greaterwisconsin.org/index.html). > > The Greater Wisconsin Committee is another shadowy organization, according to [this article in Madison’s Isthmus newspaper](http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=21773): > > The Fund seems to be the openly political arm of the Committee, though the committee claims non-partisanship. ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/34 "2012-06-03T21:34:13Z")
> [@SenorBeef](#): > > Absent death squads hunting down people making the wrong votes, I never understood why people got so anal and secretive about their voting. Maybe think of it as a spoiler on what your political stances are, maybe that’ll change your mind. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/35 "2012-06-03T21:51:20Z")
> [@mister\_nyx](#): > > This could just be my partisanship and general paranoia talking, but I sort of wonder if this might actually be a smear attempt trying to make it look like a Democratic-affiliated organization is doing something obnoxious. > > It could be real – left-leaning groups are way more likely to try to push non-voters and occasional voters to the polls than right-leaning groups. But it’s hard for me to imagine how anyone working in politics could possibly think this would do anything besides make the group sending it out look bad. There are media stories all over the state about these mailings (apparently there were two slightly different ones, but I only got one), and the Greater Wisconsin Political Fund is named as the source in virtually all of them. They are not denying it, or even commenting on it AFAICT. If it was some other group faking their name, they would be all over the media denying it, and charges and counter-charges would be flying. This is not happening. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/36 "2012-06-03T21:53:23Z")
Oh, and I forgot to mention that there’s a veiled threat/promise/reminder that everyone will also know who voted (or didn’t) in Tuesday’s election as well. ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Jocko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uncle_jocko/32/2932_2.png) [@Uncle\_Jocko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Jocko)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/37 "2012-06-03T22:25:49Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Oh, and I forgot to mention that there’s a veiled threat/promise/reminder that everyone will also know who voted (or didn’t) in Tuesday’s election as well. And? Then what happens? Considering the woeful state of voter participation in this country, I don’t think the fact that you didn’t vote in a certain election is going to really expose you to ridicule by your neighbors. If it really bothers you, go to the polls, sign the registration sheet, and then don’t fill out the ballot, or file a blank one, or write in Newt Gingrich or Dennis Kucinich for every race. Next time, you’ll have the check by your name that says you voted. Done and done. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2012, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/38 "2012-06-03T22:46:36Z")
Meh. I’m a Madisonian, very involved in the recall. And getting numb to all the slimy politics going on (there’s a rumor that The Gov’ll be indicted in an investigation soon after the election). The voter mailing gave me pause, but my Outrage Circuits have been overloaded for a year now. ---
**Author:** ![mister\_nyx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@mister\_nyx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mister_nyx)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/39 "2012-06-04T02:01:24Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > There are media stories all over the state about these mailings (apparently there were two slightly different ones, but I only got one), and the Greater Wisconsin Political Fund is named as the source in virtually all of them. They are not denying it, or even commenting on it AFAICT. If it was some other group faking their name, they would be all over the media denying it, and charges and counter-charges would be flying. This is not happening. Right. I don’t think there’s any doubt that this “Greater Wisconsin Political Fund” is the author of these campaigns. But that doesn’t mean they are a legitimate left-wing group. They may be sponsored by GOP donors in order to make the anti-Scott Brown campaign look bad. I mean, as a comparison, this year I got robo-calls urging me to vote for Santorum in our state’s primary, sponsored by a group that implied they were siding with Obama and trying to get me to vote in the GOP primary in order to nominate an unelectable candidate. I looked them up, and they are a weird fringey far-right group that actually _was_ trying to get Santorum into the White House. It appears to be the case that there are occasionally dishonest tactics used in American politics. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2012, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817/40 "2012-06-04T02:09:33Z")
> [@mister\_nyx](#): > > Right. I don’t think there’s any doubt that this “Greater Wisconsin Political Fund” is the author of these campaigns. But that doesn’t mean they are a legitimate left-wing group. They may be sponsored by GOP donors in order to make the anti-Scott Brown campaign look bad… No, they are not. They are a known quantity. They are a left-leaning 527 organization that has been around for years. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whose-business-is-it-whether-i-voted-or-not/623817.md?page=3)